Seesaws installed at US-Mexican border for children to play together in defiance of immigration tensions

Children play on the bright seesaws installed through the cross-national barriers
AP

Bright pink seesaws have been installed across the US-Mexico border in a playful show of unity in defiance of immigration tensions.

Children from both nations have joined together to enjoy their shared toy, which was built along the steel border fence on the outskirts of El Paso, Texas, and Ciudad Juárez, Mexico.

The seesaws are the brainchild of professors Ronald Rael and Virginia San Fratello, who first came up with the idea 10 years ago.

In an Instagram post that received more than 30,000 likes in one day, children and adults can be seen playing and interacting on both sides of the divide.

Prof Rael described the scene as “an event filled with joy, excitement, and togetherness at the borderwall.”

The University of California professor wrote: “The wall became a literal fulcrum for US-Mexico relations.

“Children and adults were connected in meaningful ways on both sides, with the recognition that the actions that take place on one side have a direct consequence on the other side.”

Families from both nations interact across the divide
AP

The artwork, entitled Teetertotter Wall, comes as President Donald Trump continues his crackdown on migrants crossing into the US from its southern border.

His promise to “build a wall” between the US and Mexico has not yet come to fruition, but it has become one of the defining features of his presidency.

Last week, the Supreme Court gave Mr Trump’s administration the go-ahead to build a £2 billion section of wall in the states of Arizona, California and New Mexico.

It followed the president’s partial government shutdown at the start of 2019, and declaration of a “national emergency” to try to secure funds for his wall.

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