Border Wall Lawsuits Spread to Arizona

Not content with digging up sacred burial grounds, slicing yards in half, or destroying natural habitats, the U.S. government has decided that it will forcefully remove the ancestral lands of people who live along la frontera. The lawsuits began in Tejas:

WASHINGTON – A federal judge has ordered a small border city in Texas to temporarily turn over its land to the federal government so it can begin to build a border fence.

U.S. District Judge Alia Moses Ludlum ordered the city of Eagle Pass, on the border about 100 miles southwest of San Antonio, to "surrender" 233 acres of city-owned land. The Justice Department sued the city for access to the land.

The Homeland Security Department is trying to build 370 miles of border fence by the end of the year. A law signed by President Bush and supported by both of Texas' U.S. senators mandated a total of 700 miles of fence along the border. The government had warned the city, which opposes the fence, it would sue under eminent domain laws to secure access to the property, declaring it is "taking" the property for 180 days.

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Now landowners in Arizona are going to feel the hard hand of the law all in the name of Homeland Security:

The spate of suits in Arizona were filed Tuesday, naming individual landowners in Santa Cruz County. None could immediately be reached for comment on Wednesday.

Congress authorized the Department of Homeland Security to do what is necessary, including condemning land, to build border barriers and to install other security measures, Justice Department spokesman Andrew Ames said Wednesday.

Homeland Security has tried to negotiate with landowners it could reach, but some have objected. Others may be absentee landowners who could not be found.

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This is an outrage, but as long as it gives warm fuzzies to people who live far away from this area, the theft will continue. Just a reminder that both Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton voted for the construction of the Great Wall of America™. At the time, Representatives Kolbe and Grijalva voted against. I hope the Senators will sleep uncomfortably knowing that families will be evicted from their homes due to their votes.