U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar has introduced legislation that would block the Trump administration from using eminent domain to strip land owned by the Catholic Diocese of Las Cruces along Mount Cristo Rey for a border wall.
Escobar, D-El Paso, introduced the Mount Cristo Rey Protection Act on Monday, July 20.
The bill recognizes Mount Cristo Rey, which sits on the U.S. border with Mexico in Sunland Park, New Mexico, as a holy site. It also prohibits the use of federal funds to litigate against the Diocese of Las Cruces in its lawsuit challenging the federal government’s attempted land seizure and it prohibits the use of federal funds to construct, install, operate, or maintain border barrier infrastructure on or near Mount Cristo Rey.
“Mount Cristo Rey is a religious and cultural landmark that has been central to our community for generations,” Escobar said. “Rather than working with border communities to advance effective border security, the Trump administration continues to disregard the people, history, and culture that make our region special. I will continue to fight for its preservation.”
The Trump administration is looking to strip 1.2 miles of land owned by the diocese along the U.S. border with Mexico on the southern side of Mount Cristo Rey for the construction of the border wall. The plans have been met with outcry from the church and people who view the mountain as a sacred symbol.
The diocese has sued the Trump administration to block the use of eminent domain.
Since 1939, hikers, bikers and Catholic pilgrims have made the ascent up the mountain — a sacred site to the faithful on both sides of the border. The mountain is especially important on Good Friday each year, drawing thousands from both sides of the border to celebrate Easter by making a pilgrimage up the mountain to the 29-foot-tall limestone monument of Jesus with arms stretched.
“(Mount Cristo Rey) has become for people in our region a holy site marking the unity of humanity and of faith that transcends borders,” El Paso’s Bishop Mark Seitz said. “For the federal government to forcefully take this holy ground to build a tall barrier topped with razor wire would represent an overreach on the part of the government and create a sign that speaks, not of mutual respect and love, but of separation and rejection.”
Jeff Abbott covers the border for the El Paso Times and can be reached at:jdabbott@usatodayco.com; @palabrasdeabajo on Twitter or @palabrasdeabajo.bsky.social on Bluesky.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: US Rep. Veronica Escobar introduces bill to protect Mount Cristo Rey
Reporting by Jeff Abbott, El Paso Times / El Paso Times
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Jeff Abbott, El Paso Times | USA TODAY Network
