Disinventions: Rhetorics of Undocumented Immigration in the Deterrence Era

US immigration policy along the southwestern border is deadly. Since 1994, the US Border Patrol has implemented a federal immigration strategy known as “prevention through deterrence,” which closed off many urban entry points along the US-Mexico border and militarized urban border crossings. This policy forced undocumented migrants to cross through dangerous terrain like the Sonoran Desert, often with tragic results. Immigrant advocates highlight migrant disappearances and deaths to expose ...