The Devil’s Highway

by

Luis Alberto Urrea

A smoothed-over stretch of sand. The U.S. Border Patrol, or Migra, tie groups of tires together, hook the tires to the backs of trucks, and drive through the desert in order to create smooth strips of sand which can be used to cut sign—that is, to track the movements of illegal immigrants traversing the desert.
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Drag Term Timeline in The Devil’s Highway

The timeline below shows where the term Drag appears in The Devil’s Highway. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 1: The Rules of the Game
Desolation and Desperation Theme Icon
...they come upon a dirt road, they are unaware that it is called the Vidrios Drag. They are now praying to be found by the Migra, or the Border Patrol, whom... (full context)
Humanity and “Illegality” Theme Icon
Bearing Witness Theme Icon
Border agents create “drags” by attaching car tires to the backs of trucks and dragging them through the desert.... (full context)
Desolation and Desperation Theme Icon
Humanity and “Illegality” Theme Icon
Bearing Witness Theme Icon
As signcutters worked backwards from the Vidrios Drag, they began to find corpses. Fourteen men had died, and twelve more men were rescued... (full context)