The Great Wall of America

Part One of a Series on Immigration Reform

If we build it, will they still come? Is the Border Wall the answer to curbing illegal immigration into the United States?

In my upcoming novel, Under the Fifth Sun, I develop several subplots that deal with border security, narco-terrorism, and immigration reform. Though set in the form of a novel, this book takes a realistic look into the future as I see it happening. Included is a treatment of the notion of building a physical barrier along the U.S.-Mexico border, employing a unique combination of technologies designed to usher in a new era of "operational control" of our border.

So, just what is the motivation for building the wall? Is it primarily to stem the tide of illegal immigrants competing for American jobs? To rid the U.S. of drug trafficking? To prohibit passage of terrorists into our country? All of the above, depending on who you ask. But is building the wall a realistic tactic to winning these battles?

The first experiment with building a new border wall began in San Diego and was proudly christened Operation Gatekeeper by Janet Reno in 1994 during the Clinton administration (no, it is not a new idea formulated by Bush Republicans). It was originally estimated to cost $14 million for the proposed 14 miles of fencing. The latest estimates have the cost coming in around $74 million and counting. If you extend this cost history to the remainder of the border - let's see, just 1,938 miles left to go, and - yep, it's a really big number.

Cost-prohibitive aspect aside, there are myriad other complications and implications to face. Here are just a few:

- Terrain such as mountains, rivers and canyons will exacerbate the cost and feasibility over a large portion of the border.

- The traffic flow of illegal immigrants and drugs has merely shifted to different areas as a result of the fence construction between San Diego and Tijuana. Traffic has actually increased in many areas that previously saw little or no activity.

- Smugglers - both human and narcotics - are increasingly using tunnels to cross the border. Contemporary border wall designs do not address underground tunnels or facilities.

- Major railroads cross the border in over 20 locations; you can't build a wall where a train must pass, not to mention a train carrying illegal immigrants.

- Many local economies in border towns rely upon trade between the nations that would be interrupted by building a wall. Practically every mayor along the Rio Grande is opposed to it, according to the director of the McAllen Economic Development Corporation.

- Native American tribes with lands along the Arizona border would have a physical barrier that would limit the movement of migratory wildlife they are accustomed to.

Is the erection of a border wall the end-all solution to the immigration/smuggling/terrorism woes that face us? No, but it could be part of a comprehensive solution that makes sense, if executed in a practical and fiscally responsible way. The travesty lies in using a half-hearted half-measure as a politically expedient method of doing something - anything - about the border security dilemma.

Another better-known international wall - the Great Wall of China - is often thought of as an impenetrable, monolithic barrier built to repel the invading forces of the past. The small amount of research I have conducted would indicate that the Great Wall had many breaches, and, in fact, that the guards could be bribed for passage through it.

Yet others would contend that the intent of the Great Wall was not to keep strangers from entering, but to keep its citizens from leaving the country. Sound like a country with a bent toward isolationism? A nation obsessed with xenophobia? Or was the Ming Dynasty justifiably fearful of a foreign invasion?

And just how successful was the Great Wall in keeping out the unwanteds? A disgruntled border General of the Ming dynasty willingly opened the gates of the fortressed wall to the Manchu army, who quickly seized the city known today as Beijing and founded the Qing Dynasty. The failure was the proper enforcement and execution of the security system - not the system itself.

Next: What Will Make Immigration Reform Work?