In a nature park in Hidalgo, Mexico (700 miles from the border), a local tribe runs a tourist attraction that allows people to pay 150 pesos (about $15) to spend the night as an illegal immigrant crossing a mock Rio Grande and running from a mock Border Patrol. The tribe says that they run the enterprise as an educational experience to “build empathy for migrants by putting people in their shoes.”
Here is a full description.
(Source: Marginal Revolution)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
6 comments:
Wow... I actually had to read this twice to make sure that I got it right. Then I read it to my parents just for kicks. I can't believe that illegal migration has been turned into a tourist attraction. People love adventure and adrinaline rushes, but this seems almost absurd. Why do people need to experience this "rush"? And as realistic as it seems, it can never be real because the fear isn't real. The tourists experiencing this now do not have to really worry about getting caught by border patrol or making it safely to the U.S. They probably have their passports in their purses and someone pet sitting their cat while they try to get a cheap thrill. This is just like having a war recreation. Though it seems realistic and educational, it can never convey the real drama that it once produced. I think it is good that the tribe can make money from this, but it still seems a little weird. It would be interesting to see what U.S. politicians had to say about this. I guess the borders really do need to be strengthened if they are being made into a tourist attraction. I guess it goes to show that people will do anything to get an odd sense of excitement in a pretty dead Mexican town. I don't know if it makes people more sympathetic towards these migrants and i don't think it can even give them a good enough idea of what it is like to be in their shoes. If you can pretent to be an immigrant running across the border, it makes me wonder what people will come up with next... simulation of a drugdealer or bankrobber? As long as people keep paying money for it, the ideas will keep coming. There must be many more interesting rushes to come...
-Natalie Halpern
adrinaline should be adrenaline recreation should be re-creation and pretent should be pretend...
-me again
I think anyone who has had Senor DeSantiago for Spanish and watched the movie EL NORTE knows that what immigrants go through cannot possibly be eperienced in a six-hour, risk free environment. Natalie's right--the fear isn't real, making the whole thing seem not only unrealistic but also like a cheap mockery of what real immigrants do have to go through to cross the border, and although it does raise awareness and money for the community, should they really be making money off of other people's (their own people's) hardships? And the fact that people are having fun doing this is also a little distrubing, because anyone who just wants a cheap thrill or an adrenaline rush should just ride a roller coaster or something, not indirectly mock the plight of illegal immigrants. As a fundraiser and an attraction, this is definitely strange and seems to be sort of in bad taste.
--Carrie
I would have to disagree with Natalie. I agree with Carrie that an illegal immigration process can not "be eperienced in a six-hour, risk free environment". Although, I still think that it could be a great thing for some Americans to actually experience what those who have immigrated into our country have had to experience. Although it is a bit weird that you have to pay and people actually want to do it, I think that it could be a very minute betrayal of what immigrants actually have to go through. Also, the attraction did it's purpose, people are talking about it. Americans are curious enough to be discussing it. I think that this experience shouldn't be considered fun or a game but instead should be taken just a little bit more seriously. When I was about five, I used to hear my great grandma tell us about the weeks it took to prepare and make the journey into America. Therefore, a few hours couldn't possibly captivate the entire experience but instead give someone a very small view of what is a reality for many.
-Veronica
I disagree with all of the above because these tribesmen are only working in rational self interest. So what if it isn't the real thing. It is the closest experience to crossing the border that a non-illegal can get and at the same time it gives money to the tribe. Forget about the political correctness factor. One man in the U.S. recently created a video game that let you run into Columbine highschool as either shooter and kill any student seen. If this video game is allowed to be sold and played on the internet then there is no reason why a re-creation of a border crossing should not be allowed. The border crossing "experience" doesn't hurt anybody does it? On the other hand, future border crosses could pay to practice on this course for their future journey. This is the only reason I see why the United States would have a problem with this. Immigration could increase because they can practice before actually departing on their journey. So this falsified crossing may be a little on the deranged side but it still is not hurting anybody and more benefits are coming out of this than costs to people. Let the tribe have their fake border crossing and forget about the “harmful” effects it is having.
-Austin Lintault
okay... first of all i am neither against nor for the idea of this imitation of the immigration boarder crossing. I agree with austin that it is not hurting anybody and the only affect it will really have is that the immigrants get to practice running from boarder patrol. But in the same way, I agree with Veronica because this experience for the Americans really can open some eyes and raise some eyebrows. For me, when these immigrants risk their lives to run across a boarder to try and find a new life here in America, I both sympathize and find respect them. Maybe by experiencing what these immigrants must go through, and how much these immigrants really care about the mere chance of living in America can reach just enough of us Americans to see that maybe having these immigrants in the country is not such a bad thing, for they have already risked everything by trying to get over the boarder, so there is no doubt in my mind that they are going to work hard and try to be able to make something of their lives.
-Ryan S.
Post a Comment