Unión del Barrio strongly condemns the recent violent acts directed against Central American migrants and refugees by a small group of people in the area of Playas de Tijuana. The violence and threats of violence carried out by a small group of reactionaries represent nothing less than the most foul expression of xenophobia which highlights the class hatred of the backward, self-loathing petty bourgeoisie in a neocolonial society.

Furthermore, Unión de Barrio declares solidarity with our sisters and brothers who traverse Mexico in so-called “migrant caravans,” as well as those who have already arrived in Tijuana. When people suffer the consequences of the brutal economic plunder and normalized violence, they often have no choice but to flee from their homes. We understand that the people who are coming north are refugees, victims of unbridled imperialist aggression, and that these people are seeking to recover the economic wealth and political stability that U.S. imperialism has so violently denied from them for hundreds of years. They seek an alternative to the horrendous conditions of poverty and normalized violence that have been generated by economic and military interventions directed by the United States both in Mexico and in Central America. Hunger, despair and violence are symptoms of neoliberal policies imposed by the U.S. interventionism, and implemented by national lackeys who too often claim to be “nationalists” in order to redirect attention away from their shameless corruption – without distinction as a political party.

Let us not allow our communities to be blinded by imperial hubris. It is our legacy of struggle and solidarity that compels us to take the side of our sister countries against xenophobic violence and reactionary impulses. We join the Mexican working class that has provided support and solidarity to the “migrant caravans” as they move across Mexican national territory. Likewise, we reject the vulgar, hypocritical, and pseudo-trumpista nationalism that is being demonstrated by a small, sick-minded sector of Tijuanenses.

Within Unión del Barrio we are internationalists, Latin-Americanists, and mexicanas/os solidarias/os. We therefore reject all colonial borders that only serve to divide our peoples struggles. We also reject artificial distinctions, based on reactionary nationalist ideas and values that only empower the dominant elites and vende-patrias in Mexico and throughout Nuestra América. In the coming days we intend to unite with the efforts of other class-conscious organizations in order provide material support to our sisters and brothers who are victims of imperialism. We call on all border communities to join efforts throughout the Tijuana/San Diego region in order to defend the physical integrity of our Central American sisters and brothers.

Somos Un Pueblo – Sin Fronteras

Unión del Barrio, November 15, 2018