Lives on the Line: Dispatches from the U.S.-Mexico Border [Paperback]

Miriam Davidson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2000 | ISBN-10: 0816519986 | ISBN-13: 978-0816519989

Straddling an international border, the twin cities of Nogales, Arizona, and Nogales, Sonora, are in many ways one community. For years the border was less distinct, with Mexicans crossing one way to visit family and friends and tourists crossing the other to roam the curio shops. But as times change, so do places like Nogales. The maquiladora industry has brought jobs, population growth, and environmental degradation to the Mexican side. A crackdown against undocumented immigrants has brought hundreds of Border Patrol agents and a 14-foot-tall steel wall to the U.S. side. Drug smuggling has brought violence to both sides. Neither Nogales will ever be the same. In Lives on the Line, Miriam Davidson tells five true stories from these border cities to show the real-life effects that the maquiladora boom and the law enforcement crackdown have had on the people of "Ambos (Both) Nogales." Readers will meet Yolanda Sánchez, a single mother who came to work in the factories; Jimmy Teyechea, a cancer victim who became an outspoken environmental activist; Dario Miranda Valenzuela, an undocumented immigrant who was shot and killed by a U.S. Border Patrol agent; Cristina, a "tunnel kid" who aspired to flee the gang lifestyle; and Hope Torres and Tom Higgins, maquiladora managers who have made unique contributions to the community. In sharing these stories of people transformed by love and faith, by pain and loss, Davidson relates their experiences to larger issues and shows that, although life on the border is tough, it is not without hope. Lives on the Line is an impassioned look at the changes that have swept the U.S.-Mexico border: the rising tension concerning free trade and militarization, the growing disparity between the affluent and the impoverished. At the same time, the book highlights the positive aspects of change, revealing challenges and opportunities not only for the people who live on the border but for all Americans.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Davidson's journalistic eye captures the legacy of squalor and misery that greed and irresponsibility have created along the borderlands. There is nothing new in this, but the stories Davidson tells form a textbook on just how closely woven even and good, banality and heroism can be. . . . Ambos Nogales has something to teach all of us, and Davidson shares these lessons well." —National Catholic Reporter "She offers hope for progress in the troubled region with her detailed reports on charitable church projects and progressive corporate policies that are helping to alleviate suffering and reduce antagonism. Timely and compelling." —Booklist "Her book examines the impact of the maquiladoras on two towns on either side of the border . . . and condemns industry and the Mexican government for forgetting workers in the pursuit of profits. . . . But in the end, the stories that stand out the most are her vivid portraits of those who have been left behind by economic progress." —New York Times Book Review "This book by American journalist Davidson is a vivid portrait of what is happening in the twin border towns of Nogales in Arizona and Sonora, Mexico-the US's Berlin Wall. . . . This gripping book should be read by all ages and belongs in all libraries." —Choice "A rare glimpse into the personal stories of life and death on the razor's edge in a contrary bordertown. . . . Her impassioned writing and acute investigative talents reveal the human faces often lost to the attention focused on increasing political rhetoric and now-commonplace headlines of tragedy." —Bloomsbury Review

From the Inside Flap

Straddling an international border, the twin cities of Nogales, Arizona, and Nogales, Sonora, are in many ways one community. For years the border was less distinct, with Mexicans crossing one way to visit family and friends and tourists crossing the other to roam the curio shops. But as times change, so do places like Nogales. The maquiladora industry has brought jobs, population growth, and environmental degradation to the Mexican side. A crackdown against undocumented immigrants has brought hundreds of Border Patrol agents and a 14-foot-tall steel wall to the U.S. side. Drug smuggling has brought violence to both sides. Neither Nogales will ever be the same. In Lives on the Line, Miriam Davidson tells five true stories from these border cities to show the real-life effects that the maquiladora boom and the law enforcement crackdown have had on the people of "Ambos (Both) Nogales." Readers will meet Yolanda Sánchez, a single mother who came to work in the factories; Jimmy Teyechea, a cancer victim who became an outspoken environmental activist; Dario Miranda Valenzuela, an undocumented immigrant who was shot and killed by a U.S. Border Patrol agent; Cristina, a "tunnel kid" who aspired to flee the gang lifestyle; and Hope Torres and Tom Higgins, maquiladora managers who have made unique contributions to the community. In sharing these stories of people transformed by love and faith, by pain and loss, Davidson relates their experiences to larger issues and shows that, although life on the border is tough, it is not without hope. Lives on the Line is an impassioned look at the changes that have swept the U.S.-Mexico border: the rising tension concerning free trade and militarization, the growing disparity between the affluent and the impoverished. At the same time, the book highlights the positive aspects of change, revealing challenges and opportunities not only for the people who live on the border but for all Americans. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 211 pages
• Publisher: University of Arizona Press (September 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0816519986
• ISBN-13: 978-0816519989
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #399,251 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very informative, detailed and accurate!, May 12, 2001

By 

Just Me "MichiganNative" (Knoxville, TN) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Lives on the Line: Dispatches from the U.S.-Mexico Border (Paperback)

I read 40+ pgs of this book in the bookstore alone. I just moved to Nogales, AZ in January and I have found this book to be very helpful in providing me a background of the Ambos Nogales areas. The book is very well written and keeps you interested from cover to cover. Living in the area and being able to directly relate to the book is a plus, however anyone interested in the US-Mexico Border would find this book to be a spectacular read. Enjoy!!

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Coverage of US-Mexico Border Issues, January 1, 2005

By 

Bruce Rhodes "love 2 read" (near Toronto) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Lives on the Line: Dispatches from the U.S.-Mexico Border (Paperback)

Miriam Davidson's book is appropriately researched, well written, and full of personal anecdotes from her experiences in the twin borders cities of Nogales Arizona|Sonora. She explores key issues of social justice and environmental degradation in 'maquiladora' communities in Mexico.

I visited Nogales USA & Mexico in 1999, and saw little evidence of the poverty or ecological troubles that Davidson skillfully brings to light in her book. Her description of the Mexican children who live in the cities' sewer tunnel systems is heart-rending; the issues of poverty, drug running, environmental degradation, poor health of residents, economic disparity between USA and Central America, corruption, gender inequality, crime, and the mixed role played by maquila businesses are all interwoven, and Davidson does a great job of illustrating this.

One of the most remarkable stories in the book relates to an accomplished American woman of Mexican ancestry who has her new vehicle stolen from the streets of Tucson, AZ by members of the Nogales, Mexico police force. Her response to this injustice is both amazing and inspiring.

I highly recommend not only "Lives on the Line", but the related books "Coyotes", by Ted Conover, and "Crossing Over", by Ruben Martinez.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nogales Indepth, February 10, 2007

By 

Carol Hohle (Boston, MA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Lives on the Line: Dispatches from the U.S.-Mexico Border (Paperback)

A fascinating and thorough look at the immigration situation seen through several facets of live in Nogales, Mexico. Davidson brings her journalistic skills to bare in making meaning of a complex topic and breathing humanity into the situation.