BNHR Annual Report 2019 in English

Dear Friend, Allied, Supporter and Member,

December 10, 2019

It is a fact, never in recent history our border and immigrant communities were subjected to such aggressions as the ones that happened this year. Children in cages, family separation, children dying in detention centers, border walls, rejection of refugees and asylum seekers, deployment of active duty soldiers (Marines), arrival of white supremacist militias, and the racist, xenophobic attack in Walmart in El Paso.

As all of that unfolded, another fact was also unprecedented, the response, resiliency and resistance of our border communities, specially of those families that are members of the Border Network for Human Rights.

As you will be able to see in this End of the Year Report (2019), and extraordinary and collective effort happened. Our families organized and protest the detention of children and families, our members brought their voices to Congress, our leadership testified before at a Congressional field hearing, BNHR efforts to highlight family separation became part of a documentary in a popular streaming platform, our legal efforts to condemn the administration’s intentions build the border wall were successful, and Congress took the first steps to pass legislation to make border and immigration institutions accountable and with effective oversight mechanisms.    

All of that happened because we have a community that has been organizing at the US/Mexico border for many years.  Thousands of families, hundreds of volunteers, dozens of community leaders, and extraordinary group of people that are part of BNHR staff make all of that possible. I am very proud of this community process that has challenge the status quo and that has decided to not to remain silent.

A new year is coming, with many other challenges, issues, problems, but I am very confident that the Border Network for Human Rights will continue to lead the struggle for human rights not only at the border, but as part of an impatience nation fighting for a better future for all.

Thanks for all your support and solidarity,

Fernando Garcia

Founder and Executive Director

Border Network for Human Rights

Click anywhere on the image to view the report!