Featured photojournalist: Eric Thayer

A man near the boundary wall separating Mexico and the United States at Tijuana, Mexico Photograph: Eric Thayer/Reuters

A cross that reads Not Forgotten lies next to an unmarked grave at the Terrace Park cemetery just outside Holtville, California. Behind a row of hedges at the otherwise normal and nondescript cemetery lies a dirt field with hundreds of other such graves, reportedly containing immigrants who died crossing the border whose remains were never identified Photograph: Eric Thayer/Reuters

The border fence at Douglas, Arizona, a former copper-smelting town of more than 18,000 people just across the border from Agua Prieta Photograph: Eric Thayer/Reuters

A worker labours at a romaine lettuce farm outside San Luis, Arizona. The workers, most of whom live in Mexico, cross the border each day by bus to various farms around San Luis. During their eight-hour shift, they break twice for 15 minutes, said the workers Photograph: Eric Thayer/Reuters

A US Border Patrol guard checks under the bridge crossing at El Paso, Texas, which lies just across the border from Ciudad Juarez, a frontline in Mexico's increasingly violent and bloody war against drug cartels Photograph: Eric Thayer/Reuters

People await relatives at the border in Nogales, Arizona. A town of about 20,000 people, it lies just north of the city of Nogales, Mexico, which has a population estimated at nearly 10 times its northern neighbour. Nogales, Mexico has been affected by drug violence, mostly in the area south of the city, and remains a popular point for drug smugglers and those trying to cross illegally Photograph: Eric Thayer/Reuters

A man in need of medical assistance sits in pain at an aid centre in Nogales, Mexico. The centre serves people who have been recently deported to Mexico, either for trying to cross illegally or already residing illegally in the US Photograph: Eric Thayer/Reuters

Three men sit on a bench near the border fence at Douglas, Arizona Photograph: Eric Thayer/Reuters

People at an aid centre near a truck crossing in Nogales, Mexico. The centre serves people who have been recently been deported to Mexico Photograph: Eric Thayer/Reuters

People walk towards a McDonald's near the San Luis crossing in Arizona. Many cross the border each day, living in Mexico and working or studying in the US Photograph: Eric Thayer/Reuters

A man sleeps on a bus bench near the border fence at Calexico, California Photograph: Eric Thayer/Reuters

People on the bridge crossing at El Paso, Texas Photograph: Eric Thayer/Reuters

A US Border Patrol vehicle near the fence at Douglas, Arizona Photograph: Eric Thayer/Reuters

Betcy and Marco Cruz talk to relatives through the fence at Calexico, California. The thriving border town of 39,000 sits just north of Mexicali, Mexico, a city of nearly one million. The city is seen as prime crossing point for goods Photograph: Eric Thayer/Reuters

Houses on the other side of the border between the US and Mexico from Nogales, Arizona. A town of about 20,000 people, it lies just north of the city of Nogales, Mexico, which has a population estimated at nearly ten times that number. Nogales, Mexico has been affected by drug violence, mostly in the area south of the city, and remains a popular point for drug smugglers and those trying to cross illegally Photograph: Eric Thayer/Reuters