In the constant human flow from Ciudad Juárez to the United States, the exact number of migrants has become an enigma. Changing U.S. immigration policies, weather conditions and major events such as the recent pandemic cause fluctuations in the numbers. Still, a current U.S. government report reveals the magnitude of migration. In June 2023, 38,000 migrants were processed at international crossings, while about 35,000 people were waiting in transit in Ciudad Juárez, hoping to resolve their precarious situation.

Migration is not only striking for its magnitude but also for its tragedies. On March 27, 2023, in a desperate cry for dignified treatment, a migrant set fire to the Ciudad Juárez shelter where he was staying, resulting in the death of at least 38 people. The victims, locked up, were unable to escape. This event, which caused international outrage, raises questions about the treatment of migrants by Mexican authorities and highlights the various forms of violence they suffer, from extortion and kidnapping to human trafficking and homicide.

In a world dominated by capitalism, migration is often perceived as human multitudes invading more prosperous economies. But the phenomenon of migration, such as that seen in Valle de Juárez, is really a reflection of a constant in human history. Since our earliest ancestors ventured out of Africa, humanity has been in constant movement, seeking more favorable conditions in which to live. This drive continues to be a fundamental component of our ongoing evolution and adaptation.

The border is marked by the Rio Grande or Río Bravo (depending on whether it is named by Americans or Mexicans, in that order) which extends more than 1,800 miles from the San Juan Mountains in southern Colorado to the Gulf of Mexico at Brownsville, Texas. Its formation dates back 65 million years. Despite the division the river represents today, "thousands of years ago it connected communities," says historian Daniel Carey-Whalen (currently in charge of the Centennial Museum in El Paso, Texas), who says it was the flow of water that attracted settlements of people who planted their crops in the mineral-rich soil. "Without the river, people would not have chosen to live in the area," he says.

Migrants cross the Rio Bravo at a site called "El Punto,” where Pope Francis celebrated mass during his visit to Ciudad Juárez.
Photo: Juan Antonio Castillo

Among the evidence found in the region are traces left by groups of Paleo-Indians who followed herds, according to Lizzette Domínguez, an archaeologist who studies land in southwest Texas and New Mexico for possible development. Through meticulous explorations, Domínguez and her team have discovered numerous archeological and paleontological sites that attest to the presence of humans since the Pre-Clovis era, more than 11,000 years ago.

The remains discovered during multiple explorations, ranging from tools and cultural materials to bones and remnants of clothing, provide a detailed portrait of the first settlers of the American continent. Differences in painting techniques, shapes, and finishes of clay pots and baskets show the cultural practices of these ancestral communities. Thanks to these artifacts, it has been possible to identify the existence of an ancient trade route that during the colonial period linked towns from Santa Fe, New Mexico, to Mexico City.

One of the most significant finds in the area occurred in 1978. The Pendejo Cave in Oro Grande, New Mexico, a place of historical importance where tools, bones, human hair and skin fragments from different periods were discovered, led Richard S. McNeish to initiate the first archaeological expedition in 1990. All these findings highlight the mobility and interchange between these communities despite the great distances, as well as their technological advances in the manufacture of tools and arrowheads. Radiocarbon dating conducted at this site indicates dates ranging from 12,000 to 25,000 years ago, confirming the central role of this region in humankind's long journey.

However, even this remarkable archeological find pales when compared to a discovery that could literally rewrite human history in the Americas.

On the shores of what was once a shallow lake, one of the most beautiful and significant testimonies to the history of human beings in America was formed. These ancestral marks belong to some of the first humans to walk in North America, whose footprints were imprinted in the soft mud that bordered this ancient body of water, today part of the Alkali Flat at White Sands in New Mexico, an extensive field of white sand dunes composed of gypsum located 77 miles north of Ciudad Juárez.

The discovery of several layers of human footprints (of children and adolescents) interspersed with layers of seeds and tracks of mammoths, camels, bears and giant sloths was led by David Bustos, the park's resource program manager. Although Bustos had already found evidence of Columbian mammoths in the area, it was a researcher from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory who, in the summer of 2019, prompted the find while making comparisons between the Mars dunes and the ancient Lake Otero.

While the NASA scientist was conducting his research, Bustos examined the area and discovered a trail of human and megafauna footprints. According to him, at least eleven different geological layers in the park have fossilized footprints.

Over time, Bustos became skilled at identifying these fossil tracks. Radiocarbon dating, carried out by experts from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and based on seeds from the area's abundant aquatic grass Ruppia cirrhosa, dated these tracks to between 23,000 and 20,000 years ago.

The diversity of the samples and the frequency with which these dates occur indicate that White Sands records older tracks than other known sites, redefining by 10,000 years the estimates of when humans arrived in North America.

"This shows that people and megafauna coexisted here for a long time," says Bustos. He also adds that "we have some places where there are camel, mammoth and human tracks in the same place, but separated by several feet of geological layers, explaining the complexity of the ecological interaction that developed over thousands of years.” Over a mile-long stretch, the tracks of the different species crisscross and tell a detailed story of what happened at the end of the Ice Age.

"What's exciting is that they are not only adult animals, but also youth and infants, as well as humans of all ages," Bustos says. "All of them interacting as a big family.”

Permian

299 - 251 million years ago

Triassic

250 - 200 million years ago

Jurassic

199 - 150 million years ago

Cretaceous

149 - 65 million years ago

Present

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In the vast and silent desert of Valle de Juárez, in the midst of the 21st century, men and women pursue different destinies as they travel along dusty roads. Jorge Delgado Hernández is an agent of the Public Prosecutor's Office with 12 years of experience in the investigation of femicides. Like his colleague Máynez, his work is immersed in criminal investigations, but he confesses that he often comes across prehistoric remains, which are reported to the National Institute of Anthropology and History.

Delgado Hernández tells how he often participates in search expeditions, which sometimes include experts, citizens, anthropologists and prosecutors. These trips can last up to three hours and involve up to 40 people in convoys, reaching places "where it has been years since a human has set foot, due to the dangerous and rugged terrain. Here we find everything: men, women, migrants, sometimes even bullet shells," he says.

He recalls that once, one of the actions he implemented with Hawley Morelos was to collect objects that caught his attention, such as shiny items, stones between the stream or canal walls and fossilized ferns. However, due to the frequent presence of dead animals, such as cows, it is difficult to determine if they correspond to any prehistoric species.

"In the valley, people always say, 'wherever you go, you'll find a bone like this,' " Delgado Hernández says. "For example, during tracking, sometimes we think they are girls who disappeared in 2008, 2010, or even earlier, but the locals always assure us that 'here you will always find bones' regardless of the year. The only thing that remains to be determined is how old they are."

Despite the tragic nature of the situation and the sad reality that many of the bone findings in the valley reveal, what is certain is that we are seeing evidence of another geological page in this great book whose story began to be told millions of years ago.

Valle de Juárez, a region marked by the pain and injustice of violent episodes, is also home to a resilient community strengthened by the teachings of Manuel Robles. The modest rural teacher who arrived in the valley by chance and died three years ago, did important work in the protection and preservation of historical treasures.

In 1982, with the construction of a new school, the old building became the custodian of recovered fossils, giving rise to the Valle de Juárez Regional Museum, the first on the border to hold a vast collection of Paleozoic era fossils, a testament to the legacy of knowledge sown by Robles.

His students recognize that "el Profe" left a legacy of hope through his ability to redirect young people with a violent background toward a path of respect and rediscovery of their region. Guadalupe, Camilo and Francisca, who were once part of a community besieged by the drug war, today celebrate their transformation into citizens committed to their environment. "If el Profe were still around, he would still be doing something," says Francisca, referring to how much Robles contributed to her community.

A similar narrative is that of Alejandra Isela Maese, an archaeologist from Juárez, whose interest in natural history was cultivated since childhood. Alejandra says curiosity is her compass for learning and avoiding the dangers of the region.

For his relentless efforts, Robles was nicknamed "El Guardián" (The Guardian). Through education and the encouragement of a love for learning and nature, he demonstrated that curiosity and the desire for knowledge can be transformative agents, even in adversity. Like a flower in the middle of the desert, Robles' legacy is a reminder of human resilience and the continuous search for a better future.