Where the border fence meets the sea, a strange beach scene contrasting the U.S. and Mexico [View all]

[Zorro]

Thrusting into the sky from the edge of the Pacific, Tijuana’s lighthouse, or faro, sends out a beacon where the northwestern nook of Latin America edges against the southwestern tip of the United States.

A coastal esplanade south of the fence marking the international boundary is both a beachy hangout and a hub for border artists and activists, yoga aficionados and bemused tourists snapping selfies.

It is also the site of often-emotional encounters during which stranded deportees on the south visit with separated loved ones on the north, albeit through a mesh-steel fence. A minister of the “church of the lighthouse” says an interfaith prayer on behalf of divided families. The barrier has become a kind of politically charged art installation, featuring evolving images and slogans, most condemning President Trump’s immigration policies.

“Family reunification,” reads one graffiti manifesto splashed on the southern face of the fence. “A future to believe in.”

http://www.latimes.com/world/mexico-americas/la-fg-mexico-tijuana-beach-2017-story.html