No Wall They Can Build, Episode 11: From East to West, Part II: Solidarity, and Home

Welcome to Episode 11, the final installment of No Wall They Can Build, the Ex-Worker Podcast’s serialized audiobook exploring borders and migration across North America. This episode concludes the book with personal reflections about the author’s own journey in and out of the desert and the unavoidable links that bind all of us across all borders. To become a real force for change, those who would act in solidarity must overcome the limits of privilege politics and guilt, understanding our activities as fighting for our own lives and dismantling the illusion of separation between ourselves and others. What links migrants, solidarity workers, and all people struggling to survive amidst the disorienting nightmare of postmodern civilization is the pursuit of dignity—a sentiment beautifully expressed in a message sent by Rachel Corrie, an American solidarity worker in occupied Palestine, to her mother in 2003 just weeks before she was murdered by an Israeli bulldozer while attempting to stop a home demolition. Two final stories—one chilling and one touching—illustrate the astonishing peril of the desert even for experienced travelers, and the solace that unexpected alliances with creatures of the desert can provide for migrants and solidarity workers alike. Ultimately, the book concludes, to end death in the desert, to rediscover our own humanity, and to have any hope of our survival on this planet, there is one thing in common that we all must do—find our way back home. {June 13th, 2019}   -------SHOW NOTES------   Table of Contents: Who Will Tear Down That Second Border With You? {0:01} Introduction {0:54} Solidarity {1:12} Story #1: Through the Valley of the Shadow of Death {3:38} Dignity {7:18} Rachel Corrie on Dignity {10:52} Story #2: Luther the Tomcat {11:14} Home {16:07} All Our Relations {19:46} Dedication {21:20} In Memoriam {21:36} Conclusion {21:48} Breaking News: the felony trial of No More Deaths volunteer Scott Warren has ended in a hung jury. While this means that the government can still bring new charges against him, for the time being it is a strong victory against the state’s effort to criminalize humanitarian aid for migrants. Read statements by Scott and his lawyer here. Content advisory: this episode includes a discussion of sexual violence from 4:48–5:25. Note: For this audiobook, we will not provide full transcripts of the text of each episode as we do for The Ex-Worker or The Hotwire. If you want to read along, you can find the book in PDF. This week’s episode covers pages 197 to 208. You can check out our poster diagramming the North American border regime and immigrant solidarity stickers. Over the summer, the Ex-Worker Podcast collective will begin work on our next audio book project, which will begin to appear in the months to come—stay tuned! If you have any suggestions or feedback about this audiobook or other Ex-Worker projects, get in touch at podcast[at]crimethinc[dot]com. Thank you for listening!