Letter From Aimee Khuu
March 19, 2009
I'm writing in regards to decisions around your group’s trip to Tijuana Mexico with Esperanza. My perspective is that of seven years of mission trekking with Esperanza and six months of recent volunteer staff service in Tijuana with Esperanza. I am writing to urge you to do all you can to follow through with your groups plans to participate with Esperanza. Please, give me the opportunity to tell you why.
- There has been no official increase in warning to Tijuana. Yes, the media is all over the situation but things are not significantly worse to our national concern of tourists from the US going to Mexico (US State department website!).
- There is no reason to think that US volunteers face any increase in danger. There haven’t been any incidences with volunteers and no problems with Esperanza as an organization. The violence is targeted. Which is what many people don't understand. It is between the gangs and the drug cartels, police and politicians.
- Esperanza work sites are far from the areas in which crime has been concentrated. The place in which we stay is not even in Tijuana proper. It is in a very safe neighborhood (I urge you to look up La Gloria, the area that we stay, on a Google map- It is 30 minutes away from the Tijuana city center!
- Esperanza staff would advise groups at once if the situation became unsafe. If, as someone who doesn't know Esperanza, you can't take confidence in the staff of Esperanza- that is understandable, but consider this. Many other groups are still going to Tijuana to work with Esperanza. Why? Because there is a huge degree of trust in the organization and staff.
- I was there when the violence was escalating this summer. As an Esperanza team, we made decisions about where to go and where not to go with groups. We changed the way things were done so that we could make the situation as safe as possible for volunteers. I became acutely aware that the safety of volunteers is the number one priority of Esperanza staff.
- Things are getting better. The media has been capitalizing on the year end reports (of 2008) and so much attention has been placed on Mexico.
I know you are looking out for the best of your participants. Please consider these points and I urge you to follow through with your plans to participate together with the families and staff of Esperanza.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and please email me if you would like to talk about any of this.
Peace and Blessings,
Aimee Ly Khuu
aimee.khuu@gmail.com