# Mary E. Mendoza, "Deadly Divide: How Insects, Pathogens, and People Defied the US-Mexico Border" (UNC Press, 2026)

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-network-529292/mary-e-mendoza-deadly-divide-how-insects-pathogens-and-people-defied-the-us-mexico-border-unc-press-2026
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-network-529292/mary-e-mendoza-deadly-divide-how-insects-pathogens-and-people-defied-the-us-mexico-border-unc-press-2026.md
Podcast: [New Books Network](https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-network-529292)
Published: 2026-07-11T08:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/pdst.fm/e/traffic.megaphone.fm/NBNK3176744367.mp3
Audio file: https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/pdst.fm/e/traffic.megaphone.fm/NBNK3176744367.mp3
Processing state: not_requested
JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/new-books-network-529292/episodes/mary-e-mendoza-deadly-divide-how-insects-pathogens-and-people-defied-the-us-mexico-border-unc-press-2026
Duration seconds: 3239

## Resource

As many as ten thousand people attempt to illegally cross the border between the US and Mexico each month, braving deserts, rivers, and other environmental hazards in the process. But the very illegality of that crossing has an environmental history, writes Penn State University assistant professor Mary Mendoza in Deadly Divide: How Insects, Pathogens, and People Defied the US-Mexico Border (University of North Carolina Press, 2026). It was diseases, microbes, insects, and animals which, in part, hardened the border from a porous array of landscapes into the militarized zone seen on the news every night. However, despite the ecological and political difficulties of doing so, people continue to cross the border between the two countries, defying environmental odds and risking death along the way. In Deadly Divide, Mendoza explains why, underscores the risks involved, and shows how we got to this point, keeping an eye on the border region's stark landscape with every step of the way. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

## Actions

- request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/new-books-network-529292/episodes/mary-e-mendoza-deadly-divide-how-insects-pathogens-and-people-defied-the-us-mexico-border-unc-press-2026/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
- read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-network-529292/mary-e-mendoza-deadly-divide-how-insects-pathogens-and-people-defied-the-us-mexico-border-unc-press-2026.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed.

## Transcript

Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.