Hard Line

Starred review from April 19, 2004
Drawing upon his experience along the U.S.-Mexico border as a reporter for the Los Angeles Times
, Ellingwood focuses on the effects of Operation Gatekeeper, the 1994 U.S. plan to literally seal off sections of a porous border, which had garnered equal amounts of national attention and political posturing. Like more academic studies, Hard Line
concludes that in metropolitan areas such as San Diego, Gatekeeper has largely succeeded in stemming the flow of illegal border crossers. The upshot, however, is that "more rural areas on the border found themselves blindsided" by migrant workers seeking entrance into the U.S. through perilous mountain regions and swaths of scorching desert. What makes Ellingwood's portrayal so remarkable is his ability to examine the border from nearly every conceivable angle. He tells the story of the 1,952-mile line in the dirt through detailed accounts of the activities and perspectives of border agents, church activists, angry ranchers and migrants who narrowly escaped death. He also paints a compelling portrait of members of a Native American tribe divided by a border they didn't create and follows the county coroners charged with collecting and identifying the decomposed remains of migrants who couldn't survive the treacherous terrain. A less adept writer might use these subjects merely to reinforce stereotypes of compassionate liberals, angry conservatives and innocent victims caught in the middle. But Ellingwood transcends ideologies, rendering the border and all who dwell along it with the utmost respect and care. Likewise, he pays careful attention to the historical and economic conditions that tie the two countries together and lure so many to risk their lives for the chance at something better. The result is a complex portrayal of politics, culture and human interaction along this country's most controversial slice of land. Agent, The Zachary Schuster Harmsworth Agency.