Los Dos Laredos

 If you were to mention Laredo to anyone on the streets you would probably get a reaction that is typical of most Americans right now, "Oh, don't go there it's dangerous!" According to the Travel.State.Gov website Mexico is one of the countries that is on the "Current Travel Warnings" list. 

Also in light of what is currently fresh on travelers minds about the Tiffany and David Heartley case and her husbands body which is still missing in a jet ski attack on Lake Falcon, people are very hesitant about going anywhere near the border.

But what exactly is happening at the border? Nothing is going on, really if you ask locals and the few people that maintain confidence about traveling to Laredo. According to Flor Santos, a Nuevo Laredo resident who frequently travels between the two Laredos, expresses, "Its calm, if you know where your going and maintain confidence. You are fine." 

Let's start by making that distinction- THERE ARE TWO LAREDOS. There is Laredo, Texas, and there is Nuevo Laredo, Mexico. We are purposely making these two distinctions because the cities are a bi-national region but do remain on different sides of the border. Laredo Texas is a great wonderful vibrant city, which is struggling right now in light of all the negative/bad publicity that is being filtered to the rest of the nation.

John Kilburn, Ph.D., Professor of Sociology and Criminal Justice at Texas A&M International University, asks the question: Is this sensationalism? "There seems to be a lack of statistics from credible sources; which moves to the unknown, which feeds into fears [crime especially], which keeps people from coming over," he adds. 

Dr. Kilburn also states that people are terrified to visit when in actuality there is lower crime than that of New Orleans, his hometown, and adds that "the image becomes the perception that becomes the reality." In City-data.com statistics can be found on different cities. Not to the surprise of people in Laredo, but probably to most of the country, Laredo's crime rate is at 481.3 with a population of 176,576 (2008 stats are reported on this website, and numbers are per 100,000 in population).

The national average is at 320.9 and obviously higher numbers means more crime. To put this into perspective, in relation to other highly populated cities in Texas, Laredo is only beat by Austin, Texas.

Granted that these are not recent statistics, Laredoans know that there hasn't been a spike in any kind of activity whatsoever. According to Maru De La Paz, Public Information Officer WEBB County Sheriffs Office, states, "The perception is that it's happening here. It's happening on the other side. The media's job is to raise awareness not to perpetuate fear. It's safe to live here, shop here, and visit here in Laredo. There is no spill over [in violence],  and police are trying hard to keep it from coming over. Local, state, and federal [law enforcements] are all working together to be proactive to prevent spillover."

So what is to become of Laredo? Why are we so hesitant to go there anymore? Less Norton, Laredo downtown store owner, feels that negative coverage  "has drastically affected the amount of traffic [that used to be seen] coming to Laredo. All the tour buses that used to travel to Saltillo, Monterey, Guadalajara has had a devastating effect on local businesses. The fears of people are rooted on instances that have happened in Mexico, Laredo is a safe place." 

It is this type of optimism and hope that will help ease the fears of the nation and hopefully get people traveling to Laredo again? "Mexico is unsafe, but it shouldn't impair people from coming to Laredo," Norton emphasizes.

Laredoans are rallying together to help eliminate all of the negative feelings and fears of the nation to regain what was once an animated town and ever evolving border. Laredo is suffering the effects of constant negative media exposure and the fearful word-of-mouth. However, locals believe in a brighter tomorrow, which shows the optimism that is being spread throughout the city. As this is being written, two of the authors of this article are from Laredo, and have an unbridled enthusiasm for their city, people, and way of life.

Its great to see so many people come together to help promote this city with love and care. It isn't what it used to be, but it will get there. There are endless campaigns by the visitor's bureau and the city itself to help eliminate fears of traveling here. Optimism and hope against fear and sensationalism will always win. So what is left to say of this? Visit Laredo where the locals will welcome you to a vibrant and unique city.

For more information about Laredo Texas go to Visitlaredo.com