The 1993 North American Free Trade Act, or NAFTA, put an estimated 2 million Mexican farmers out of business. Food prices in Mexico went up, while wages, after adjusting for inflation, declined. The consequences of NAFTA and spiking unemployment from the peso currency crisis incentivized many Mexicans to head north to the U.S. in search of a better life.But with more people seeking opportunity in the U.S., human smugglers known as coyotes saw a lucrative opportunity. One in which vulnerable migrants would be exploited for the sliver of hope they thought possible in Arizona.  Those who made it to Arizona, however, were met with hostile state legislators intent on squandering any potential path to prosperity that may have existed for migrants. Those same legislators conflated migrants with exploitative smugglers. Latino citizens already living in Arizona beared the wrath of discriminatory legislation, racial profiling by police and racist behavior by peers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

The 1993 North American Free Trade Act, or NAFTA, put an estimated 2 million Mexican farmers out of business. Food prices in Mexico went up, while wages, after adjusting for inflation, declined. The consequences of NAFTA and spiking unemployment from the peso currency crisis incentivized many Mexicans to head north to the U.S. in search of a better life. But with more people seeking opportunity in the U.S., human smugglers known as coyotes saw a lucrative opportunity. One in which vulnerable migrants would be exploited for the sliver of hope they thought possible in Arizona. Those who made it to Arizona, however, were met with hostile state legislators intent on squandering any potential path to prosperity that may have existed for migrants. Those same legislators conflated migrants with exploitative smugglers. Latino citizens already living in Arizona beared the wrath of discriminatory legislation, racial profiling by police and racist behavior by peers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 1993 North American Free Trade Act, or NAFTA, put an estimated 2 million Mexican farmers out of business. Food prices in Mexico went up, while wages, after adjusting for inflation, declined.&nbsp;The consequences of NAFTA and spiking unemployment from the peso currency crisis incentivized many Mexicans to head north to the U.S. in search of a better life.But with more people seeking opportunity in the U.S., human smugglers known as coyotes saw a lucrative opportunity. One in which vulnerable migrants would be exploited for the sliver of hope they thought possible in Arizona.&nbsp;&nbsp;Those who made it to Arizona, however, were met with hostile state legislators intent on squandering any potential path to prosperity that may have existed for migrants. Those same legislators conflated migrants with exploitative smugglers. Latino citizens already living in Arizona beared&nbsp;the wrath of discriminatory legislation, racial profiling by police and racist behavior by peers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices" rel="noopener noreferrer">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

S2 EP02: They think they can survive without Mexican labor?

SEASON FOUR: Arizona is less than 3% of the nation’s population but often plays a prominent role in American radicalism, like the insurrection at the nation’s Capitol on January 6th. This podcast asks why? Over four episodes, hosts Ron Hansen and Mary Jo Pitzl trace the history of Arizona’s brushes with extremism. It goes beyond outlandish acts and isolated criminal behavior. It’s a story of disillusionment, distrust of government and outright rebellion that have mixed into the state’s culture and politics. From Confederates drawn to Arizona to Ground Zero for election denialism, this is Rediscovering season four: The Roots of Radicalism.
SEASON THREE: Border Patrol Agent Lonnie Swartz responded to a drug smuggling attempt, leaving his assigned post at a Nogales port of entry on Oct. 10, 2012. The night would end with 16-year old Jose Antonio Elena Rodriguez dead on the Mexican side of Ambos Nogales. The event would begin a nearly decade-long court battle for the Elena Rodriguez family as they sought justice for the killing. It also would be a historic moment for the U.S. Border Patrol when Swartz became the first agent to be federally charged on multiple counts, including murder. Families seeking justice would get an answer years later, when another cross-border shooting reached the U.S. Supreme Court.  In season three of Rediscovering, Killed Through the Border Fence, host Rafael Carranza focuses on a case that changed the way the U.S. patrols its southern boundary with Mexico and its lasting impacts on both sides of the border.
SEASON TWO: In April 2010, Arizona enacted the Support Our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhoods Act, better known as Senate Bill 1070. The state law required police officers to inquire about the legal status of anyone they thought might be in the country illegally. The law was a state-level response to a national issue that had stalled in Congress. It sought to break the federal log jam and show the nation that if Congress wouldn't tackle immigration reform, Arizona would. Ten years later, the law played a role in reducing the size of the state’s undocumented population and unquestionably reshaped Arizona politics. In season two of Rediscovering, SB 1070, hosts Ron Hansen and Yvonne Wingett Sanchez retrace the history of SB 1070: how it happened, who advocated for it and why it still matters a decade later. 
SEASON ONE: Our show focused on Don Bolles. Bolles was an investigative reporter for The Arizona Republic in the 1960s and '70s. After years of reporting on corruption in the racing industry, he was killed by a car bomb in 1976. Decades later, we found cassette tapes of his phone calls from the '70s. With those tapes, we're telling the story of Don's life and his quarrels with the mafia before his death and how his spirit was crushed long before his murder.

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SEASON FOUR: Arizona is less than 3% of the nation’s population but often plays a prominent role in American radicalism, like the insurrection at the nation’s Capitol on January 6th. This podcast asks why? Over four episodes, hosts Ron Hansen and Mary Jo Pitzl trace the history of Arizona’s brushes with extremism. It goes beyond outlandish acts and isolated criminal behavior. It’s a story of disillusionment, distrust of government and outright rebellion that have mixed into the state’s culture and politics. From Confederates drawn to Arizona to Ground Zero for election denialism, this is Rediscovering season four: The Roots of Radicalism. SEASON THREE: Border Patrol Agent Lonnie Swartz responded to a drug smuggling attempt, leaving his assigned post at a Nogales port of entry on Oct. 10, 2012. The night would end with 16-year old Jose Antonio Elena Rodriguez dead on the Mexican side of Ambos Nogales. The event would begin a nearly decade-long court battle for the Elena Rodriguez family as they sought justice for the killing. It also would be a historic moment for the U.S. Border Patrol when Swartz became the first agent to be federally charged on multiple counts, including murder. Families seeking justice would get an answer years later, when another cross-border shooting reached the U.S. Supreme Court. In season three of Rediscovering, Killed Through the Border Fence, host Rafael Carranza focuses on a case that changed the way the U.S. patrols its southern boundary with Mexico and its lasting impacts on both sides of the border. SEASON TWO: In April 2010, Arizona enacted the Support Our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhoods Act, better known as Senate Bill 1070. The state law required police officers to inquire about the legal status of anyone they thought might be in the country illegally. The law was a state-level response to a national issue that had stalled in Congress. It sought to break the federal log jam and show the nation that if Congress wouldn't tackle immigration reform, Arizona would. Ten years later, the law played a role in reducing the size of the state’s undocumented population and unquestionably reshaped Arizona politics. In season two of Rediscovering, SB 1070, hosts Ron Hansen and Yvonne Wingett Sanchez retrace the history of SB 1070: how it happened, who advocated for it and why it still matters a decade later. SEASON ONE: Our show focused on Don Bolles. Bolles was an investigative reporter for The Arizona Republic in the 1960s and '70s. After years of reporting on corruption in the racing industry, he was killed by a car bomb in 1976. Decades later, we found cassette tapes of his phone calls from the '70s. With those tapes, we're telling the story of Don's life and his quarrels with the mafia before his death and how his spirit was crushed long before his murder.

SEASON FOUR: Arizona is less than 3% of the nation’s population but often plays a prominent role in American radicalism, like the insurrection at the nation’s Capitol on January 6th. This podcast asks why?&nbsp;Over four episodes, hosts Ron Hansen and Mary Jo Pitzl trace the history of Arizona’s brushes with extremism. It goes beyond outlandish acts and isolated criminal behavior. It’s a story of disillusionment, distrust of government and outright rebellion that have mixed into the state’s culture and politics. From Confederates drawn to Arizona to Ground Zero for election denialism, this is Rediscovering season four: The Roots of Radicalism.
SEASON THREE: Border Patrol Agent Lonnie Swartz responded to a drug smuggling attempt, leaving his assigned post at a Nogales port of entry on Oct. 10, 2012.&nbsp;The night would end with 16-year old Jose Antonio Elena Rodriguez dead on the Mexican side of Ambos Nogales.&nbsp;The event would begin a nearly decade-long court battle for the Elena Rodriguez family as they sought&nbsp;justice for the killing. It also would be a historic moment for the U.S. Border Patrol when Swartz became the first agent to be federally charged on multiple counts, including murder.&nbsp;Families seeking justice would get an answer years later, when another cross-border shooting reached the U.S. Supreme Court.&nbsp;&nbsp;In season three of Rediscovering, Killed Through the Border Fence, host Rafael Carranza focuses on a case that changed the way the U.S. patrols its southern boundary with Mexico and its lasting impacts on both sides of the border.
SEASON TWO: In April 2010, Arizona enacted the Support Our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhoods Act, better known as Senate Bill 1070. The state law required police officers to inquire about the legal status of anyone they thought might be in the country illegally.&nbsp;The law was a state-level response to a national issue that had stalled in Congress. It sought to break the federal log jam and show the nation that if Congress wouldn't tackle immigration reform, Arizona would.&nbsp;Ten years later, the law played a role in reducing the size of the state’s undocumented population and unquestionably reshaped Arizona politics. In season two of Rediscovering, SB 1070, hosts Ron Hansen and Yvonne Wingett Sanchez retrace the history of SB 1070: how it happened, who advocated for it and why it still matters a decade later.&nbsp;
SEASON ONE: Our show focused on Don Bolles.&nbsp;Bolles was an investigative reporter for The Arizona Republic in the 1960s and '70s. After years of reporting on corruption in the racing industry, he was killed by a car bomb in 1976.&nbsp;Decades later, we found cassette tapes of his phone calls from the '70s. With those tapes, we're telling the story of Don's life and his quarrels with the mafia before his death and how his spirit was crushed long before his murder.

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S2 EP02: They think they can survive without Mexican labor?

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