Crushing
Barely
begins to capture
The
weight of the grief
That
sits
Mountain
sized
Upon
my soul
As
a departing visitor to
El
Paso/Ciudad Juarez
A
land of divides
Rich
and poor
Brown
and white
Citizen
and not
Identities
crafted
By
powerful attitudes in
Custom
and law
Citizens
also
Who
are ignorant and not
Of
the ironic embrace
Of
the dizzying pace
of
the twin plantsÕ
patterned
economic
growth
In
one more city seduced
By
the dream of
The
Òpackage dealÓ of boom trade
Maquila
zones of prosperity
That
have forged in this part of the world
Paths
that die in the desert
Surrounded
by silently
Weeping
mountains
El
paso a la muerte
Danger
Danger
To
Women
Young
and old
Victims
both
One
kind to the violence
By
men who stalk them
For
inhabiting the young female body
Their
mothers and fathers equal victims of the
Tragedy
and horror of losing a daughter sister wife to
sexual
terrorism
Assaulted
by haunting images of
A
loved oneÕs last few
Hours
and minutes of
A
stolen life
And
of a youthful beauty
Tortured
Maimed
Raped
And
brutally burned
And
killed
Meanwhile
my own
Image
of silent screaming
And
wanton abduction
Occurring
in the day or night
Is
permanently etched in my tired
And
frightened mind
I
find myself suspiciously staring
At
presumed terrorists
Inhabiting
male bodies
And
directing my silent
Raging
stares
At
clean bodies
And
suited men in elegant ties
The
other terrorists
I
charge
Those
capable of crippling
Governments
and countries
With
an offer to sign here
On
the dotted line
And
welcome to free trade
Licentious
trade
The
wonders of working
Your
poorest citizens into legal slavery
And
sending their children
Into
early graves
Yes
The
indifferent terrorist
Selling
his countryÕs and
His
companyÕs wares
His
cheap wages
To
a cheapened and
Once
loved culture
Of
safety and simplicity
We
once knew in Old Mexico
The
Mexico he only sees through
The
lenses of ancient class divisions
And
bigotry
The
Mexico one President
Must
salvage from international shame
While
the other curries favor
To
the immigrant labor he must
At
once welcome in his own country and blame
Yes
these are the terrorists
Fighting
global wars
Pressuring
nations with
Candy
bars and iron sticks
Never
stopping to think
Oh
not at all
Of
the part they play
Big
or small
In
this nightmare of a time
To
be a woman and to be living and working
On
the border
In
the horror chambered
Export
processing zone
Elegant
terrorists who with their complacency have violated spaces of privacy
Corners
of safety
Valleys
of desire, need and despair
The
terrorist in a blue suit checking into fancy hotels
Holding
business meetings aimed at neighborly mutual profit as they ignore the symbols
of poverty knocking at the door
Never
to be made part of the conversation
Other
than to ask for
Another
clean towel
On
which to wipe the
Dainty
sweat of working
Hard
to ignore
The
chant and plaintive cry of the young dead womenÕs families
Who
ask but Why?
Who
demand that all that could be done
Will
be done
When
a woman welcomed
To
be their workers
Might
be honored
And
reclaimed in spirit and name
If
not in her rotting remains
By
the man in that thousand dollar suit
Who
helped to recruit
Her
innocence and her labor
Her
lethal trust and confidence
For
a cheap little wage that to her
Was
a small liberation from
Poverty
and despair
When
in fact iit sent her
Daily
walking to a factory to and fro until one day
Approaching
it
Or
headed home
She
was met
By
bloodthirsty
Depravity
who drove
Her
to a desert
And
the Palace of Crime
Erected
in the devilÕs playground
Exploit
and murder
processing
zone.
Elvia
Arriola
El
Paso, TX 4/27/02