Former Customs and Border Patrol janitor Tom Kiefer photographs migrants confiscated possessions

A former Arizona Customs and Border Protection janitor’s photos of undocumented migrants’ confiscated possessions are putting a different spotlight on the humanity of those caught in the Trump Administration’s current immigration policy struggle.

Tom Kiefer’s ‘El Sueño Americano’ photography series showcases dozens of images of everyday items that border agents confiscated from undocumented migrants while they were being detained at the CBP processing center in Ajo, Arizona, just over 40miles from the US-Mexico border.

Although Kiefer’s photos initially drew headlines in 2017, they recently resurfaced and created a frenzy on social media as they were used, in part, to illustrate seeming parallels to historical images of items that were confiscated wholesale from a different ethnic group by a country’s ruling party.

Photographer Tom Kiefer’s ‘El Sueño Americano’ photo series captures thousands of items border patrol agents confiscated from undocumented migrants that thrown away between 2007 and 2014

Kiefer said these bales of blankets were all taken from migrants being held at the Customs and Border Patrol processing facility in Ajo, Arizona. He was a janitor at the facility for 11 years before quitting to work fulltime on his photography

Kiefer said these bales of blankets were all taken from migrants being held at the Customs and Border Patrol processing facility in Ajo, Arizona. He was a janitor at the facility for 11 years before quitting to work fulltime on his photography

This image of rosaries, taken from migrants between 2007 and 2014, caused a stir on social media recently, as people likened them to historical pictures of wedding rings taken from Holocaust victims during World War II

This image of rosaries, taken from migrants between 2007 and 2014, caused a stir on social media recently, as people likened them to historical pictures of wedding rings taken from Holocaust victims during World War II

Kiefer, 59, worked as a janitor at the Arizona CBP processing facility for 11 years, starting in 2003, and was tasked with disposing of bags and bags of the migrants’ possessions on a daily basis. 

In 2007, Kiefer got permission to start taking any confiscated packaged food and donate them to a local food pantry, a practice which had been previously temporarily suspended.

While digging through the garbage bags of ‘non-essential personal property,’ as the CBP calls it, or anything potentially lethal, he was surprised to see what else was being thrown out.  

‘When I saw my first rosary or Bible, I was like, “You’ve got to be kidding me, this is outrageous,’ Kiefer recalled to DailyMail.com.

‘I was just expecting to dig through food and trash — legitimate, real trash, not people’s personal belongings. Things like belts and shoes laces that could easily be considered potentially harmful, but not a Bible or rosaries or family photography.’ 

Beyond items of clear sentimental value, Kiefer also came across mundane things like tubes of toothpaste, condoms, sunglasses, keys, water bottles, deodorant and nail clippers.

Alongside the food for donation, Kiefer started discretely taking the items — which were already disposed of and in the trash — home with him and storing it in friends’ garages. 

‘I didn’t know what I was going to do,’ with the items, Kiefer told the New Yorker in 2017. ‘But I knew there was something to be done.’  

Kiefer first began digging through the CBP confiscated goods trash after getting permission to pick out packaged foods and donate them to the local food pantry in 2007. He was surprised to see that Bibles, rosaries and pictures were also thrown out

Kiefer first began digging through the CBP confiscated goods trash after getting permission to pick out packaged foods and donate them to the local food pantry in 2007. He was surprised to see that Bibles, rosaries and pictures were also thrown out

Deodorant, cigarettes and lighters were among the items taken from migrants because they were deemed 'non-essential personal property.' He estimates that he has only photographed about five per cent of what he collected over the years

Deodorant, cigarettes and lighters were among the items taken from migrants because they were deemed ‘non-essential personal property.’ He estimates that he has only photographed about five per cent of what he collected over the years

Kiefer said that wallets, containing IDs and money were occasionally, accidentally disposed of or gotten separated from their owners while the migrants were being transported between facilities

Kiefer said that wallets, containing IDs and money were occasionally, accidentally disposed of or gotten separated from their owners while the migrants were being transported between facilities

As a landscape and landmark fine art photographer by trade, Kiefer said that it took him five years to figure out ‘how to present and arrange these belongings in a way that was respectful, reverent and not cheesy or too artistic.

‘I wanted the objects to allow the viewer to look at them and respond to them. This was not about me being a clever artist and trying to set up a scene. I just wanted to, as much as possible, take the artist out of it and present the items in a respectful, reverent way.’     

Kiefer, who had initially moved from Los Angeles to Ajo, Arizona, to concentrate on his photography, eventually landed on the flat lay format and started documenting the images that would turn into his ongoing photo series, ‘El Sueño Americano,’ or The American Dream.  

In the photos, Kiefer lays out the anonymous migrants’ confiscated personal possessions according to category, shooting them against complimentary, occasionally cheerfully colorful, backgrounds. He accompanies each image with contextual, background information.

At first glance, Kiefer’s photos of candy, combs, sunglasses and accidentally disposed of wallets seem familiar, just like the millions of other glossy, flat lay images commonly posted on Instagram. Kiefer himself posts the images on his own Instagram page, which he updates every Wednesday with three new, related photos from the series.  

A migrants Bible, wallet and identification, all of which wound up in the garbage at the processing plant where Kiefer worked

A migrants Bible, wallet and identification, all of which wound up in the garbage at the processing plant where Kiefer worked

Multiple bibles and rosaries were among the deeply personal items that were taken from migrants while they were being processed at the CBP facilities. Kiefer now posts three new, related pictures a week on his Instagram page

Multiple bibles and rosaries were among the deeply personal items that were taken from migrants while they were being processed at the CBP facilities. Kiefer now posts three new, related pictures a week on his Instagram page

A seemingly endless number of shoelaces taken from migrants. Anything deemed 'non-essential' or 'potentially lethal' was stripped from the migrants. Shoelaces and belts were considered potentially harmful items 

A seemingly endless number of shoelaces taken from migrants. Anything deemed ‘non-essential’ or ‘potentially lethal’ was stripped from the migrants. Shoelaces and belts were considered potentially harmful items 

Rolls of toilet paper that migrants carried with them as they made the trek through the desert into the United States

Rolls of toilet paper that migrants carried with them as they made the trek through the desert into the United States

Condoms, cologne, candy and combs were among the everyday items taken from migrants when they were caught

Condoms, cologne, candy and combs were among the everyday items taken from migrants when they were caught

Take a closer look, however, and viewers will see the layer of grime and caked-on dust covering the items, illustrating the hard desert journey undertaken by their owners before being caught up by CBP agents.  

‘I photographed them in the state that I found them,’ Kiefer said.  ‘Not cleaning them up, that was an editorial decision in that it was about reverence and respect, the integrity of it. This is what was found and how I found it.’ 

Kiefer tells a story of seeing his first cologne bottle while digging through the facility’s garbage.

‘I kind of went, ‘What?’ I thought that that was kind of silly, but then when I really gave it thought, I was like, “Oh my God,”‘ Kiefer recalled. 

‘The precious amount of space and weight, you pack as lightly as you can, and this item this bottle of Calvin Klein cologne represented so much to them. Their first job interview or first date. It was an incredible symbol of hope, it represented their hopes and dreams, coming to America or returning to America. 

‘I’ve learned along the way, I thought a bottle of cologne was silly at first, but recognizing the importance of what that meant, to empathize. And that’s a constant thing that people share, how these photographs humanize these [migrants]. My God, if the photos can accomplish that, that’s wonderful,’ Kiefer said.   

Kiefer revealed that migrants often insulated their water bottles with cloth, blankets or duct tape during their journey

Kiefer revealed that migrants often insulated their water bottles with cloth, blankets or duct tape during their journey

Migrants filled their backpacks with food and other supplies which they needed to make the journey across the border

Migrants filled their backpacks with food and other supplies which they needed to make the journey across the border

Examples of the colorful, striped plastic carrier bags that the migrants used to transport their possessions

Examples of the colorful, striped plastic carrier bags that the migrants used to transport their possessions

One image in particular struck a cord on social media — dozens of carefully-coiled rosaries against a grey background. Twitter users have taken to posting side-by-side images of the rosaries with pictures of the wedding rings taken from victims of the Holocaust’s concentration camps. 

While not on the same level as the heartrending image of a two-year-old girl in a pink coat, bawling as her mother is searched by CBP agents, Kiefer’s images are also arresting, although he said that he has received flack for them in the past.  

‘There have been other artists who have felt that the way that I present the objects doesn’t reflect the struggle, the physical journey, the sweat and the hardship of the crossing,’ Kiefer said. 

But, ‘that’s not what my intention is. There are so many other artists who are doing magnificent work conveying those feelings and sentiments,’ he said, noting that unlike those artists’ subjects, what he’s photographing, ‘were items that were not abandoned. They were confiscated, these weren’t found in the desert.’     

Kiefer said that his pictures are meant to highlight the meaning and value that the migrants placed on these objects.   

In September, his work will be part of a group show with a border displacement theme at Arizona State University’s Northlight Gallery and, in October, about 100 of his images will be part of a major exhibit at Michigan’s Saugatuck Center for the Arts.

In the meantime, Kiefer continues to sort and photograph his collection of confiscated items. 

He estimates that he’s only shot about 5 per cent of what he collected between 2007 and 2014. ‘You don’t see the underwear, the jackets, the jewelry, the shoes, the socks. In some respects, I’ve just barely scratched the surface,’ he said.  

The ‘El Sueño Americano’ is entirely self-funded — ‘it’s a struggle and a philanthropic or social justice foundation’s support or underwriting would just be remarkable’ — and something that Kiefer thinks he could spend the rest of his life working on.   

For more information and to see images released so far in the ‘El Sueño Americano,’ visit www.tomkiefer.com and his Instagram page, tomkiefer.photographer.



Read more at DailyMail.co.uk