The Land of Open Graves: Living and Dying on the Migrant Trail

De León meets Memo and Lucho, two men who are typical of the migrants who try to cross the border, at the Albergue Juan Bosco in July 2009, after they had been deported. The Albergue is a place where De León volunteered and conducted many of his interviews. There, he learned how deportees are treated by the media, humanitarian groups, and other agencies

De León believes that these border-crossing men’s chingaderas—Mexican “play routines” that are laden with humor, expletives, and sexually charged double entendres—are important because they use humor as a means of resistance. As a Latino from a working-class background, De León is an approachable figure for many border crossers, who respond to him in a more natural, unfiltered manner than they might to his white, middle-class, English-speaking counterparts.

Memo and Lucho, who were amigos de camino, had crossed the US-Mexico border without authorization multiple times, with Memo making 15 unsuccessful attempts. Both Memo and Lucho were determined to cross the border at any cost, feeling that there was nothing for them in Mexico. While Memo has family back in Veracruz, he does not want to go back there unless he has some money for them; that he has not been able to make a success of himself and has returned to Mexico penniless on previous occasions is a source of shame to him.