Modernity and Modernization in Mexico

I don't know if it's my education up until now, my upbringing, or Mexican representation in the media, but I somehow always thought of Mexico as a big old desert with lots of cacti and sand and ponchos. I believe this is in part due to the media's representation of foreign countries, especially those in crises, as backwards and needing our help so donate now! It's probably also in part due to cartoons always depicting Mexico and other Latin American countries in this way, as deserts without any buildings, just vast expanses of desert, while New York is a bustling metropolis. It goes without saying that cartoons are built off of stereotypes, but to what extent are these stereotypes damaging, or even racist?
I found all the hard, concrete information a little difficult to digest. I guess that's why I'm not an economics major. I also found all the novelties of the products discussed a little difficult to understand, probably because I have electricity and have had electricity all my life, and I can send instant messages to anyone in the world, and I have a device that can do basically everything in my pocket at all times. But I do always enjoy reading these things from a modern perspective because people are so excited about things like cameras and telegraphs and I can think about how far technology has come in the last hundred years.
I remember reading somewhere that cameras were not designed with black people in mind and were made mostly for white or light-skinned people and reading about the impacts of photography on people of colour brought that up in my mind again. Is there anyway to redesign the camera with black people or dark-skinned folks in mind this time? Or would white people ruin it? (the answer is yes)

Comments

  1. Unknown18 October 2017 at 11:21

    I thought your point about how Latin America and specifically Mexico is portrayed in the media was very interesting and I think absolutely true. I think that is quite disappointing that a country such as Mexico, with its enormous advances in technology and "modernity", could be reduced to big deserts with cacti and ponchos. The way the media portrays many things is quite problematic and I'm glad that you brought up this point!

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  2. Unknown18 October 2017 at 15:53

    This is very true about the developing world. The portrayals of these regions are certainly not as accurate as they should be. Media is responsible for plenty of these representations because this is how they sell their products and make money, a sad reality. I would recommend that you go beyond only looking at the media because Latin America is a very rich region, regardless of having plenty of countries that are considered developing, and is nothing like the portrayals that media can sometimes give.

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