Jun 9, 2023·edited Jun 10, 2023Liked by Nicolás Forero
This makes me think of how Jesus leveled the playing field everywhere He went. Very much the opposite of the mentality you describe here. He exposed the hypocrisy of self-righteous religious leaders who believed they had all the answers but were blind to the truth, and He lifted up the poor and needy. He associated with the outcasts, and He helped those trapped by their lifestyles see truth and salvation.
You call for light and love. I share but a few examples that I wish more people followed.
It's an attitude worth carrying anywhere we go. I know it's been months since you left this comment, but I held your word throughout recent trips and built meaningful connections with locals. Thank you for sharing this.
"It's good salsa" carries an immeasurable amount of positiveness, especially now that I have written about how good salsa feels. It's always interesting how the essays I've liked writing the most and that get this level of positive feedback usually come out of nowhere and I take them from start to finish in a few hours.
I lived in a beach town here in Egypt - similar to Ilha Grande - for exactly three months (I'm Egyptian) and watched as beduin land and family and culture were completely disregarded and sent away from the shore to build for the foreign "awakened nomad" and "city dweller" running away from the noise in Cairo. Thank you for sharing this, I filtered myself and never spoke about it or why I came back to Cairo.
I made an Egyptian friend quickly after reading your comment and he told me about this issue, showing pictures of what used to be and what now is, as well as describe the limited access that a significant number of Egyptians can have to basic needs such as water and electricity compared to these nomads.
I feel your rage and pain in this piece. It's awesome to see you this way through your writing.
I think the digital sword nomadic lifestyle invites people to come to a new place without truly caring for the place itself. I love the idea of people migrating to learn what different parts of the world look and feel like! But I feel like the nomads you're describing are the ones who travel just to find a neighborhood that looks like their favorite neighborhood in a different country for a cheaper price.
I also think so much of gentrification, in Latin America, is a double edge sword with foreigners and rich Latin people on each end - at least it feels that way in Mexico. It's not just the foreigners moving into Condesa and kicking locals out, it's also the high class Mexicans. In fact, I sometimes wonder if they are the ones that started the gentrification years ago. The fine dining in this neighborhood existed long before the rise of remote jobs.
I believe in reciprocal responsibility. I believe that foreigners have the reciprocal responsibility to get to know a land and a People beyond the coffee shops with wifi they work at M-F and brunch at on the weekends. I want foreigners to go to a town outside of the city like Tepotzlan and pay an Abuelita to cook them a meal in her backyard rather than go to another farm to table set up to put more money into the pockets of Mexico's richest families. It's not just about supporting local businesses - it becomes about supporting the businesses run by families that actually need to feed their children.
But I don't expect everyone to believe any of that or to follow these reciprocal structures I believe in. Although I think it would be more ethical and, to your point, beautiful.
Anyways, I can go on and on about this subject, but I absolutely love seeing your authentic opinion unfold with spice on the page. Hope to read more spicy words from you hermano.
Reciprocal responsibility is a delightful way of describing it. In Marrakesh, I was blessed to be among wealthy nomads who would go out of their way to donate blood after the earthquake, respect customs by eating with their hands with food workers, and spend hours talking to locals for the sake of learning about them. Of course, this is a stance not to force on people, but, above all, it's simply a reminder to treat people as humans, not as fish taco-carrying ppl.
As for locals gentrifying, I agree with what you say, and I think, reflecting on being in 1% wealth circles in Colombia, I believe the issue comes from the place: ignorance towards what the average person in that country struggles with and a sense of superiority over not having to experience it. Similarly to foreigners, the closest interactions to the culture they have is done through an IG picture.
One difference, though, would come from the rate at which they can gentrify a place. Wealthy Mexicans are insanely wealthy, just as wealthy people in every other LATAM country. Based on what I've seen, though, they still measure expenses on their currency and that country's cost of living. I paid for $15 (awful) tacos in Lisbon without hesitating - I can afford it. But no way I'd pay that in Mexico - I could, but that'd be dumb. Meanwhile, the average tech bro in Condesa would be like, $15 FOR A GRINGA? GIVE ME TWO.
Bueno, esta vaina es un issue global y socio cultural, económica y de diseño. Hasta en los Estados Unidos pasa. Por ejemplo, latinos who move to the US are segregated into their own neighborhoods. In Los Angeles an example is Highland Park. 10 years ago it was a Latino neighborhood. Today they are being pushed out by upwardly mobile creative types. Artists, designers, tech workers etc - bringing their coffee shops, boutiques and vegan, gluten free fashion shops. Rents have tripled and the Latinos displaced.
After the pandemic, with the rise of remote work - welcome to global gentrification. Hey I am even in Latin America working on that. The difference is that 1. I am aware. 2. I am an educator 3. I’ve done it before. BUT it doesn’t mean I have an answer.
Though, culturally people with dollars educated in the US are SUPER entitled. Pocos pueden Mesclarze con el gentío en una manera genuina - al final son “yeyé” sin sutilidad - son bruscos. The word in English is obnoxious. I know because I catch myself being “that guy”. So the question is how do you develop communities where the interest of all win - without the zero sum game of late stage capitalism? I believe that we have to push for personal development, creativity and business training for the masses. We have to open opportunities abroad (remote) for Latin America - push for gov to work to pass better policies (Salvador is doing it) they bring more investors and education to Latin America. Que dejen de robarse pa los suyos namas por 2 minutos y que miren pa bajo. Cuz tu sabes, los gobiernos revolucionarios son los primeros que se convierten en ladronasos el minuto que ganan. Hehe. “Te conozco bacalao aunque vengas disfrazao” como dicen en mi país. Haci que yo no tengo respuesta - but chucha - can we stop being “ugly Americans” for a minute and look at our energy footprint.
You are clear about one core difference: awareness, willingness to educate, and repeatedly doing that. Through the amount of traveling I've been blessed to do, I've noticed that potential gentrifiers are less likely to do it the more they travel. *Some* of them are exposed to wealth disparities and develop some level of interest in improving the communities they visit. This, ofc, is harder to ask for at the beginning because they've never exposed themselves to an "underdeveloped environment" such as ir al rio a cocinar sopa.
I think we are both aware enough of the education, corruption, and opportunities issue in LATAM, so I won't delve into that.
Instead, I'll raise an idea I was introduced with Europe, and it's how, based on the perspective of most European nomads, US nomads tend to gentrify areas more often. There's an obvious wealth reason with a significant portion of US nomads coming from tech, but another reason might simply be Americans flexibility when it comes to spending *a lot* without judging whether the investment is good or bad; a situation fueled by the ease to get in debt, etc. While a 6-figure European nomad would reject paying 2-3k for a one bedroom in Lisbon, even if they were from London, a US nomad would be, based on conversations, more likely to say, "you know, NY is more expensive, so let me pay 3k for this co-living space."
I'm curious if you've read Jane Jacobs' work on city planning and development. Her work is maybe a bit old, but may provide insights on the effects of geoarbitrage by digital nomads and subsequent gentrification and cultural transplantation effects.
With everything there are tradeoffs. I think for awhile many have tacitly accepted increasing homogenization to reap the benefits of increases in economic productivity and prosperity. Post-Trump, Post-Covid, the invasion of Ukraine, and Xi's consolidation of power in China there appears to be a push in the opposite directions.
I haven't, Stetson. I'm not familiar with urban planning, but I'm intrigued by it, both because *you* in particular recommended it and because it might reveal reasons why I feel more comfortable in certain places compared to others. It seems like her main book on this topic revolves around American Cities but I'm sure most of the knowledge can be extrapolated. I bought "The Death and Life of Great American Cities"
Great to hear! I hope you enjoy. Astral Codex has at least one great review of one of her lesser read works. The review provides nice context for her ideas about urban planning broadly.
The question is what do you do? You're gonna hate my proposal.
There are lots of problems that have your shape. I have some of my own. It's hard to imagine solving your problem at the local level. You could ask local shops to refuse to serve foreigners. But of course the shop owners clearly gain from the current situation. My sense of how fixing this would actually play out is:
1) Get the public to care, and help them organize their dissatisfaction
2) Get the public to pressure businesses to put up signs like "we don't serve foreigners"
3) Once the public and businesses are on board, start tightening your country's borders
Maybe seems extreme, but going from living an ordinary life to living next to crime and prostitution is also an extreme change to go through.
This makes me think of how Jesus leveled the playing field everywhere He went. Very much the opposite of the mentality you describe here. He exposed the hypocrisy of self-righteous religious leaders who believed they had all the answers but were blind to the truth, and He lifted up the poor and needy. He associated with the outcasts, and He helped those trapped by their lifestyles see truth and salvation.
You call for light and love. I share but a few examples that I wish more people followed.
It's an attitude worth carrying anywhere we go. I know it's been months since you left this comment, but I held your word throughout recent trips and built meaningful connections with locals. Thank you for sharing this.
Wow. This essay is a huge leap for you... I need the applaud button! It's looser, freer, more emotional, creative syntax. It's good salsa.
Gentrification. Homogenisation. Viral virality. Seekers who subvert and subsume. Shallow roots.
We live in strange times, don't we?
"It's good salsa" carries an immeasurable amount of positiveness, especially now that I have written about how good salsa feels. It's always interesting how the essays I've liked writing the most and that get this level of positive feedback usually come out of nowhere and I take them from start to finish in a few hours.
I lived in a beach town here in Egypt - similar to Ilha Grande - for exactly three months (I'm Egyptian) and watched as beduin land and family and culture were completely disregarded and sent away from the shore to build for the foreign "awakened nomad" and "city dweller" running away from the noise in Cairo. Thank you for sharing this, I filtered myself and never spoke about it or why I came back to Cairo.
I made an Egyptian friend quickly after reading your comment and he told me about this issue, showing pictures of what used to be and what now is, as well as describe the limited access that a significant number of Egyptians can have to basic needs such as water and electricity compared to these nomads.
Go off KING. 🥵🥵🥵
I feel your rage and pain in this piece. It's awesome to see you this way through your writing.
I think the digital sword nomadic lifestyle invites people to come to a new place without truly caring for the place itself. I love the idea of people migrating to learn what different parts of the world look and feel like! But I feel like the nomads you're describing are the ones who travel just to find a neighborhood that looks like their favorite neighborhood in a different country for a cheaper price.
I also think so much of gentrification, in Latin America, is a double edge sword with foreigners and rich Latin people on each end - at least it feels that way in Mexico. It's not just the foreigners moving into Condesa and kicking locals out, it's also the high class Mexicans. In fact, I sometimes wonder if they are the ones that started the gentrification years ago. The fine dining in this neighborhood existed long before the rise of remote jobs.
I believe in reciprocal responsibility. I believe that foreigners have the reciprocal responsibility to get to know a land and a People beyond the coffee shops with wifi they work at M-F and brunch at on the weekends. I want foreigners to go to a town outside of the city like Tepotzlan and pay an Abuelita to cook them a meal in her backyard rather than go to another farm to table set up to put more money into the pockets of Mexico's richest families. It's not just about supporting local businesses - it becomes about supporting the businesses run by families that actually need to feed their children.
But I don't expect everyone to believe any of that or to follow these reciprocal structures I believe in. Although I think it would be more ethical and, to your point, beautiful.
Anyways, I can go on and on about this subject, but I absolutely love seeing your authentic opinion unfold with spice on the page. Hope to read more spicy words from you hermano.
🥵🥵🥵
Reciprocal responsibility is a delightful way of describing it. In Marrakesh, I was blessed to be among wealthy nomads who would go out of their way to donate blood after the earthquake, respect customs by eating with their hands with food workers, and spend hours talking to locals for the sake of learning about them. Of course, this is a stance not to force on people, but, above all, it's simply a reminder to treat people as humans, not as fish taco-carrying ppl.
As for locals gentrifying, I agree with what you say, and I think, reflecting on being in 1% wealth circles in Colombia, I believe the issue comes from the place: ignorance towards what the average person in that country struggles with and a sense of superiority over not having to experience it. Similarly to foreigners, the closest interactions to the culture they have is done through an IG picture.
One difference, though, would come from the rate at which they can gentrify a place. Wealthy Mexicans are insanely wealthy, just as wealthy people in every other LATAM country. Based on what I've seen, though, they still measure expenses on their currency and that country's cost of living. I paid for $15 (awful) tacos in Lisbon without hesitating - I can afford it. But no way I'd pay that in Mexico - I could, but that'd be dumb. Meanwhile, the average tech bro in Condesa would be like, $15 FOR A GRINGA? GIVE ME TWO.
Bueno, esta vaina es un issue global y socio cultural, económica y de diseño. Hasta en los Estados Unidos pasa. Por ejemplo, latinos who move to the US are segregated into their own neighborhoods. In Los Angeles an example is Highland Park. 10 years ago it was a Latino neighborhood. Today they are being pushed out by upwardly mobile creative types. Artists, designers, tech workers etc - bringing their coffee shops, boutiques and vegan, gluten free fashion shops. Rents have tripled and the Latinos displaced.
After the pandemic, with the rise of remote work - welcome to global gentrification. Hey I am even in Latin America working on that. The difference is that 1. I am aware. 2. I am an educator 3. I’ve done it before. BUT it doesn’t mean I have an answer.
Though, culturally people with dollars educated in the US are SUPER entitled. Pocos pueden Mesclarze con el gentío en una manera genuina - al final son “yeyé” sin sutilidad - son bruscos. The word in English is obnoxious. I know because I catch myself being “that guy”. So the question is how do you develop communities where the interest of all win - without the zero sum game of late stage capitalism? I believe that we have to push for personal development, creativity and business training for the masses. We have to open opportunities abroad (remote) for Latin America - push for gov to work to pass better policies (Salvador is doing it) they bring more investors and education to Latin America. Que dejen de robarse pa los suyos namas por 2 minutos y que miren pa bajo. Cuz tu sabes, los gobiernos revolucionarios son los primeros que se convierten en ladronasos el minuto que ganan. Hehe. “Te conozco bacalao aunque vengas disfrazao” como dicen en mi país. Haci que yo no tengo respuesta - but chucha - can we stop being “ugly Americans” for a minute and look at our energy footprint.
You are clear about one core difference: awareness, willingness to educate, and repeatedly doing that. Through the amount of traveling I've been blessed to do, I've noticed that potential gentrifiers are less likely to do it the more they travel. *Some* of them are exposed to wealth disparities and develop some level of interest in improving the communities they visit. This, ofc, is harder to ask for at the beginning because they've never exposed themselves to an "underdeveloped environment" such as ir al rio a cocinar sopa.
I think we are both aware enough of the education, corruption, and opportunities issue in LATAM, so I won't delve into that.
Instead, I'll raise an idea I was introduced with Europe, and it's how, based on the perspective of most European nomads, US nomads tend to gentrify areas more often. There's an obvious wealth reason with a significant portion of US nomads coming from tech, but another reason might simply be Americans flexibility when it comes to spending *a lot* without judging whether the investment is good or bad; a situation fueled by the ease to get in debt, etc. While a 6-figure European nomad would reject paying 2-3k for a one bedroom in Lisbon, even if they were from London, a US nomad would be, based on conversations, more likely to say, "you know, NY is more expensive, so let me pay 3k for this co-living space."
phenomenal. your honesty hits. thank you for writing and sharing, it feels important to read (and hear your voice in my head as I read it)
I'm curious if you've read Jane Jacobs' work on city planning and development. Her work is maybe a bit old, but may provide insights on the effects of geoarbitrage by digital nomads and subsequent gentrification and cultural transplantation effects.
With everything there are tradeoffs. I think for awhile many have tacitly accepted increasing homogenization to reap the benefits of increases in economic productivity and prosperity. Post-Trump, Post-Covid, the invasion of Ukraine, and Xi's consolidation of power in China there appears to be a push in the opposite directions.
I haven't, Stetson. I'm not familiar with urban planning, but I'm intrigued by it, both because *you* in particular recommended it and because it might reveal reasons why I feel more comfortable in certain places compared to others. It seems like her main book on this topic revolves around American Cities but I'm sure most of the knowledge can be extrapolated. I bought "The Death and Life of Great American Cities"
Great to hear! I hope you enjoy. Astral Codex has at least one great review of one of her lesser read works. The review provides nice context for her ideas about urban planning broadly.
I'll check it out. Thank you.
It felt a personal article filled with feelings.
The question is what do you do? You're gonna hate my proposal.
There are lots of problems that have your shape. I have some of my own. It's hard to imagine solving your problem at the local level. You could ask local shops to refuse to serve foreigners. But of course the shop owners clearly gain from the current situation. My sense of how fixing this would actually play out is:
1) Get the public to care, and help them organize their dissatisfaction
2) Get the public to pressure businesses to put up signs like "we don't serve foreigners"
3) Once the public and businesses are on board, start tightening your country's borders
Maybe seems extreme, but going from living an ordinary life to living next to crime and prostitution is also an extreme change to go through.