Why Walls Won't Work: Repairing the US-Mexico Divide

by Michael J. Dear

Why Walls Won't Work is a sweeping account of life along the United States-Mexico border zone, tracing the border's history of cultural interaction since the earliest Mesoamerican times to the present day. As soon as Mexicans, American settlers, and indigenous peoples came into contact along the Rio Grande in the mid-nineteenth century, new forms of interaction and affiliation evolved. By the late-twentieth century, the border states were among the fastest-growing regions in both countries. But as Michael Dear warns, this vibrant zone of economic, cultural and social connectivity is today threatened by highly restrictive American immigration and security policies as well as violence along the border. The U.S. border-industrial complex and the emerging Mexican narco-state are undermining the very existence of the "third nation" occupying the space between Mexico and the U.S. Through a series of evocative portraits of contemporary border communities, Dear reveals how the promise
and potential of this "in-between" nation still endures and is worth protecting.

Now with a new chapter updating this story and suggesting what should be done about the challenges confronting the cross-border zone, Why Walls Won't Work represents a major intellectual intervention into one of the most hotly-contested political issues of our era.

Genres: Politics, Immigration

286 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2013

Reviews

[Jeremy · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Partition is the crudest tool of geopolitics" -- thus Dear ends his book, whose thesis is quite clear. What surprised me, however, is that the book is less of a political or polemical treatise and more of a history. The first two-thirds of the book trace the history of the borderlands, both on the Mexican and U.S. sides, a space that Dear calls a "third nation" and which has always suffered the most due to the political vagaries of the more ephemeral nation states surrounding the third nation. He begins with pre-European invasion history and then proceeds to discuss 19th- and 20th-century geopolitics of the U.S. and Mexico.

All of this history does help, however, to demonstrate Dear's thesis, which the author explains in the last chapter of the book, giving a few reasons why walls are obviously a terribly misguided idea (e.g., the third nation of the borderlands has strong connective communities, or because all walls come down), even though they get certain politicians elected and re-elected -- and continue to damage the border communities that have little or no say in the matter. Ultimately, the border walls are no better than the Berlin Wall and should only be conserved to "commemorate that moment in history when the U.S. lost its moral compass."

This book is a great read, and re-read, for understanding both current immigration debates (and the mirage of "border security") and ongoing U.S. imperialism (particularly economic and political domination of Mexico).

[Chuck · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dear is a talented researcher and writer, but a poor thinker. This book rests on the notion of the existence of a "third nation" in the borderland area. Dear admits that this is a figure of his imagination—he acknowledges that its "existence may be difficult to measure and hard to prove" (72)).

The problem here is methodological. Social theory is interesting because it can tell you measurable, verifiable things about the world. However, if you begin from the premise that your claims need not be verifiable or measurable, then you can say anything at all. You can say that there is a "third nation"on the border, you can make racist claims about the border like Trump, or you can say that the border is populated by marauding herds of unicorns. Why not? One unverifiable claim is as good as the next.

[Raquel Martinez · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is very informative and supplied many details US public schools have neglected to provide in California history. The author failed to shed his colonial perspective. Some phrases were incredibly disappointing when referring to indigenous people (eg describing them as ferocious and iso no the term “Indian problem”). There was hardly any information on indigenous people and when they were mentioned, Dear used all the wrong words (what I feel are red flag words/terms that white people use yet claim to not be racist) It was disappointing the author did not reflect more on how settler colonialism played a role in the interactions at the border. I learned a lot but I really hated reading this text. If you’re interested in an exhaustive summary of the survey taking place after the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848 and many details on US policies, I recommend this text. If you’re looking for an unbiased history of the border and fair accounts of contact with indigenous people, look elsewhere. This is not an ethnic studies approved perspective.

[Barbara Lovejoy · Rating 5 out of 5]

With all the building a wall frenzy I highly recommend this book for everyone. It gives a reasonable perspective on why walls don't work...AND what to do instead. It definitely opened my eyes.

[GONZA · Rating 2 out of 5]

I must admit I was waiting something different from this book, that is more about the territory than the policy of immigration of the U.S. So I was a little bit disappointed but the fault is not of the book.

Devo ammettere che mi aspettavo qualcosa di diverso da questo libro, che riguarda più il territorio di confine piuttosto che la politica degli Stati Uniti e del Messico rispetto alle migrazioni. Quindi sono rimasta un po' delusa, ma la colpa non è del libro.

THANKS TO NETGALLEY AND OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS FOR THE PREVIEW

[Brooke Henshaw · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read the physical book with the audio following along - for school