Construction crews building President Trump’s border wall have inadvertently damaged a 1,000-year-old Native American archaeological site in Arizona. The Las Playas Intaglio, etched into the ground near Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge, suffered serious damage from heavy machinery.

The intaglio, resembling a fish and sacred to the Tohono O’odham Nation, was likely used as a spiritual site by their ancestors. Despite warnings from archaeologists and tribes about its proximity to the border, the construction proceeded without adequate precautions, raising concerns over environmental regulations being disregarded.

Archaeologist Aaron Wright expressed his dismay at the damage, saying: 'We don't fully understand why intaglios were made and when they were made, but pretty much everyone's in agreement that they're sacred sites.' The event also highlights the broader issue of how government priorities can override cultural preservation.

Since the early 2000s, the section of the border wall near Las Playas has been altered multiple times. Wright notes that under Trump’s first presidency, contractors had already damaged nearby Hohokam burial grounds in their haste to construct the wall.

The construction of a new 'Smart Wall' threatens another sacred site: Quitobaquito Springs, located within Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. Wright urges public action, saying: 'Reach out to congressional people, complain, vote according to priorities of heritage preservation, protest, use your First Amendment right to say how you feel about it and say why it's important, and reach out to the communities and just show solidarity.'