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is virtually no wait time and no inspection to cross to Mexico. Tijuana can be considered a tourist attraction, for its cuisine, art, amongst other things. It should be a very well-known area for San Diego natives, and people should take advantage of the proximity of the two cities as I do. They are missing out on really great dining experiences, on meeting people that are from the border region, the wine country in Ensenada is beautiful and some of the best wine in the world is made here. Not to mention, going all the way and doing a road trip down the coast of Baja California. They are missing out on an adventure that is eye-opening and very rewarding. Right now it is a great time to go to Tijuana. It has changed drastically over the last years. There is fewer crime, the streets are cleaner and there is a great presence of art and cuisine. From experience, I can say that some of the best restaurants in the country are in Tijuana; some critics have even said one is the best in the world. ●
Physical Barriers/National Identity | Participant/Author to Participant/Author Luis Espinoza was born in Durango, Mexico. He is from a town called Santiago Papasquiaro. When he was 15 years old, he and his family moved to San Diego, California and has lived there ever since. He is in his 5th year of architecture at Woodbury University. This conversation took place at Woodbury University where both Luis and the interviewer go to school.
Marcelle Rico: How would you describe the culture that exists in the border region? Luis Espinoza: That is a very interesting question, I believe that each side of the border has its own culture. Tijuana is extremely different culture to the rest of Mexico, I see their culture as an unusual mixture of Americanized Mexican traditions but at the same time it presents itself as a true part of Mexico. I have been in many cities neighboring with the U.S. and their vibe is completely different to the one Tijuana has. Nogales, San Luis, Agua Prieta, Cd Juarez etc. all those cities are different to Tijuana even though they also share a border with United States. On the other hand, San Diego’s culture is not similar to Tijuana but also neither to the rest of Southern California. There are a lot of people from Tijuana that have moved to San Diego and that is something that will decrease the level of asymmetry among both cities. I would describe the culture of this border region as “unique” cities dependent from each other in several aspects, For example maquiladoras give employment to people on the Mexico side, on the other hand there are many shoppers that cross the border to buy in San Diego. From what I’ve seen I believe that Mexican tourists are the ones that spend the most money in stores about the border. M: Is there anything about Tijuana that stands out to you? L: Yes, in fact there are many things that stand out in Tijuana. Firstly, the unique architectural and engineering techniques adopted among population to build their houses. They have learned to use recycled materials such as tires used as footings and cardboard and wood as walls. Such style is uniquely distinctive that the conceptual artists Marco Ramirez ERRE created “Century 21” a piece on the courtyard of the CECUT museum in order to criticize city policies. The artworks consisted in a full scale house using recycled materials just as the ones on Tijuana’s outskirts. Another thing that stands out from Tijuana is its night life. It is not unusual to see young people at bars and having fun. I will say Tijuana invites to have fun and enjoy the city. Also on the same category of bars and restaurants there is Tijuana’s great food, The Baja-med style is something that is very distinctive from this city.
universities in San Diego to teach at their schools, bringing students up to international level of education. NAFTA is another mutual bilateral benefit not only for the country but for the borderlands. San Diego and Tijuana both import goods without taxes thanks to this agreement. Furthermore, I believe that both cities benefit directly from each other’s tourism. People from San Diego visit Tijuana for weekends and Tijuanenses visit San Diego to shop, therefore there is a mutual benefit for both cities as well. M: Do you think your life improved when you moved to the U.S.? L: Well, it is hard to compare both because the cultures are very different. I will say my life is not necessarily better now in the U.S. but certainly I have more freedom here. It may seem like a juxtaposition to argue that people are more free in one place than other been both democratic republics but actually I feel more freedom in the U.S. than I did back in my home town, let me explain more. Back in 2008 when I moved to the U.S. my home town became very dangerous. It became a very violent city, there where shootings every day and several members of my family were kidnapped. One thing triggered the other and suddenly my family and I found ourselves bunkered in our own homes. One day we found our people following our cars and taking pictures of our house so we finally decided to leave the city and move to a safer one and so we ended up in San Diego. I will say freedom wise and in the sense of security, my life is better here being in the U.S. M: What are some things that you would change about the place you grew up in?
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M: What about San Diego? What were your first impressions of this country when you moved to San Diego?
L: Definitely the first impressions about this country and San Diego specifically was the perceivable order of the city. By this I mean the city grid, the highways, everything is organized and well planned. At the beginning I found it boring but after a while I began to like it and easily got used to it. Infrastructure in San Diego is also something that keeps fascinating me, for example, freeway bridges and landscape around the road are very pretty. I would say scenic in comparison to cities like Los Angeles or Phoenix.
M: What are some cultural differences between people from San Diego and people from Tijuana? L: I will answer this question based on people that I know. What stands out the most is the pride that Tijuanenses feel for their city, everyone from Tijuana feels extreme pride to be from this city. I also believe that people from Tijuana are very easy going and like challenges, I attribute this to the fact that many of them were raised in a way that crossing the border daily was a normal phenomenon, the huge interaction that they were exposed to through their entire life makes them be friendly and doesn’t give room for shyness. Many of my friends born in Tijuana share those characteristics which makes me believe that that is part of their culture, their level of exposure since childhood is different from any other city in the world and that is what makes Tijuana’s culture special. People from San Diego are also easy going but they do not have such a strong pride for their city as Tijuanenses do. M: How do you think these two cities benefit from being next to each other?
L: There are many benefits because of the closeness of the two cities. Tijuana benefits from San Diego in education and technology. Many schools in Tijuana hire people from
L: Going back to the last question the only thing I will change if I could, is to make the city safer. I don’t know if I will ever move back to my hometown because I consider myself a San Diegan now but I will really like to see my hometown as a safer city. M: What do you think the U.S. can learn from a country like Mexico? L: I believe that the U.S. could learn from Mexico to modify their policies in order to attract foreign investments. There has been a boom in foreign investment in Mexico in the last years which is causing better opportunities for young people especially in the technological sector. This economic boom is triggering investments in infrastructure, not that the United States needs it but it is just my opinion. M: How do you feel about manufacturing jobs moving from the U.S. to Mexico? L: I have mixed feeling about this question. For the most part it affects people who works at these manufacturing companies by leaving them without jobs but it seems that this phenomenon pushes people to find better more stable jobs that at the end becomes a better job opportunity. On the other hand, many of those manufacturing companies that move to Mexico bring jobs which is good, the downside of it is that the majority of these companies pay minimum wage and abuse workers in order to increase profits. This is a very sensitive and controversial topic. In my own personal opinion, I believe that there needs to be enforcement against manufacturing companies that move to Mexico, there needs to be regulation to pay fair salaries and better work opportunities for Mexican workers, otherwise they should stay in the U.S. and obey their laws. M: What do you think about Trump’s campaign to isolate the U.S. from Mexico ? L: From what I’ve seen, Donald Trump does not know anything about economics or politics. His campaign is full of inconsistencies. If he was to isolate Mexico from the U.S. many economic problems will arise. The gas price will increase since the U.S. buys a very high percentage of oil from Mexico among many other goods that are necessary for successful economic progress of both nations. I believe his campaign is inspired on fear for immigrants rather than on research and reason therefore it will be a disaster if he actually was to enforce his campaign promises. ●
visit: www.collectivemagpie.org/book for another interview conducted by Marcelle Rico and to download the full collection of 82 interviews
NOTES
i
U.S. General Services Administration, San Ysidro Land Port of Entry, Statistical Information. https://www.gsa.gov/about-us/regions/pacific-rim-9/land-ports-of-entry/san-ysidro-land-port-of-entry
ii
Charles W. Hughes, ““La Mojonera” and the Marking of California’s U.S.-Mexico Boundary Line, 1849-1851” https://www.sandiegohistory.org/journal/v53-3/pdf/Mojonera.pdf
iii
Joseph Nevins, Operation Gatekeeper: The Rise of the "Illegal Alien" and the Making of the U.S.-Mexico Boundary (Routledge, 2002)
iv v
Patrick J. McDonnell, “What does it take to secure a border? Lessons from the wall dividing San Diego and Tijuana” LA Times, August 13, 2017. http://www.latimes.com/world/mexico-americas/la-fg-mexico-tijuana-border-20170813-story.html
http://www.friendshippark.org
vi
Peter Andreas, “A Tale of Two Borders: The U.S.-Mexico and U.S.- Canada Lines After 9-11” https://ccis.ucsd.edu/_files/wp77.pdf
