ICYMI: Rep. Grijalva Hosts Town Hall on Border Wall Construction in Ajo

Ajo, AZ — Congresswoman Adelita S. Grijalva participated in a town hall and listening session hosted by the International Sonoran Desert Alliance to discuss ongoing and planned construction along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The town hall followed Rep. Grijalva’s site visit to Quitobaquito Springs, a cultural and sacred site in the ancestral homeland of the Tohono O’odham Nation. The area is also home to three endangered species and is at risk of being damaged as the Trump administration prepares for construction of a second meaningless border wall. 

“For the Tohono O'odham Nation, this is not just a border. The border cuts through an ancestral homeland that existed long before the United States or Mexico, long before the international boundary was drawn where it is today. It separates communities and families. It makes traditional practices more difficult. It places enormous pressure on lands and places that hold cultural and spiritual significance.” said Rep. Grijalva

During the town hall, Rep. Grijalva announced that she had led a letter with Congressman Raul Ruiz and other border-region Members of Congress to the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of the Interior urging the agencies to suspend construction until meaningful Tribal consultation has taken place.

She also announced plans to introduce legislation that would end DHS’s sweeping authority to waive federal laws to expedite border-wall construction.

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