A Small County in Texas
The Texas Observer, the former home of journalism legends such as Willie Morris and Molly Ivins, continues to feature some great reporting and writing. Earlier this month the biweekly Observer ran Mary Jo McConahay's "They Die in Brooks County," which shows how illegal immigration is affecting a county 70 miles from the Mexican border. McConahay deftly describes how the ranchers and other residents of Brooks County, population 7,685, frequently spot the migrants, sometimes still alive and sometimes the victims of the heat or rattlesnakes. McConahay traces the impact in many ways, for example how the county has already overspent its budget for autopsies and the section of the local cemetery devoted to unidentified people is running of space. Steve Satterwhite's and Jerry Harris' black-and-white photos contribute to the poignant portrait of this county. Thank you Phil Kaplan for this excellent suggestion. www.texasobserver.org/article.php?aid=2509