Why the wall was built

Why the wall was built

From Throughline by NPR

April 21, 2026 · 13 min

About this episode

The episode explores the history and implications of the construction of the first wall on the US Southern border.

As the United States expanded into a global superpower, it simultaneously strengthened its national borders and began to limit who could come in and out of the country. In this week’s episode, the story of how one of the very first walls meant to divide people was built on the US Southern border. To access bonus episodes and listen to Throughline sponsor-free, subscribe to Throughline+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/throughline . See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

Topics covered

  • US history
  • border security
  • immigration
  • nationalism

Keywords

  • US Southern border
  • global superpower
  • national borders

Mentioned in this episode

Places: the United States, US

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