As we close out the year, we honor the work done by hundreds of No More Deaths volunteers. Their efforts, made possible by your donations, reach many thousands of undocumented people. In the last year, volunteers:
► Placed 16,500 gallons of water on migrant trails in southern Arizona’s desert, covering a 2,500-square-mile area
► Trained 230 volunteers
► Helped more than 300 recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (known as DACA) file their renewal documents
► Helped 1,266 people recover $226,393.68 from their jail accounts after being deported to Mexico with uncashable checks
► Provided legal representation to over 1,300 residents of southern Arizona and operated a 24-7 response line for those stopped by the Border Patrol or other law enforcement
► Provided 2,921 phone calls to migrants and recent deportees in northern Mexico, who contacted family members in 11 different countries
► Helped more than 400 Tucson residents complete the naturalization process to become citizens
► In collaboration with La Coalición de Derechos Humanos, released the 2nd installment of the three-part report series entitled Disappeared and began work on the 3rd installment, which deals with the routine failure of the Border Patrol and other law-enforcement agencies to respond adequately to search-and-rescue requests made by missing migrants’ families and humanitarian-aid volunteers
► Significantly expanded aid to migrant-support projects in 4 towns in northern Mexico (backed by a 4-fold budget increase)
► Launched a campaign to advocate for and raise funds to defend 9 No More Deaths volunteers who are facing federal charges for providing humanitarian aid; distributed thousands of yard signs through-out the community asserting “Humanitarian Aid Is Never a Crime” and demanding “Drop the Charges”
► “Flooded the desert” with gallon jugs of water on August 5, led by 60 faith leaders and people of con-science from around the country, defending humanitarian aid as a moral imperative
► Hosted Luis Alberto Urrea, author of The Devil’s Highway, at a benefit that raised over $14,000
Featured photo: Denise Holley. Volunteer Zulima Martínez interviews a couple who may face a deportation order.