Magon: The Deportation Chronicles, Pt. 1

Jan. 16, 2013 / By

Photo: COACHELLA UNINCORPORATED

Photo: COACHELLA UNINCORPORATED

The Diary of Joaquín Magón Entry 22: The Deportation Chronicles, Part 1

The year 2012 has come to a close and the numbers of those removed from the United States are released – 409,849 individuals caught, trapped, nabbed, thrown into the patty wagon and kicked out with a boot – a record high.

For the Eastern Coachella Valley (ECV), it’s no surprise. It’s what makes the ECV so unique – the normalization, the desensitization of deportations. Think about that word. Deported. DE-POR-TED. It’s a horrible word and a horrible experience. To outsiders, the Coachella Valley conjures up fuzzy thoughts of a crazy concert or country clubs with golf courses and swimming pools.

But the Coachella Valley that I know is the Coachella Valley of deportation.  The following are the stories of four people I am lucky to know. I am sharing their stories in an unconventional manner, over three installments of The Diary of Joaquín Magón. Hopefully, I will do them justice. Read on.

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Coachella Unincorporated

Coachella Unincorporated is a Youth Media Startup in the East Coachella Valley, funded by the Building Healthy Communities Initiative of The California Endowment and operated by New America Media in San Francisco. The purpose of the project is to report on issues in the community that can bring about change. Coachella Unincorporated refers to the region youth journalists cover but also to the unincorporated communities of the Eastern Valley with the idea to “incorporate” the East Valley into the mainstream Coachella Valley mindset.