2020 Recovered Human Remains Map
This map is from Humane Borders in partnership with the Pima County Medical Examiners Office. Each red circle represents a recovered human remain.
US Immigration Policy and Death in the Desert
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Since 1999 more than 2000 people have died in the Southern Arizona Borderland. These are women, men children fleeing poverty, and trying to reunite with family. Since NAFTA was passed in the mid-90’s more than 3 million people have been displaced from farms in Mexico. NAFTA has benefited US agribusiness, but devastated small Mexican farmers. US-subsidized agricultural products (corn, sugarcane etc) are cheaper to buy in Mexico than the same produce grown locally.
People in the past crossed the border to work in the US while their families remained in Mexico. Following the passage of NAFTA it was anticipated that more people would come north for work, so politicians closed off the traditional border crossing areas. Walls and increased militarization were employed along the border n Texas, California and Nogales, Arizona; it was thought that the harsh conditions and terrain of the Southern Arizona Sonoran Desert would be a geographical barrier. But our government did not understand the determination of people to find work to feed their families. Their labor has always been needed in the US where many employers, including large corporations, are eager to hire hard working people from south of the border to whom they pay low wages. This has resulted in a disaster region in the Southern Arizona Borderland. Children, women and men die from dehydration, heat stroke and hypothermia. People continue to come out of desperation, to feed their families, and to reunite with parents and spouses from whom they have been separated. The number of deaths continues to escalate. Fewer people are crossing the border and being apprehended, but the percentage of deaths to crossers has greatly increased. |
Latest Recovered Human Remains Report
Data is from Pima County Forensic Center, reporting year starts in October.
Monthly NarrativeMay 2020
Here is a summary of the month's changes. Newly found individuals: 1 dead less than a day; 1 dead less than a week; 1 dead less than 3 weeks; 7 dead more than 6-8 months; 1 not yet determined; Month's total: 11, in various locations: Cabeza Prieta 4, Organ Pipe 1, TON 4, Altar Valley 1, Nogales 1. Other updates: 1 identified by name; 1 identified by DNA as part of another set of remains. Total deaths currently recorded in our database: 3,261 April 2020 This month [April] there are 15 new deaths, with reports from both Maricopa County (3 deaths from February and March) and Pima County (12 deaths from April). The Post Mortem Interval (time between death and discovery) of 7 of the Pima cases is more than 6-8 months; the 3 Maricopa cases were skeletal remains and likely fall into that category as well. 2 of the 5 people who died more recently were found east of Nogales (Patagonia and Douglas), which is a little unusual. So far he number of 2020 deaths in Cochise County and eastern Santa Cruz County is running ahead of the last couple years. The Pima OME is successfully using DNA to match portions of remains found separately. When this happens the cases are merged and one of them is removed from our database. There were 8 such cases this past month, so the total number of deaths did not increase as much as the numbers above would lead you to expect. On the map 20-1280 covers up 20-1281; they are located only 400 feet from each other and show up as a single dot. | ||||
Earlier Recovered Human Remains Maps
Humane Borders Maps2015-2016 Samaritan Patrol Area
2015-2016 Ajo Area
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Derechos Humanos2015-2016 Tucson Sector
April 2017 Samaritan Patrol Area
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