Eddie Canales

Eddie Canales
Born(1948-01-12)January 12, 1948
DiedJuly 30, 2024(2024-07-30) (aged 76)
Known forHuman rights advocacy

Eduardo Osiel Canales ((1948-01-12)January 12, 1948–(2024-07-30)July 30, 2024), known as Eddie Canales, was a human rights advocate and former union organizer who advocated for the welfare of migrants crossing the border into South Texas.[1][2] He set up nearly 200 water stations[3] along routes taken by migrants avoiding a checkpoint along U.S. Route 281, dozens of whom die each year from dehydration[1] and temperature extremes.[2] He also helped coordinate rescue missions, and sometimes assisted in the recovery of remains, when people's loved ones went missing in the area;[2] Texas programs for identifying the dead are notoriously under-resourced, and migrants are sometimes buried, unidentified, in mass graves.[4] He founded the South Texas Human Rights Center, a nonprofit intended to prevent the death and suffering of migrants on the border.[2][3] He died July 30th, 2024, after a months-long battle with pancreatic cancer.[1][5]

  1. ^ a b c Nossiter, Adam (10 August 2024). "Eddie Canales, 76, Dies; Gave Migrants Water, and Dignity". New York Times.
  2. ^ a b c d Smith, Harrison (12 August 2024). "Eddie Canales, who campaigned to prevent migrant deaths, dies at 76". Washington Post.
  3. ^ a b Goodyear, Sheena (13 August 2024). "Eddie Canales, who set up nearly 200 water stations along U.S.-Mexico border, dead at 76". CBC.ca.
  4. ^ Del Bosque, Melissa (21 August 2024). "A Visionary in the Borderlands". Texas Observer.
  5. ^ Nickas, Katie (1 August 2024). "Edward 'Eddie' Canales, Corpus Christi advocate for migrants and laborers, dies at 76". Caller Times.