Why do borders exist? Although we don't know for sure, we know they're screwed up. Here are 4 reasons why they are.
Between France and Spain, in the Bidasoa river, there is an uninhabited island called Pheasant Island. Every six months, this 200m long island changes administration between Spain and France. From February 1st to July 31st, it is under Spanish rule, and the following 6 months, under French rule.
In the early days of mankind, diplomatic marriages, losing a war or being colonized were enough reasons to gain or lose territories. Access to the sea (such as the coast of Bosnia, the second smallest in the world), mountains and resources were divided by an invisible line and sentenced to grow and develop within a delimited space drawn on a piece of paper.
But why do countries and borders exist, and why can they become so dehumanized and full of complex border arrangements? Since fuck ups are present in every single thing created by human beings, here is a list of some fucked up things about borders:
At some point, those invisible lines on the map became paperwork, walls, guns and barbed wire. Borders are screwed up because they represent major obstacles for people fleeing war, climate change (another human blunder), poverty and inequality.
Borders created the concept of tourists, foreigners, migrants, immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers. They originated a new way of seeing and treating people depending on a stamped paper, and the lottery of being born or not in a place where you don't need a visa to move freely. Every day people die trying to cross a border.
In 2019, in America alone (you know, the American continent), more than 800 people died trying to cross deserts..., rivers and remote islands, trying to cross the continent. That's an Airbus A380-800 aircraft, the world's largest passenger plane full of people, stories and families.
Borders represent something to both sides. From one, the promise of a better life, from the other, a "safe" boundary that divides chaos and fear from order. A vision that can create dangerous stereotypes, postures and mentalities. That brings us to the second fucked up thing about borders.
There are power and benefits in a healthy society with a strong identity, culture and belonging, but what happens when deep-rooted nationalism is mixed with strict borders that reinforce an "us and them" narrative ? According to Bridget Anderson, immigration status is not just a matter of legal technicalities, it is also a status of value, worth, honor and helps define the privileges and limitations of citizenship.
Don't mind us too much, we're just a bunch of losers with a blog, but we all know what happens when extreme nationalism mixes with fear and phobias: hate speech, discrimination and racism. You know, all that stuff that makes an idiot an idiot.
What is the role of borders as symbols of separation, illusory nationalist hierarchies and xenophobia? Why are borders used as political campaigns to connect with entire countries? (That's right, we're talking about our meme generator, Donald Trump).
In The Borders of Inequality: Where Wealth and Poverty Collide, Iñigo Moré exposes some of the most unequal borders in the world: México and the United States, Germany and Poland, Spain and Morocco. Many of them share some characteristics such as immigration, illegal substance trafficking and tension between the two neighboring countries, but the biggest characteristic is inequality.
Borders accentuate the differences between privileged and poor countries. They generate constant migratory conflicts and worsen relations between countries.
How do borders affect access to certain resources that have a negative impact on the economy? How does this inequality affect diplomatic relations and the generation of wars? How many of these wars force people to move and seek other opportunities?
According to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (more specifically, Article 13):
"Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the territory of a State."
But hey, we're talking about borders! It HAS to be complicated, right? That's what borders are all about. As mentioned before, the lottery of the country you were born in determines where you stand on borders, what they mean to you, even how much importance you attach to such issues. More importantly, it will determine the complications you will encounter when you try to apply Article 13 of the Human Rights.
According to the Global Passport Index, the most "powerful" passport (with the fewest visa restrictions) is that of Germany and Finland, with only 65 visa requirements.
In contrast to Afghanistan, the "least powerful", which requires 168 visa permits. Now that lottery thing is clearer, isn't it?
We can say a lot about borders, from crazy and curious things like islands that change administration every 6 months, to heartbreaking stories of families being separated.
And that's why, dear reader bounded by borders, despite borders and quarantines, we want to bring our Fuckuppers (organizers of Fuckup Nights) and local communities closer together in complex borders around the world.
Sometimes it seems to be the opposite of borders, it is universal and human no matter what territory you are in, it is a powerful generator of empathy when shared and a bridge of vulnerability that connects with anyone.
We will be launching our border editions of Fuckup Nights, starting with the México and U.S. border.
You can register for free here for this special edition, or any other online edition of Fuckup Nights.
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Let's transform our perception of failure and use it as a catalyst for growth.
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