I like this story by The New York Times for two reasons. First, it takes a concept – deportation – and flips it on its head. We commonly associate deportation along the border with undocumented Mexicans and other Latin Americans being returned forcefully to their homeland, but what about wandering Americans who wear out their welcome?
Mexico correspondent Marc Lacey finds a guy called “Crash” who has been bumming or strumming around Mexico until being deported to the United States. Lacey apparently met “Crash” during a recent trip to Tijuana, where the vagabond managed to sneak back into Mexico. The result is a concise and interesting postcard of the other side of deportation.
The second reason I like this story – and I’ll admit to some personal bias here – is that the photo was taken by my friend, Eros Hoagland, who is a freelancer and traveler-to-places-in-conflict. I planned on posting this link sooner, but finals got in the way. You can read it here.
Lacey seems to have a good eye for the unusual, in addition to the enviable resources of a large newspaper . Last month, he wrote about visiting a private drug museum run by the Mexican military. For a more recent story by Lacey, you can read this article about an American kidnap negotiator who has apparently been kidnapped himself in Mexico.
Screenshot of New York Times page
Across the border 