Mexican Exodus

Of course, after almost three years of mexican food deprivation, there are finally some good Mexican restuarants in Panama. You can't understand my excitement, unless you know how much I love mexican Food. But to sum it up, I love it.


But why all the sudden (and when I am leaving the country, none the less) are there huge amounts of new Mexican restuarants. Did mexicans just realize that a corner of the globe was deprived of their delicacies and decided to, in a joint effort, please the tastebuds of Panamanians young and old? What is happening that so many Mexicans are leaving Mexico? What impact will this apparent exodus have on other countries?


(And here I make a long parenthetical thought about all the countries besides the United States that HISPANIC people immigrate to, becuase undoubtedly there is someone thinking that I am bitching about how "mexicans" are ruining our society. Not so. Living in Latin America, I have learned alot. First, just becuase they speak Spanish does not mean they are Mexicans: imagine someone calling you Australian becuase you speak English. No, they are Guatemalan, or Costa Rican or Puerto Rican. Second, lets take a little walk down memory lane, or Latin American History, and it wont take too long too figure out how much we have really screwed up many societies in Latin America, and how much land we have taken away from hispanic countries, both in the name of imperalistic zeal disguised as love for country. So, Kharma's a bitch, I guess.)


And what does this mean for policies on immigration that will evnetually lead to the construction of walls and the embitterment of already sore cultural relations. While I agree that something needs to be done to monitor immigration, we must not forget that we are a nation of immigrants, and to stop being the "beacon" of hope that many individuals see our country as would be to give up one of the greatest tenants of American thought. Does this mean building walls? I don't think so. It does mean educating workers on the damages of paying people illegally, making the process of getting stable, long term work easier for immigrants who come to really have a better life, ask for equal requirements for all those who enter to the United States, and to get over our misperceptions about "other people" living in our country.

So what do the new Mexican restaurants mean? I am sure at some level, someone is worried about the influx of immigrants, but really, I am just excited to eat a really good burrito.