North America Archives - Page 26 of 62

10 Things to Do: Mexico City

Mexico City continues to reinvent itself. Along with world-class museums, architectural gems from its Spanish colonial and Aztec past, and a vibrant urban culture, it is also a favorite destination for foodies and modern art collectors. 1. Bike La ReformaOn Sundays, Paseo de la Reforma, the artery that traverses the city center, is closed to … Read more

Mexico City’s Mercado Roma

A trendy hangout for foodies and families in Mexico City is Mercado Roma, an upscale market offering everything from churros to tacos to huaraches(a dish of masa, varied toppings and queso fresco). Launched in May 2014 and located in the hip La Roma neighborhood, the concept was born of a traditional Mexican market, but offers … Read more

Old School: What a Hostile Mexico-Trump Relationship Might Look Like

Correction appended below Shortly after I moved to Mexico City in 2004, I discovered a fantastic pozole restaurant near a subway stop called “Niños Héroes” – literally, “Boy Heroes.” I took a Mexican friend there and, between slurps of cilantro-y goodness, asked if by any chance he knew the origin of the name. He started … Read more

Five Latin America Stories You Might Miss in 2017 (But Shouldn’t)

If 2017 is anything like 2016, making predictions on where Latin America will be a year from now is probably a losing bet. Remember when it seemed inevitable that voters in Colombia would pass the country’s landmark peace accord with the FARC, or that the Rio Olympics would be crippled by large-scale social unrest? The … Read more

How to Make Mexico City a Better Place for the Disabled

The senator from Durango looks bemused. It’s the afternoon of Oct. 18, and Yolanda de la Torre, seated and wearing an electric pink suit jacket with navy slacks, is being carried up the switchback stone staircase of Mexico City’s Palacio de Minería. The 250-year-old college building, now run by the national university’s engineering department, has only one … Read more

Mexico’s Energy Opening Looks Like a Success. Will It Last?

In Nov. 2013, just weeks before Mexico’s historic energy opening was signed into law, two-time presidential candidate Andrés Manuel López Obrador sent an open letter to the CEO of ExxonMobil, Rex Tillerson “informing” the executive that Mexico’s oil belonged to its people. López Obrador urged Tillerson to measure the costs of investing in Mexico should the reform … Read more

What Mexico Can Learn from Haiti’s Development Plans

The idea sounds simple: Special Economic Zones (SEZs) offer tax exemptions and cheap labor as hooks to attract investment from foreign companies. Money trickles in, local suppliers get a foothold and the middle class begins to grow. At least, in theory. Mexico is betting big on SEZs, with a new federal law that will create four of … Read more

AQ Top 5 Jóvenes Políticos: Pedro Kumamoto

Read in English Con tan sólo 26 años, Pedro Kumamoto le dio la vuelta al libreto de la élite que gobierna México cuando ayudó a liderar una cruzada exitosa en contra de su privilegio más sagrado. En julio, cuando el Congreso del Estado de Jalisco votó a favor de quitarles a todos los funcionarios públicos … Read more

Why Mexico’s PRI Is Cleaning House

Mexico’s ruling party faces a difficult task convincing voters that its anti-corruption efforts are sincere.

Indigenous Imagery in the Art of Mariana Castillo Deball

In the late 1970s, the makers of an American antipsychotic drug called Stelazine were looking for a way to market their product to consumers in magazines and medical journals. The campaign they settled on featured indigenous masks and headdresses from Africa and Canada alongside slogans like, “Lift the mask of schizophrenic withdrawal.” For a version … Read more

Film Review: Tempest

“We know you haven’t done anything, but someone has to pay,” Miriam Carbajal recalls hearing from a court-appointed attorney before being put in jail. What started as a normal day at work turns into a five-month nightmare for Carbajal, one of the central characters in Tempest, an emotionally charged Mexican documentary by Salvadoran-born cinematographer Tatiana … Read more

AQ Top 5 Politicians Under 40: Pedro Kumamoto

Reading Time: 2 minutes

The “Wiki-politician” who is challenging Mexico’s governing elite with grassroots politics, a shoestring budget and a commitment to transparency.

This Man Is Brilliant. So Why Doesn’t Mexico’s Economy Grow Faster?

A great way to understand Agustín Carstens is to hear how he defines himself and his peers —“The Generation of 12.50.” That may sound obscure to outsiders, but anyone who grew up in Mexico during the 1950s, ’60s or ’70s instantly understands. For 22 consecutive years, the peso was fixed at exactly 12.50 per dollar … Read more

Sane la relación con México

Read in English Nota del editor: Al igual que a los otros autores, pedimos al Embajador Sarukhan que redactara un memorándum sin considerar quién ganará la elección de noviembre. Sin embargo, al final él llegó a la conclusión de que los dos escenarios eran tan opuestos que optó por escribir el memorándum como si Hillary … Read more

Here’s What Latin Americans Want to Tell the Next U.S. President

“Heal the relationship with Mexico.” “Fix the war on drugs.” “Help us lead the Fourth Industrial Revolution.” We asked Latin Americans: If you could tell the next president of the United States anything, what would it be? Those are just a few of the responses we’re publishing in the new issue of Americas Quarterly, entitled … Read more