Unless you have been living under a rock lately, you’ve probably heard that Cd. Juárez is the most dangerous city in North America. So just how dangerous is it? Our sister city is in the midst of a long and arduous war of willpower between citizens who still believe in their city and criminals who want to wrest control away from the community in order to ply their deadly concoction in an attempt to mask life’s everyday problems for those who are too lazy to deal with life head on. And regardless of what you may think the solution to the problem is, you are likely to agree that Juárez is not a safe city. But really, how dangerous is Juárez?
Paper No. 6: A Day Chasing Death In Juárez: But How Dangerous Is It, Really? (September 8, 2009) Essay
By Martin Paredes Sep8,2009
By Martin Paredes
Martín Paredes is a Mexican immigrant who built his business on the U.S.-Mexican border. As an immigrant, Martín brings the perspective of someone who sees México as a native through the experience of living abroad. As an immigrant, Martín sees America through an immigrant’s eyes. Straddling the U.S.-México border for many years, Martín understands that the imaginary line separating two countries on a map creates two cultural identities that merge creating a culture that is unique to the borderland. But as an outsider, Martín sees an El Paso devoid of the tribalism that divides El Paso but unites it at the same time, leaving many El Pasoans ignoring the underlining corruption that permeates throughout the city. Martín has lived and experienced the growth of the Mexican drug cartels throughout his life, first as a child and when building a business in a city that was once labeled the “most dangerous city in the world.” Through it all, Martín sees what many ignore about El Paso - both its uniqueness and the many fine individuals that call El Paso home, but not ignorant to the undercurrent of political intrigue and corruption that underlines the city. Since 2000, Martín has been reporting on the border politics, the corruption and the public policy of one of the most unique communities in the world by exposing the secrets few dare to. An engineer and a creator, Martín creates multimedia projects, including writing, about topics that few explore while making his living in the exciting world of internet-driven technology.