Border Stories

November 13, 2008–January 4, 2009
Lyndhurst Gallery

The exhibition Border Stories features photographs and interview excerpts from documentary projects by students who participated in two Center for Documentary Studies courses and one summer field experience on the U.S.–Mexico border.

In March 2007, as part of the CDS course Social Activism Motivations: North Carolina Immigration, students traveled across the state to gain a better understanding of the experiences of immigrants and others whose lives are affected by immigration. They started by interviewing oyster shuckers on the coast and ended with Christmas tree farmworkers in the mountains, visiting a wide variety of people in between: new immigrants and other migrant workers, community organizers, immigrant advocates, anti-immigrant lobbyists, business owners, and religious leaders.

As the state with the fastest-growing immigrant population in the country, North Carolina is uniquely positioned to inform political debate. “Our hope in engaging in this documentary work was not only to learn about immigrant workers but also to foster a deep respect of the rights of all of North Carolina’s inhabitants,” the students explained in their statement for Border Stories. As part of the class, they produced and distributed a bilingual booklet titled “North Carolina Immigrant Activism.” The people in the exhibition photographs represent just a few of the thousands and thousands of faces that are part of the immigration story of the state.

In the spring of 2008, ten students in Charlie Thompson’s undergraduate class Farmworkers in North Carolina spent months learning about Latino migrant workers and their impact on the North Carolina. They read personal stories, saw films, memorized statistics, and had meaningful class discussions. “We thought we were ready to see the border for ourselves, to learn firsthand why Latino migrant workers continue to come to the United States in such large numbers,” they wrote. “Nothing could have prepared us for the violence and injustice we encountered on the U.S–Mexico border.”

“The border changed all of us: We have returned to Duke carrying within us the faces, voices, and stories of the migrants we met, and we are determined to speak out for justice for those who are losing their lives in our deserts. It is our duty to share the true story of the borderlands, to build bridges instead of walls. Our fight for justice begins here.”

In the summer of 2008, two of these students, plus five more, traveled to the U.S.–Mexico border to participate in DukeEngage, a program that provides funding to Duke undergraduates who wish to pursue an intensive civic engagement experience.

They spent eight weeks living and working on the border, and during those weeks, they volunteered with five organizations committed to honoring and advocating for migrants: Coalicion de Derechos Humanos, Samaritans, South Side Presbyterian Church, No More Deaths, and El Rey Dental Clinic. The students completed documentary projects along with their other work on the border. They are featured in Border Stories.

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Partial view of the Lyndhurst Gallery, one of four exhibition spaces at CDS. Photograph by Christoper Sims.


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