Border Abolition: Responsibility to Migrants and an End to Border Violence

Abstract

Deaths at the United States-Mexico border have consistently risen in recent years highlighting the inadequacies of existing border policies. Using an ethical framework of responsibility and solidarity, this thesis examines the connections between Christian ethical approaches to migration and border abolition theories. Considering the conditions created by harsh border policies that lead to abuses and deaths, this thesis argues for the ultimate abolition of the border in order to address the harms of border imperialism at the United States-Mexico border. The final section explores how community organizing in the border region is reshaping narratives regarding relationships to migrants and the efficacy of borders and demonstrates how existing community organizing efforts are already imaging and building a world without borders.