Recently, the New York Post ran an article about my home
town of McAllen, Tx. If you’ve been following the “border crisis” news on the
immigrant caravans, child separations, border militarization, and caging
immigrants, you may have heard of McAllen, TX. We are an All-American City
located about eight miles north the US / Mexico border on the southernmost tip
of Texas. I was born and raised here and lived and work in all the bordering
counties.
After reading the article, it’s safe to say that I was
pretty ticked off. The article was at least partially correct about some of the
descriptions about McAllen such as the mall, parks, and luxurious houses but I
feel it sorely failed in how McAllen sustains itself as a city. First off, I
will admit that money laundering does happen in McAllen but money laundering
goes on all over the US. Did not the mafia, gangs, and corrupt politicians play
a big role in the growth and prosperity of New York, Las Vegas, Miami, and
Chicago? Does that make those cities drug infested dangerous and corrupt as
they are portrayed now?
As for the poverty, yes, McAllen is located in one of the
poorest counties in the US but that is according to the US definition of
$25,000 per year for a family of four. Today, a family of four making $20,000
per year still gets by pretty good in the Rio Grande Valley because of the low
cost of living and readily work available for unskilled workers and other factors. The
impression of people living in abject poverty in shacks and wheeless buses is a
total misrepresentation of life in McAllen and the RGV. There are areas
of McAllen where families live in small wood frame houses with chickens in the
yard and a broken car in the dirt driveway but that family still lives comfortably
for the most part. I have been in many of these homes and surprised to see modern
electronics and amenities.
These are mostly deeply religious first and second
generation immigrants people who shun drugs and crime. Where they live now is
in most cases, a step up or two from what they knew in their native country. Their lifestyles shouldn’t be judged by
outsiders just as hillbillies living in wooden cabins with no running water in
the hollars of West Virginia shouldn’t be judged. They’re happy with their lot in
life and should not be looked down on or felt sorry for. For this reason, an
entire community shouldn’t be labeled under one heading.
As for the money laundering in McAllen, I beg to
differ with malice on that matter. I’ve already admitted to some laundering
going on here but that is not what makes McAllen what it is. Much of the Rio
Grande Valley makes quite a big chunk of it’s revenue by other means such as
citrus export, cross border manufacturing, winter visitors, Mexican shoppers, tourism, and various businesses from out of state moving to McAllen. Other important statistics
to describe McAllen can be found here.
The New Yok Post titled “Texas oasis of wealth and luxury
thrives on trafficking near border” clearly paints McAllen as a city built on
smuggling, money laundering and corruption. That simply is not true and it gives
outsiders and potential visitors a very negative view of our home. That makes
us wary of outside reporters and news crews who only come and visit for a day
or two to point out the negative to show the rest of the world for their sole purpose of furthering their reporting careers and personal profiting.
McAllen is one of the most populous cities in south Texas
for good reason. It is best known for the incredibly low cost of living, the
great educational system, the culture, and the exceptional weather. Forbes
ranked McAllen-Edinburg-Mission area as the 35th best performing city in the
country not due to money laundering. According to neighborhoodscout.com, McAllen
is ranked 18 out of 100 in crime analytics. https://www.neighborhoodscout.com/tx/mcallen/crime Enter your hometown in neighborhoodscout to
see how your city ranks.
The author Isabel Vincent, (a Canadian), came to my city and
basically trashed it because she spoke to a few officials and the story she
chose to print was probably more for shock value which fit in well with someone’s agenda or maybe for just
another notch in her journalist belt. Maybe, if she’d have stuck around a
little longer or maybe lived here awhile, she’d see the true McAllen and the
comfortable lives we enjoy in our little corner of the world. Who knows, had she stayed longer, she
may have even noticed all the Canadian flags flown in the RGV by our Canadian friends who
enjoy life here during the winter months along with all the other Minnesotans,
Iowans, Nebraskans, Dakotans, and other northern states.
I’ve been to Toronto and I believe it is a beautiful city
but I know it has it’s problems, I just wouldn’t go pointing out to
the rest of the world any negative or preconceived notions just to say I saw it with my own eyes and make a half story out of it.
If you have read any of my other posts, you know that I
worked on a border security mission alongside many other law enforcement
agencies for 10 years. I was the guy that saw the border situation from the
inside and some cases knew more about the goings on along the border than most “officials”.
I had no agenda, no leanings, nor reason to sugar coat the truth. I just
crunched the numbers and got the stats from the numbers. Sometimes official mouthpieces do have
political motives and allow only certain things to be reported.
Next time, do more research and talk to Mr. and Mrs. Citizen before you put your journalistic foot in your mouth by only reporting partial and non truths.
Next time, do more research and talk to Mr. and Mrs. Citizen before you put your journalistic foot in your mouth by only reporting partial and non truths.
Come down and visit us, stay for a spell and live our lives. https://www.mcallen.net/ We have real tacos.
eModicus
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