Bird under wire

This piece emerged from a photograph taken at the US-Mexico border, up against the fence on the US side and looking towards Ciudad Juarez, near the International Dam, El Paso, Texas in 2017. I was trying to document the physical border formed by the fence along the Rio Grande/Rio Bravo. I was absolutely lucky to find a bird on top of the fence. Seeing the picture later, the fragility of the dove in her nest amid the razor wire made me think about the heartbreak of migrants encountering physical and emotional resistance to becoming a part of us. I wanted to express in the digital collage that there are many of us living on this side of the border who see migrants as belonging here as much as we do.