Tohono O’odham Nation Opposes 62-Mile Trump Border Wall as October Construction Nears
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Sep 17
Tohono O’odham Nation Opposes 62-Mile Trump Border Wall as October Construction Nears
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Sep 17
Summary
Tribal leaders say the planned 62-mile barrier along the Arizona-Mexico line would split the Tohono O’odham homeland and could begin construction as soon as October.
The nation argues the wall would restrict members’ movement across their binational territory while damaging wildlife habitat, disturbing sacred burial sites and weakening tribal sovereignty.
Chairman Verlon Jose cast the project as a profound desecration, comparing it to bulldozing through Arlington Cemetery and saying the federal government is ignoring the tribe’s identity and land.
The dispute marks a break from years of tribal accommodation with rising border enforcement on its land, where earlier barriers ranged from barbed wire to steel fencing aimed at smugglers.