Chris Moore-Backman: US-Mexico Caravan for Peace Takes On the Drug War Chris Moore-Backman - Truthout
go to original July 4, 2014

The Caravan for Peace held a protest outside the gates of Fort Benning with the message "Killers are not born, they are made here." (Caravan For Peace/Flickr)

The horrific drug war violence in Mexico and its connection to the people and policies of the United States are seldom if ever considered by the vast majority of the US public. This moving and provocative radio documentary provides a window into these otherwise obscure, but terribly important, realities. Children of the Same Sorrow chronicles the historic journey of the "US/Mexico Caravan for Peace," which from August 12th to September 12th, 2012, crossed the entire United States calling for an end to the War on Drugs and bearing witness to the human rights nightmare unfolding in Mexico. Radio documentarian Chris Moore-Backman traveled with the caravan for five days, capturing the spirit and message of those on board and examining the deep connection between the struggle for peace in Mexico and the struggle to end the racist system of mass incarceration in the United States.

The show features a dialog between Michelle Alexander (author of The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness) and Javier Sicilia (renowned Mexican poet and leader of the "Mexican Movement for Peace, with Justice and Dignity"). It also includes heartbreaking testimonies of mothers of victims of Mexico's horrific drug war violence and interviews with the US and Mexican activists who launched this historic bi-national effort. These twin justice movements point to the crucial need for coalition-building across races and borders.

"Children of the Same Sorrow" is part of the Bringing Down the New Jim Crow radio documentary series produced by Chris Moore-Backman. This segment features the music of Loney Dear, Kit, and Stray Theories.

Read the transcript at Truthout

We invite you to add your charity or supporting organizations' news stories and coming events to PVAngels so we can share them with the world. Do it now!