Crossing the Line

Finding America in the Borderlands

By: Sarah Towle

Narrated by: Sarah Towle

It was family separation and “kids in cages” that drove Sarah Towle to the U.S. southern border. On discovering the many-headed hydra that is the U.S. immigration system—and the heroic determination of those caught under its knee—she could never look away again. Crossing the Line: Finding America in the Borderlands charts Sarah’s journey from outrage to activism to abolition as she exposes, layer by “broken” layer, the global deterrence to detention to deportation complex that is failing everyone—save the profiteers and demagogues who benefit from it.

Deftly weaving together oral storytelling, history, and memoir, Sarah illustrates how the U.S. has led the retreat from post-WWII commitments to protecting human rights. Yet within the web of normalized cruelty, she finds hope and inspiration in the extraordinary acts of ordinary people who prove, every day, there is a better way. By amplifying their voices and celebrating their efforts, Sarah reveals that we can welcome with dignity those most in need of safety and compassion. In unmasking the real root causes of the so-called “crisis” in human migration, she urges us to act before we travel much farther down our current course—one which history will not soon forgive, or forget.

©2024 Sarah B. Towles (P)2024 Sarah B. Towles

Truth as you may not know it

Crossing the Line takes a hard, painful look at the wreckage caused by many decades of failed immigration policy, but especially by our most current administrations. This is not an easy book to read or listen to, but a vitally important one, as so much has not been covered in our constant news cycle. Towles documents in detail, through extensive research, interviews, and hands-on activism, the intentional cruelty of US policies, the profiteering of imprisonment and the “immigration industrial complex”, and the rampant sadism of the policy makers and enforcers who act with impunity. Towles also introduces the nonprofit champions who rose to the challenges of providing safety and dignity, and the immigrant heroes who battled for the right to safety despite torture and injustice. This book is a call to arms, making us face a terrible truth we didn’t know, and challenging us to right the wrongs.

Well explained in accessible manner

An exceptional read written in a very accessible way. It can be a daunting task to get your mind around such a complex issue but the author very effectively breaks down the long history and current state of the US southern border in a clear manner that is well supported by facts and references. The stories she shares are heartbreaking and critical to our understanding of the crisis. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is looking to understand beyond the headlines.

Shines a Light on a Broken System

In Crossing the Line, Towle takes on the heroic effort of laying out the history that has led to a currently broken and inhumane United States immigration system. In the process she tells the stories of many heroes and heroines who have endured, fought against, and tried to interject humanity in the midst of cruelty. These are stories that need to be heard. I have often hear the refrain “we are a nation of immigrants, this is not how we treat immigrants.” In fact, as the author shows, we have long had a system that is unkind at best and cruel, even tortuous at worst. This is a must read to understand how we got to where we are today.

What every American should know about the Border

Sarah Towle provides a moving and easily understood explanation of the extremely complicated and dysfunctional immigration system in the US. Using first hand accounts gathered from migrants on both sides of the border as well as many non-governmental humanitarian aide organizations and migrant advocates, she personalizes the humanitarian crisis that has developed — in no small part due to US interference in Central and South American politics. I’ve been to the border several times and considered myself to be well-informed on the subject of border policy, but I learned so much more from this book. More Americans need to read it to understand the history and current state of affairs.