Not all is lost because we are not alone. If she can believe that, then so can I.
When we arrived at Tornillo, we planned to send up a balloon into the air, with a banner hanging down from it that read, “No estan solo” (You are not alone). We wanted the kids imprisoned in tents at Tornillo to know that there were people that cared about them, and that were fighting for them on the outside. It was simple, it would not have changed the world, but it would have given them hope. It would have reminded them that not all is lost. For us, that was worth the risk.
Unfortunately, the balloon never got up high enough for them to read. A local rancher, who had been encouraged to feel free to engage in vigilantism by CBP, interrupted and eventually pulled a revolver out, waving it around and threatening to shoot down the balloon.
Eventually, through peaceful dialogue, he was deescalated and perhaps began to realize how foolish he was being. He put his revolver in his front pocket. But that did not stop him from saying, “Well, I’ll let you do it if you pay me $5,000.” I wondered how much, if anything, CBP was paying him to outsource their intimidation.
Eventually, the balloon was deflated, as were our spirits, and we all went our separate ways.
Rev. Hannah Adair Bonner is partnering with Auburn to bring immediate first hand witness of both the horrors, and resilient organizing, on the ground in Texas this week. This blog first appeared on her personal blog.
Read Rev. Hannah’s other pieces here, here here and here.
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