Santa Ana Rally

On Saturday, January 27th, I traveled to the Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas to join 600 others in protest of the border wall. Established in 1943 to protect migratory birds, the refuge is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year! But it faces an unprecedented threat from the construction of an impenetrable border wall. A generous farm owner adjacent to the refuge made his property available for the rally. Tents, a stage, chairs and table were set up immediately adjacent to the refuge parking area and banners unfurled declaring “No al Muro” or “No Border Wall.” As a people took photos with a huge paper-mache jaguar, Dreamers, poets, politicians, Native Americans, conservationists and musicians took to the stage to argue against the offensive and ineffective border wall.

Defenders co-sponsored the event and traveled to Texas because this is ground zero for Trump’s proposed border wall. According to the chief of the Rio Grande Valley Border Patrol Sector, the refuge will be the “starting point” for construction in the Lower Rio Grande Valley. Construction of the wall, which would cause irreparable damage to the refuge and its mission to protect wildlife, will begin as soon as funding is secured. Defenders is drawing a line in the sand. We must stand up and prevent this kind of untenable destruction in our national wildlife refuges and we will raise our voices with the people of the Lower Rio Grande Valley that see a wall as an insult to their culture, families and decency.

We have already taken the Trump Administration to court over its waiver of more than 30 environmental laws to build new border wall in California. We believe strongly that ours in a nation of laws and that no single President has the authority to ignore the intent of Congress. We are also concerned that the border wall will stop imperiled species from naturally recovering in the U.S. including the jaguar, Mexican gray wolf and ocelot. Defenders of Wildlife will continue to join communities along the southern border and citizens across the country to prevent the border wall from destroying our natural heritage.

-Bryan