‘Don’t mess with Texas!’ Texas Virtual Border Watch Program and the (botched) politics of responsibilization

Abstract

In 2008 the USA launched an interactive Internet site called Texas Virtual Border Watch Program through which the public can participate in the US border control. This paper examines the complex politics of watching and being watched in relation to this scheme, using some lines of contemporary surveillance theory as a theoretical frame. The understanding of surveillance has lately faced a fundamental change, since devices and practices which previously were available only for the authorities are ever more often accessible for anyone. The paper explores the discursive framings by which the authorities have justified the program. It brings up complex issues dealing with voluntary participation and amateur verification and discusses the politics of responsibilization that relate to the border watch program. The Texas Virtual Border Watch Program is evaluated critically also in relation to the contemporary securitization of the Other. Finally, the symbolic value of border control is highlighted and the concept of ‘patriotic voyeurism’ is brought up in order to understand the motivations of the volunteer observers.