On Monday, federal agents raided a protest camp near the community of Lochiel, Arizona, on the Mexican border, and knocked down a 200-year-old tree known locally as “Grandmother.” Activists estimate that about 150 Border Patrol officers, many with their faces covered, moved in during the protesters’ morning prayer. At least 10 people were arrested, and the ancient poplar was uprooted by a bulldozer.
The tree was the last of four “grandmother” poplars on the US side of the border standing in the path of the planned wall construction. Since July, activists had taken turns occupying the tree, and after the other three were cut down, “Grandmother” became the focal point of a growing protest camp. According to journalist John Washington, agents began cutting the tree while someone was still in its branches; they removed the person using a crane truck and then brought down the tree, with cries heard at around 8:30 a.m.
After the raid, the land defenders refused to leave and remain in a standoff with federal forces. About 50 people are holding the line against further construction, while dozens more are heading to the area following calls for support. On Tuesday, another activist climbed the last remaining poplar in the wall’s path, this time on the Mexican side, once again interrupting construction.
The protesters are seeking to stop the construction of two parallel, 30-foot-high walls crossing the remote San Rafael Valley. The area is sparsely populated and rarely used by people to cross the border, but it is known as a unique wildlife migration corridor. The poplar cut down on Monday was the last of the four ancient “grandmothers” on the US side standing in the project’s way.
Activists say the federal operation took place on private land without warrants. A land defender named Rachel, who withheld her surname for fear of retaliation, said that “there is no legal basis for them to enter private property” and that authorities “are pushing construction ahead as fast as possible, regardless of the damage they cause to us and the land.” A landowner, Belicia Lynch, confirmed that the protesters were welcome on her property.
The raid came just days after a legal victory for activists opposing the wall in the Big Bend region of Texas. On Friday, a federal judge issued a temporary order halting all wall construction in the area, including in national and state parks, while a lawsuit brought by environmental and community groups is heard. The judge wrote that the plaintiffs were likely to succeed on at least one of their claims.
Despite the tree’s destruction, activists are not backing down. In a social media post on Wednesday, camp participants issued a “call to show up” to celebrate the life of the felled poplar and continue the struggle. “If you’ve been waiting to come to Lochiel, now is the time,” they wrote. “Let your heavy heart lead you to action!”
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