Why Southern California?
From Spanish Settlement to American westward expansion, people have been drawn to California for centuries. While early migrants in the region colonized indigenous lands, contemporary borders have created new challenges and framings on migration. Today, the US-Mexico Border exemplifies the historical and present challenges of global migration and evolving identity.
As we visit border towns along with major cities like San Diego or even Los Angeles, we’ll work to unpack today’s immigration issues in the context of a complicated regional history and context. What’s it like for new migrants to arrive across the southern U.S. border? How should we navigate the issues of global equity and identity? How might we amplify the voices of migrants in this country – and around the world?
1-4 Nights - San Diego
A Changing City and Identity
Welcome to California. In San Diego we will set the stage for our program and explore the implication of the border infrastructure, the desert, and the wall itself. In San Diego we will again explore border infrastructure and the friendship park divided by the fence. From high end shopping on the border to natural lands and parks, we will explore the diversity along the border. In San Diego we will also explore the diversity in the city as we try some classic Mexican-American fusion foods from the city, explore artistic and cultural heritage in the city, and connect to a range of different communities in the city.
2-4 Nights - Calexico and El Centro
Living at the Border
Calexico is a small town directly connected to a larger city across the border, Mexicali. Nearby, El Centro, only a few minutes away, is the city at the heart of the the Imperial Valley, a major agricultural region for the country. Calexico and El Centro are full of stories, history, and families straddling the border and is a key crossing point today. Here we will meet with local groups and representatives that support the trans-border community, learn from artists and non profits, and work to understand what life is like in a true border town.
0-5 Nights - Los Angeles and Joshua Tree (Extension or Loop)
City and the Desert
We will continue on to the Los Angeles area where we will explore the deeper implications of migration and identity, while we work to pull together our understanding into one experience. We will hear from diverse migrant communities about their differing experiences and the political and cultural obstacles at different time periods. From West African communities in Fontana to the Armenian groups in Glendale, from the diverse Chinese neighborhoods of the San Gabriel Valley to the hispanic communities around the city we will explore the evolving challenges and need for stories, arts, services, and advocacy.
