Since the early 2000s, architects Ronald Rael and Virginia San Fratello (Rael San Fratello) have developed numerous proposals for interventions and alternatives to the United States-Mexico border wall. Many of their designs were inspired by stories of “people who, on both sides of the border, transform the wall, challenging its existence in remarkably creative ways.” On July 28, 2019, they installed three pink teeter-totters into the border wall for families to play on. Their design serves as a metaphor, as Rael said, of the “border as a literal fulcrum between US-Mexico relations,” with “actions that take place on one side of a teeter totter having direct consequence on the other side.” For an hour, a small section of the wall between the two countries became a site of joyful connection rather than violent division.

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  • T1AO

    Yes to thinking outside the box…all pun intended.

  • Rajat

    Uniting with brilliant ideas.

  • Deepak Sethi

    Thank you for the video. Creativity is the answer to good neighbourly relations not only between Usa and Mexico but to all countries who are neighbors globally .

  • Diane

    People with ideas to make the world a better place. Love their ideas. xx

  • Kristin Pedemonti

    1000 times yes! A brilliant re-authoring!

  • Dian Turner-Forte

    Love it . . . may it continue to be a work in progress!! Creativity is the key and can solve most problems!

  • Page 1

  • Learn more about the social justice art projects of Rael San Fratello.
  • See how others are responding with creative, nonviolent resistance towards injustice in past and current times of oppression in America.
  • In what small ways can you use art to transform boundaries in your world, either physical or philosophical, that keep keep people separated?

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