Word: mexicans
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...last time the Bush family hosted a Mexican president at a White House state dinner, an international incident was narrowly avoided. Former first lady Barbara Bush picks up the story from her memoir: "We almost had a real crisis during the dinner for the new president of Mexico, Carlos Salinas. The pastry chef had described the dessert on the menu as 'Mexican Fantasy.' Just as the platters were leaving the kitchen to make a dramatic entrance into the State Dining Room, Laurie Firestone, George's social secretary, noticed that the chef had constructed an adobe house out of edible sweets...
...stunning. But leaning against the wall of the house was a little candy Mexican boy taking a siesta with a sombrero over his eyes. Just the unfair image that this young bright Harvard graduate was trying to erase about Mexico. So as each platter went by, Laurie plucked off the sleeping boy. It would have been insulting. She saved the day for her country, but the next morning had to face the pastry chef who had labored so long over that glorious dessert...
...some relished what seemed to be ringside seats at the revolution, others were more skeptical. They wanted to know why Global Exchange hadn't scheduled briefings with Mexican-government officials, to hear from those who see indigenous demands as a threat to Mexican unity, for example. Ryan Zinn, the trip leader, said government representatives have declined to meet with reality tours and that the group is not set up to satisfy the complex visa requirements for official delegations. Meanwhile, not every event got the thumbs-up. At the end of the trip, eyes glazed over during a two-hour harangue...
...deep in the cloud forest of southern Mexico, as 15 members of the town council of San AndrEs Sakamch'en, bedecked in ribboned sombreros and crimson tunics, welcomed a gaggle of nosy tourists. Tzotzil Indians who have broken off from the Mexican government, they patiently answered questions about their village of rutted streets and shuttered shops, donning ski masks and bandannas only when it came to picture taking. "As indigenous people, we are threatened and exploited," said council president Lucas Hernandez Ruiz. "We are happy you have come from afar to witness our resistance...
...Reality tours can be grueling. In Chiapas, Lipoff and his 13 companions spent hours in dense briefings on indigenous-rights negotiations, Mexican elections, globalization, fair trade and biodiversity. Their $11-a-night hotel in San Cristobal de las Casas was spartan; little time was left for escapes to the colorful artisan markets and baroque churches of the 16th century city. On an overnight visit to Nuevo Yibeljoj, an impoverished community of displaced Zapatista sympathizers, the visitors lay their sleeping bags on bare planks, fought off mosquitoes and fleas and urinated behind bushes rather than face a stinking outhouse...