Obama Isn't Afraid of Mexico

Mexico is in the news. There are reports of decapitations, shoot outs and that the drug war is pushing the country towards total chaos.

It was enough to make some American college students cancel their Spring Break trips to Cancun. They just had to get their suntans in Palm Springs this year or go to a tanning booth.

But hold on. There's one American who wasn't afraid to visit our southern neighbor. Our own President Barack Obama was recently in Mexico City.

Granted, he had Secret Service protection.

The truth is Americans shouldn't be afraid to go to Mexico.

I was just there for two weeks earlier this year. I didn't see any drug lords, drug deals or danger. My safety was never in question.

I spent time in Puerto Vallarta, the small beach town of Sayulita and in Mexico's second largest city, Guadalajara.

I felt safer walking around that city late at night than I do riding the "L" at night in my hometown of Chicago.

I also was a reverse migrant, an American who moved to Mexico from fall 2002 to summer 2006.

In all that time I was never robbed, drugged or conned. I was almost robbed once in the Mexico City neighborhood called Tepito. But I knew it was a dangerous neighborhood and I went there to research a story. Luckily, I escaped harm.

Of course there are places in Mexico that I would avoid. But there are places in the United States that I would avoid, too.

We have mass shootings in the United States all too often. This month there were 13 people shot at the community center for immigrants in Binghamton, N.Y. Last month a man in Alabama killed 10 people. And there was the man dressed as Santa Claus who killed eight people in Los Angeles in December.

European tourists aren't afraid to visit the United States. We don't see the world media branding our entire country as violent.

It's not. These are isolated incidents.

And the drug violence in Mexico also is isolated to certain areas.

I've even traveled alone in some of the areas where there have been reports of violence including Tijuana, Michoacan, Sinaloa and Guerrero. Even in the so called "dangerous" places I never encountered any problems.

Sure there have been innocent victims of random violence. But this also is the same as regular people who get caught in a drive-by shooting in the United States.

I've found more hospitality in Mexico than just about any country I've visited. I've met perfect strangers who wound up inviting me to their home for dinner. On a bumpy bus ride the woman sitting next to me offered me some anti-nausea medicine. And when lost I've had people walk with me to help me find my destination.

I don't know the Mexico that I've seen lately on the cable networks and in newspapers. And I've travelled to 26 of that country's 31 states and the capital region with more than 22 million people.

I'm not denying the reality of the drug war and the seriousness of the problem for Mexico and the United States. It's fueled by poverty and corruption in Mexico and by greed and vice in the United States. It's a problem that both governments need to solve together.

The American people also have to take responsibility for their appetite for drugs.
And the Mexican people and institutions shouldn't allow themselves to be corrupted by drug money.

Unless you plan to vacation with narcotraffickers, I see no reason why Americans should avoid venturing south of the border.

Teresa Puente is the editor and publisher of Latina Voices and teaches journalism at Columbia College Chicago.

Comments

[QM2SS]

Been to Mexico numerous times while living in CA and always enjoyed myself. Never the less, it is more than apparent that Mexico isn't attractive enough to convince the 20 million who left it to enter the U.S. illegally to return home. It seems your perception of Mexico differs considerably from theirs.

[cke]

I'm with you on Puerto Vallarta! Beautiful countryside & beaches, fantastic food, beautiful people. The US is lucky to have such a great neighbor on our border. I predict that in the coming years, proximity to Mexico will be one of our key economic advantages in dealing with ascendant Asian, Mideast, and European competition.

[JaneK13]

Mexico is indeed a lovely place for vacation or to spend the winter. Cost of living is low because Mexican labor is cheap. That's why so many Mexicans risk their lives to come here to work.

What I am concerned about is the 20+ million Mexicans who are working here. With unemployment so high, many of the jobs being held by illegal aliens could be given to Americans. When our troops start coming home from Iraq/Afghanistan, they will have a hard time finding work, too, because a lot of their jobs have been given to illegal aliens. During the great depression, Pres FDR ordered deportation of illegal aliens to Mexico to free up jobs for unemployed Americans. Pres Eisenhower did the same thing for veterans returning from the war...and 12 million illegals were deported at that time. I know a lot of young men and women in our neighborhood who lost jobs. They would gladly swing a hammer, mow lawns, dig ditches or make up hotel rooms just to earn money to feed their families. But the irony is these proud American workers who would rather be on the job are on an unemployment line, while illegal aliens are working the jobs they could have. .

I respect that Pres Obama is trying to do his best to make jobs, but I don't understand why he will not follow what presidents in the past have done in times of very high unemployment. T

[Mexitli]

"With unemployment so high, many of the jobs being held by illegal aliens could be given to Americans."

Nothing is stopping "Americans" from getting those jobs. In fact, they should have the competitive advantage for them. Born is the U.S., SSIA numbers, U.S. educations and fluent English and theyre losing jobs to Mexican laborers?

Come on.

Why don't you move to Africa? Then you won't have to worry about illegals.

LoL

[AGarcia]

Of course, Vallarta would be safe. If you got the money, Ixtapa, Merida, Alcapulco etc. will have enough private resorts for every red blooded hamburger-loving American who wants to vacation but not actually "travel" i.e. miss life's little perks they've come to treasure. Tijuana and Mexicali will also remain open for all those Mexico-loving Americans who will continue to expect to be free to urinate in the street, get drunk in public, pick fights, solicit sex and generally do everything they can't or wouldn't do in America. Perhaps if Mexican tourism diminished, the people would be less tolerant of drug-related violence. A few less "entitled" gringos might not be so bad. Been to the WallMart at Tenochtitlan lately?

[Mexitli]

"...remain open for all those Mexico-loving Americans who will continue to expect to be free to urinate in the street, get drunk in public, pick fights, solicit sex..."

they do it here in the states, too.

[AGarcia]

My point was that they are MORE inclined to do it in Mexico, where they believe they can and should get away with EVERYTHING because, after all, they are AMERICANS with DOLLAS! Not trying to say the U.S. is free of crime or urine (N.Y.?)...

[Mexitli]

F I N A L L Y !

I was in Cuernavaca Jan, Feb. The weather is awesome!

Not even aging radicals like me are immune to arthritis.

There are 1 mil U.S. ex-pats in Mexico. More U.S. ex-pats in MX than in any other country.

Nice post.

:)

[QM2SS]

Do us all a favor and the next you visit Mexico, stay. You've obviously got a problem with American citizens and it's not like we're short on Mexicans.

[IntellectuallyHonest]

Mexico is a beautiful country.