This past Friday Illinois resident Dave Hensleigh walked from El Paso, Texas, across the U.S.-Mexico border to Ciudad Juárez where he spent the weekend. Dave’s highly publicized Walk Across Juárez is intended to “communicate an accurate, on the ground picture of what life is like” in the notoriously dangerous Mexican border city.
If there’s one thing that I’ve learned throughout my travels, it’s that the perception of a place, whether it’s Belize, Colombia, Bolivia or Mexico, can often be quite different from the reality on the ground for the vast majority of the people who live there.
That being said, it’s hard to ignore the reports of violence coming out of Juárez on an almost daily basis.
In April the U.S. issued yet another travel warning advising against travel to Juárez. But even that didn’t stop Dave Hensleigh, owner and lead guide of Authentic Copper Canyon tours, from visiting the city this past weekend.
Motivated by a “deep love and respect for the people and land of Mexico” and an in-depth knowledge of this particular region of the country, Dave has set out, “to give a clear view of life right now on the streets of Juárez from an outsider’s point of view.”
There’s no question that this city of roughly 1.5 million is facing some serious problems, but Dave hopes that his visit will help to replace “distrust and negativity with respect and interaction” on both sides of the border.
I followed along all weekend as Dave live tweeted text and photos from Juárez.
On Saturday, while standing along the border at the spot where Texas, New Mexico and Chihuahua meet he tweeted, “This is emotional. I love both lands and there is such a divide.” He mentioned that at this particular spot along the border there’s no wall for roughly 300 yards and the border patrol are always waiting nearby, watching.
I browsed through some of his photos, boys playing soccer and families swimming in the river. Border patrol vehicles could be seen in the background of every one.
Another tweet a few minutes later, “At the river. Rich history. A border patrol helicopter buzzes us. I am in tears. Not sure why. Why?”
On Sunday Dave wrapped up his tour of the city in nearby Samalayuca.
In one of his most recent blog posts he says, “My default place for all the problems we face with Mexico and the U.S. is Juárez, and it is simply a convenient way to disconnect from the real issue.” It seems that somehow, it’s become easier to build a wall and avoid the issues than it is to acknowledge our shared responsibility.
Interestingly, while Mexican news outlets have embraced his story, news outlets in the U.S. have been less than receptive. Prior to traveling to Juárez he contacted several newspapers and received only one response, “I urge you not to go there.”
Dave admits that, before arriving in Juárez, he too worried about his safety. ”Most people assume that my body will end up filled with bullets, decapitated, and hung from some bridge with a scrawled cartel note tied to it. And that was what I thought too.”
On Friday, USA Today published this article about his visit. Whether or not any of the other news outlets will pick up the story remains to be seen. Since wrapping up his tour on Sunday, he’s been trying to arrange a press conference in El Paso.
Dave says what surprised him most about Juárez was the warmth of the people.
He insists that he’ll be back to the city, and next time he says, he plans to walk clear through town. He’s even suggested that he’d like to bring his family with him.
“I’d take my kids and grandkids there in a heartbeat,” he says, “We’d take the normal precautions of course, but I wouldn’t worry for our safety.”
You can read more about Dave’s Walk Across Juárez on his blog.
Have you been to Juárez? Share your experiences in the comments.
México Today, in association with Marca País – Imagen de México, is a joint public and private sector initiative designed to help promote Mexico as a global business partner and an unrivaled tourist destination. This program is designed to shine a light on the Mexico that its people experience every day.
Disclosure: I am being compensated for my role as a contributing writer for México Today; my opinions, as always, are my own.
Photo courtesy of Dave Hensleigh
{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }
Laura,
Brilliant coverage on this very important topic. I’ve often thought of myself as an intrepid traveler, and have had my brushes, but the stream of media going on about Juarez, has even me dizzy. It’s so great to put things like this in perspective.
Thanks for the insight, and your blog keeps getting better and better. Nice work.
Thanks Geordie! When I found out Dave was planning to visit the city it really piqued my interest. I’ve never been to Juárez, and most of what I know about it comes from what I read in the papers and watch on the news. It’s nice to hear another side to the story from someone who’s recently been there.
Great to read this Laura. Situations like this need to be opened up for discusion.
Thanks Jim, I agree!
Sometimes I wonder if these travel warning that are issued are a bit hasty. I prefer to investigate more using blogs and search engines then paying attention to them.
I think the travel warnings are worth looking into, but I also think they don’t always make clear exactly who is at risk. In a lot of places in Mexico tourists are rarely targeted — that’s not to say that they couldn’t end up in the wrong place at the wrong time and run into trouble, but it’s very unlikely. I follow a lot of blogs as well, and I’ve found that they’re often the best source of information into what’s really happening on the ground and whether or not tourists face any real dangers.
I met Dave at the Chicago Travel and Adventure show. It is a great thing he is doing. Trying to advocate peace through travel. Every time I think of any kind of wall Robert Frost’s wonderful poem Mending Wall comes to mind and especially its beautiful first line: “Something there is that doesn’t love a wall.”
It’s great that you had a chance to meet Dave! I haven’t had the chance to meet him yet, but we spoke over the phone a few days after he completed his Walk Across Juárez and the topic of the border wall came up quite a bit. I’m really impressed by what he’s trying to do as well. Most people who promote tourism to Mexico all say the same thing — it’s safe if you avoid certain areas; whereas Dave took a different approach and I found that to be very interesting.
what amazing thing he is doing – keeping people’s minds open. It’s hard as an incentive planner to get buy in on any place in mexico to people who have only heard about the dangers of traveling there! i was surprised that one of the number 1 search reports of how people found my blog was, “is it safe to travel to mexico”.
It’s definitely a challenging time for tourism to Mexico. Every time I return to the States the first question people ask me is if I feel safe here. The answer of course, is yes; otherwise I probably wouldn’t continue to live here.
But I have a hard time getting people to believe me.