Haciendo Fila: Crossing Borders and Negotiating Entrance in the U.S. – Mexico Borderlands

The borderlands provide opportunities to legally cross the border on a regular basis, opening the door to a greater range of job, living, and educational possibilities. Fronterizos (borderlanders) are fluid migrants— they cross between Mexico and the United States on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. In Brownsville, Texas and Matamoros, Tamaulipas there is a constant flux of workers and students who are taking advantage of their unique position to be transnational citizens. Fronterizos seemingly always have one foot in each country; their lives are shaped by the existence of this international boundary. Fronterizos often spend hours daily “haciendo fila,” waiting in line, to cross the bridge. This article explores the troubles and processes of negotiating entrance in the borderlands and illustrates the complexity of border crossing