{"id":596636,"date":"2018-06-27T08:00:44","date_gmt":"2018-06-27T14:00:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/?p=596636"},"modified":"2018-06-26T15:39:51","modified_gmt":"2018-06-26T21:39:51","slug":"on-the-border-colonial-violence-goes-unpunished","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/2018\/06\/on-the-border-colonial-violence-goes-unpunished\/","title":{"rendered":"On the border, colonial violence goes unpunished"},"content":{"rendered":"

COMMENTARY:\u00a0<\/strong>Last week, a Tohono O\u2019odham citizen was struck by a Customs and Border Protection vehicle<\/a> on his nation\u2019s reservation in southern Arizona. In cell phone footage of the incident<\/a>, the Border Patrol SUV never stops, leaving the scene at a casual pace immediately after striking Paulo Remes. Remes was treated and released from a local hospital, and the Tohono O\u2019odham Nation says it has opened a criminal investigation into the incident and is being assisted by federal authorities.<\/p>\n

\"Border

Screen capture from cellphone video posted by Amy Marie on Facebook<\/p>

The foot of Paulo Remes can be seen as he lies on the ground after a Border Patrol vehicle hit him, then drove away, on the Tohono O\u2019odham Nation.<\/p><\/div>\n

The Tohono O\u2019odham Nation is the second largest reservation in the United States. The Nation shares almost 80 miles of its border with Mexico. The O\u2019odham\u2019s traditional homelands extend far into Mexico as does many of its tribal members. If you ask tribal members on the Tohono O\u2019odham reservation about the Border Patrol incident, or other reservations where tribal citizens encounter law enforcement for that matter, you will likely hear something along the lines of \u201cthis kind of behavior isn\u2019t new; what\u2019s new are the cell phones.\u201d Native Americans have long been harassed by authorities, but now those incidents are more likely to be captured on video.<\/p>\n

Incidents like these further erode trust between law enforcement and the communities they are tasked with protecting. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Native American men are the most likely to be shot by police.<\/a>\u00a0A\u00a0recent NPR survey found that more than half of Native Americans living in majority Native areas reported they have experienced discrimination from law enforcement<\/a>. A third of those polled said that as a result they avoid calling the police even when they need assistance.<\/p>\n

Think about that: The U.S.-Mexico-Tohono O\u2019odham border is one of the most active corridors for illegal activities along the international boundary<\/a> and is regarded as a threat to national security by the Trump administration.\u00a0Yet\u00a0the community there\u00a0\u2014 which is\u00a0most affected by crime and in the greatest position to help law enforcement keep the border safe\u00a0\u2014\u00a0is afraid to call the police.<\/p>\n

The Tohono O\u2019odham have a complicated relationship<\/a> with the U.S.\u2019s southern border that goes much deeper than tensions with the Border Patrol. The tribe is a good illustration of America\u2019s legacy of drawing lines between communities in an effort to divide people by race.<\/p>\n

Tribal members have traveled across their lands and the modern-day border for generations. Outside questions over security and immigration have created new difficulties for the tribe, and Trump\u2019s proposed border wall has exacerbated those tensions<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t want to be separated from our relatives in the south,\u201d Art Wilson, a Tohono O\u2019odham legislative councilman told High Country News<\/em> in March<\/a>. \u201cWhen we can\u2019t gather with them, I really have seen, over the years, how that impacts our people\u2019s involvement in ceremonies, and how it tears families apart.\u201d<\/p>\n