Borderlands: Stories from an El Paso Shelter
I never intended to write a book…
In 2019, I came to El Paso, Texas, seeking to volunteer at Annunciation House, an organization that provides hospitality and care for those who leave their homes behind at great personal cost.
During my first winter volunteering, I began to share how the day went in a private Facebook group. It became an important way for me to digest my experience and to share what life was like at the border with others. I did this for my first three winters in El Paso. People started to encourage me to turn this “diary” into a book. As someone who writes articles, I discounted the idea. But after I thought about it, I realized that around 75% percent of a book was already written. Who wouldn’t be willing to put some structure around the entries?
The diary format makes the book easy to pick up and put down. It’s written in the present tense. Readers tell me they feel like they’re there with me as the days unfold. Lots of photos add to the experience.
The book’s focus includes:
The stories. I want the reader to get to know the people who pass through our shelters, why they felt they had to leave their home and culture behind, and what challenges they faced in coming north.
Historical context. I share what I learned along the way. I wasn’t a good student of history. The way history used to be taught was mainly from the powerful. Now I understand that understanding how we got here is really important if we want to interrupt patterns and reclaim our humanity.
Reflections on my experience. Readers tell me the book inspires them to reflect on their own understanding.
Book Description from Apocryphile Press:
What’s really happening at the U.S./Mexico border?
Borderlands is the story of the courageous people who risk everything for the safety and well-being of themselves and their families, and the people of El Paso who accompany them. While the media saturate the news with antagonism and images of violence, the volunteers at Annunciation House and other organizations provide hospitality and care for those who leave their homes behind at great personal cost. Rather than seeing the stranger as enemy, they meet their guests as relatable, complex human beings like themselves.
Deb Hansen is a descendant of European immigrants, an Interfaith chaplain, and a spiritual companion who travelled to El Paso to volunteer at Annunciation House. Borderlands takes us along on her journey, introducing us to the people she met and came to love.
Migration is both a natural and an unnatural phenomenon. Borderlands reveals why people leave their homes, culture, and language behind, as well as insight on how wealthy countries inflict harm and contribute to conditions that fuel migration by destabilizing economies, governments, and relationships.
Borderlands is heartbreaking, inspiring, and life-changing. Along the way, readers might even hear echoes of the stories and journeys of their own ancestors. Read Borderlands today and find out about the people rolling up their sleeves and actually doing something in the spirit of solidarity.
“The work is grounded in sound research, as reflected by the endnotes and bibliography, but what makes it special is Hansen’s nuanced, empathetic writing style… An empathetic and often poignant reflection on the American border crisis.”
Kirkus Reviews
