It’s been nearly a month since I said goodbye to my friends and host family in Mexico City and returned to the United States. While I will surely miss the spicy food and wonderful people, it’s comforting to be back in Evanston with the prospect of a busy and exciting fall quarter.
In the past few weeks I’ve had time to digest my experiences from this crazy summer. I found studying abroad in Mexico to be incredibly enlightening for many reasons. Before leaving the United States, whenever I mentioned studying abroad in Mexico, many people would respond with “Ooh, I’ve been to Cancun and it’s beautiful!” or something of a similar fashion. I did not talk to a single person who had ever visited Mexico other than to stay at a vacation resort. In fact, I noticed that the American perception of Mexico is extremely flawed and short-sighted. Our media tends to portray the country as a war-zone, with drug cartels killing innocent civilians left and right and migrants fleeing into the United States to escape poverty and violence. While violence and drugs are undoubtedly an issue in Mexico, many people lack the vision of the country I gained after studying abroad.
The people I met in Mexico were all extremely welcoming. Many of them were pursuing an education just like myself, and wanted to devote their careers to building a better Mexico that alleviates poverty, bolsters education, and improves the living conditions of all its citizens. The violence portrayed in the American media seemed to be minimal and localized in areas where drug cartels have the most influence (states bordering the US and the Pacific). The crime was no more severe than what one would witness in any major American city. Overall, the American perception of Mexico was simply not accurate.
I also gained some important insights into the public health system of the country while studying abroad. As our southern neighbor, the public health of Mexico is influenced by and impacts the health situation in the United States, especially with the recent migration of many Mexican immigrants into the US. It is not a coincidence that two of the countries with the highest rates of obesity in the world are neighbors. Mexico deals with health problems similar to those in the United States. Chronic, non-communicable diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, and kidney disease dramatically increase the cost of health care in the country. The US can no longer pretend that the health condition of Mexican citizens and migrants is not our problem when our economies are so heavily intertwined.
Finally, I noticed that in tackling the public health problems, Mexico has other issues it needs to address to improve the health situation. While we spent most of our trip in Mexico City, where nearly a third of the country’s population resides, we also visited the rural area of Malinalco. Rural populations tend to be marginalized, experience greater levels of poverty, and their access to health care is secondary to those who live in the capital state. With half the country’s population living below the poverty level, Mexico has a long way to go in bringing equitable living conditions and access to quality medical care to all of its citizens.
Overall, my time in Mexico was an amazing experience and I would not have wanted to study anywhere else. I am thankful that I had the opportunity to learn about a country that is important to the United States while also practicing my Spanish skills. Now that I’m back home, I look forward to using my experiences this summer to educate people about the truth of Mexico. I hope that my insight will combat the stigma against Mexicans so that our countries can continue working together to create a better life for citizens of both countries.
