On November 1, Día de los Muertos, the Hostile Terrain 94 art exhibit in Julian Hall 70 opens to the public with a program devoted to remembering those who died on the U.S./Mexico border.
The program is an extension of the Spring 2019 Bone Lectures Series, when Dr. Jason De León, anthropologist at the University of California, Los Angeles, came to talk to us about his book, The Land of Open Graves (2015).
We recognized the immense educational value of adding Illinois State University to the then growing body of universities that committed to displaying the exhibit as [Dr. De León] had planned.
DR. MAURA TORO-MORN, DIRECTOR OF THE LATIN AMERICAN AND LATINO STUDIES PROGRAM
At that time he was about to launch a one-day global exhibit of Hostile Terrain 94. “We recognized the immense educational value of adding Illinois State University to the then growing body of universities that committed to displaying the exhibit as he had planned. But the 2020 worldwide pandemic happened, and it changed completely the original plans laid out by Dr. De Leon. What did not change was ISU’s commitment to opening the exhibit and allowing our students, faculty, and staff to be part of this important participatory art exhibit,” said Maura Toro-Morn, director of the Latin American and Latino Studies program.
Hostile Terrain 94 is a participatory art exhibition organized by the Undocumented Migration Project (UMP). The exhibit aims to illuminate the humanitarian crisis occurring at the United States’ border, a crisis that has claimed approximately 3,200 lives and continues to do so through the immigration enforcement strategy known as “Prevention Through Deterrence” (PTD) which began in 1994. As a result of heightened security measures at urban points of entry, undocumented migrants were funneled through extremely treacherous environments, land dubbed as “Hostile Terrain” by U.S. Border Patrol. Those lives lost were mostly due to dehydration and hypothermia.
The installation is composed of over 3,200 individual toe tags, representing those migrants who have died in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona from 1990s to today. A large map of the desert covers the wall and on it are placed those toe tags in the exact areas the remains were found.
When you see the number written – 3,200 – it is just a number. When you sit down to write out the details of even a few of those deaths and can look around at a room of people doing the same, it allows you to gain a deeper understanding of the the scale of the loss of human life. It’s devastating.
DR. LIVIA STONE, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF ANTHROPOLOGY
“Hostile Terrain 94 is significant for a few reasons,” says Dr. Livia Stone, associate professor of anthropology. “Apart from the subject matter is the innovative and impactful visual representation of archaeological research. Archaeology’s public home is generally the history museum, not the art gallery. Not only is Hostile Terrain the artistic representation of archaeological research (in itself innovative and unique), it is also an incredibly interactive installation that requires a high level of participation and human interaction. “
She continues, “This level of participation—the experience of connecting with the 3,200+ people who have died horrible and unnecessary deaths— through physically writing out by hand their details, is deeply impactful and emotional. When you see the number written—3,200–it is just a number. When you sit down to write out the details of even a few of those deaths and can look around at a room of people doing the same, it allows you to gain a deeper understanding of the the scale of the loss of human life. It’s devastating.”
Several programs and classes are involved with this project. Students at ISU have worked on different parts of the installation.
The current political and cultural climate around immigration and immigration policies are causing innocent people to lose their lives and the lives of their loved ones for seeking the most basic of human rights – to live freely, safely, and with dignity.
DR. JOAN BREHM, CHAIR, SOCIOLOGY AND ANTHROPOLOGY
“We are a nation of immigrants, founded by immigrants,” says Department of Sociology and Anthropology Chair Joan Brehm, “yet we fail to see the immense value and humanity in the immigrants today that are seeking only to improve their quality of life while at the same time contributing to the good of our broader society. The current political and cultural climate around immigration and immigration policies are causing innocent people to lose their lives and the lives of their loved ones for seeking the most basic of human rights—to live freely, safely, and with dignity. This exhibit is critical to help us understand the real costs of these policies, and I hope it will help to initiate further actions to end this crisis.”
Gina Hunter, associate professor of anthropology, gives further thoughts on the crisis, as it affects our country as a whole, “I think that moral outrage at the detainment, deportation, and death at our border carried out in our name by our government is plenty of reason to be invested in this exhibit. But I’m also an educator (and a citizen and an eater) concerned with our food system. Immigrant workers make up three-fourths of our farm labor force, and the majority of them are undocumented. Our food system and our economy depends on their hard and dangerous work—our immigration policies are completely out of sync with humanitarian and economic imperatives.”
Our food system and our economy depends on their [documented and undocumented immigrants’] hard and dangerous work…
GINA HUNTER, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF ANTHROPOLOGY
A short program at 6 p.m. November 1 will open the exhibit to the public with an explanation of the significance of the project as a community. The gallery will remain located in Julian Hall 70 and will be viewable for the following days:
November 1-4
Tuesday 9 a.m.–12:50 p.m. and 4:30–6:45 p.m.
Wednesday 9 a.m.–noon and 1–4 p.m.
Thursday 9 a.m.–12:50 p.m. and 1–4 p.m.
Friday 9 a.m.–noon and 2–4 p.m.
Sponsored by:
Latin American and Latino Studies Program, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Wonsook Kim School of Art, Milner Library.
Original source can be found here.
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