Before the limit
Claudia Guadarrama
Winner of the 2005 Canon Female Photojournalist Award
Every day, hundreds of undocumented migrants, mostly from Central American countries, try to cross Mexico on a journey fraught with danger, risking their lives to fulfill the dream of a better life as workers in the United States. This journey through Mexico begins in the states of Chiapas and Tabasco, at the border between Mexico and Guatemala, where migration controls are minimal, being a very rough area where migrants can easily cross illegally. There are no official records about the number of people crossing the Mexican border illegally; the only official data is the number of migrants detained by Mexican authorities and sent back. Last year, 96 013 illegal migrants were caught crossing the Chiapas border, 44.5% of the total number detained in Mexico. Impunity, corruption and violence are everywhere on the border, and the migrants just have to cope with it, as well as with military, immigration and police authorities, and civilians who take advantage of their vulnerability to extort, rob and assault them. If they manage to survive that, they still have to face the danger of the gangs along the border ready to kill or rape them if they catch them, not to mention any number of accidents en route that will destroy all hopes of their dream coming true.
Preview
This is one of the most critical stages in the journey to the United States. Harassment and extortion of migrants are common. Crossing the border has inevitable consequences and only a few get through. It is a question of survive, die or stay put. The double speak of the Mexican government, the media and society on the migration issue is flagrant along the southern border: they insist on the US government respecting the rights of Mexican migrants crossing the US border, yet abuse the civil rights of the Central American migrants. Officially there is no problem on the southern border. My photographs report on the journey and situation of illegal migrants in this part of the country. A major part of my work on the border is on the freight train that crosses Mexico; it is only important as a means of free transportation to the final goal, i.e. the northern border, and as a means of avoiding immigration checkpoints. The journey by freight train is dramatic and perilous. Some illegal migrants survive, while others are maimed in frequent accidents. “Before the limit” is the result of five years work on the southern border. During that time, the number of migrants traveling to the United States has increased, and the official policy of the Mexican government to deal with the phenomenon has merely led to more people trafficking, boosting the price of corruption and adding to the dangers of crossing Mexico, producing a filter effect, with only the strongest surviving. Illegal aliens fleeing poverty in Central America remember Mexico for repeated violations of their civil rights by the authorities and for the xenophobic attitude of communities along the border.
