REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: On the Tohono O’odham Border, a Chairman’s Resolve to Defend His Nation

SELLS, Ariz. — Verlon Jose, chairman of the Tohono O’odham Nation, was late for our meeting Thursday afternoon. He had been delayed by a call from a federal official who tried to persuade him to reconsider his tribal nation’s opposition to President Donald Trump’s proposed border wall.

The project calls for a double-wall structure, with two walls running parallel to each other, approximately 60 feet apart, extending 62 miles across the Tohono O’odham Nation along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The official told the chairman that he had a wall to build. Jose’s response was direct: “I don’t want a wall.” The call ended shortly thereafter.

Driving a black SUV, Chairman Jose departed the temporary executive offices of the Tohono O’odham Nation in Sells, Arizona, the Nation’s capital, and headed toward the southern border near San Miguel, Arizona.

Inside the SUV with us were the Nation’s Vice Chairwoman, Carla Johnson, and a reporter and cameraman from Independent Channel 5, a television station based in Los Angeles.

The chairman’s SUV was followed by two additional vehicles carrying members of his staff and additional videographers from the television station.

During the drive, Chairman Jose provided an overview of how the Tohono O’odham Nation, whose land base is roughly the size of Connecticut, is divided into 11 administrative districts.

He also discussed the 20-page lawsuit the Nation filed on June 16, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The lawsuit seeks to stop construction of the proposed border wall.

The lawsuit states:

“Historically, the Nation’s aboriginal lands and communities extended well north and south of the international line, and the establishment of that line in 1854 did not sever the Nation’s cross-border ties. Today, there still exist seventeen O’odham communities and several thousand Nation members residing in Mexico, and Nation members regularly cross the border at multiple points (with the Department’s knowledge) for important religious, family, and practical reasons.”

The lawsuit asserts that the Nation has worked cooperatively with federal agencies for decades to ensure that border security efforts take a more effective and less harmful approach than constructing additional physical barriers.

“The wall is unnecessary. We have worked with immigration agencies for decades. We don’t need an ineffective wall,” Chairman Jose said. The tribe says through recent years its infrastructure has reduced border crossings by over 95% and the ineffective wall would separate its tribal citizens, desecrate sacred areas, and damage the natural environment.

The Nation sought an injunction to halt construction of the wall. In August, U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon, who was appointed by President George W. Bush in 2001, denied the request. In his decision, Leon concluded that the Nation was unlikely to succeed on the merits of its claims and that the remaining factors favored the federal government.

“We have to appeal to the same judge, and then we appeal to the appellate court on the judge’s decision, and that’s only on the injunction. That’s not even the main complaint we have. So we asked for an expedited schedule there, which we got,” Chairman Jose said. “So our hearing is set for December 1 in Washington, D.C.”

Chairman Jose also discussed a meeting the Nation had sought and secured with Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin in Washington several months earlier. Mullin, a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, did not side with the Tohono O’odham Nation in its opposition to the border wall.

“You guys want to litigate this? We’ve already staffed it with the Department of Justice, and we’re ready to go all the way to the Supreme Court,” Secretary Mullin told the Tohono O’odham delegation during the meeting.

Chairman Jose recounted an exchange in which the Nation’s attorney general questioned Mullin about the federal government’s decision to disregard cultural assessments during preconstruction work, including archaeological studies.

“He banged his hand on the table and stood up angrily and said, ‘Don’t play with me.’ I think he took that as a delay tactic to slow down construction of the wall,” Chairman Jose said.

Along the border

After leaving the paved highway, we turned onto a road called the Northern Traditional Border Road. Chairman Jose explained that the Nation has a 25-year agreement allowing both the tribe and U.S. Border Patrol to use the road.

The unpaved road was rough and uneven, with stretches of gravel, clay and sand. It runs parallel to the international border with Mexico to the south.

Chairman Jose stopped the vehicle so we could take photographs and the television crew could capture footage. He answered questions about the saguaro cactus, which would be destroyed if the proposed wall is built.

He explained that the tribal council had passed a resolution recognizing the saguaro as having personhood.

“It’s deemed as a person because in our creation stories, there’s a lot of stories about a lot of everything here that has a story on how it came to be,” Chairman Jose said.

“We use this for food. We use this for medicinal purposes. We use that when we die. There’s a lot of cactus ribs. We use it for shelter. We use it in ceremonies. We use it to do a lot of different stuff,” he continued.

After answering questions, the chairman excused himself from the group. He said he wanted to go pray to the Creator.

While we were stopped, a helicopter hovered above our group, circled us a couple of times and then departed.

The sight immediately took me back to Standing Rock 10 years ago, when drones and airplanes repeatedly flew over water protectors gathered to oppose the Dakota Access pipeline.

As we continued our journey, we stopped at the prayer camp, where tribal members had established a presence around a sacred fire. Again, my thoughts returned to Standing Rock, where thousands of water protectors gathered for approximately 10 months.

The Tohono O’odham prayer camp began on August 9 and will remain in place as long as the federal government poses a threat to the Nation’s land through the proposed border wall.

Fearless

As I talked with Chairman Jose, I began to think: This man is fearless.

His fearlessness was evident even in the way he drove.

Dusk had settled over the mountains as we began our journey back. The unpaved road, with its rugged, weathered terrain, grew increasingly dark. Along the way, Chairman Jose had to stop for wild cattle and a couple of wild horses that suddenly crossed the road, seemingly reminding us that we were traveling through their habitat.

He spotted them before I did, slowed the vehicle and carefully navigated the road until we reached the paved highway back to Sells.

Earlier that day, Chairman Jose had shared a story that helped me understand where his fearlessness comes from.

He recalled attending a meeting several years ago when federal officials announced plans to construct a vehicle barrier along the reservation. Sitting nearby was a Tohono O’odham elder and decorated military veteran. The elder had remained quiet throughout much of the meeting, but he eventually spoke up.

“He was very quiet, very humble, but he had something to say about the barrier,” Chairman Jose recalled.

The veteran then delivered a message that Chairman Jose has never forgotten.

“You know, I fought for this country. I’ve been to several wars for this country, and they gave me all these medals and all. Those medals don’t mean anything to me. But if they desecrate our land, it will be over my dead body. I fought for this country, and I’ll fight this country if that’s what they’re gonna do,” the veteran told him.

Chairman Jose’s response was immediate.

“I’ll be standing right there with you,” he told the veteran.

Fearless.

Native News Online has previously reported on the proposed border wall and will continue covering the Tohono O’odham Nation’s fight to prevent its construction through or near its tribal lands.