Privilege, Healthcare, Transportation

Privilege In Passport-----When I entered Argentina on August 22nd, I came with three suitcases and Penne the missionary cat. It took very little time for me to get through customs, in fact I do not even remember handing in the agriculture import form that are normally handed out at the end of a flight. Before my arrival I did not apply for a Visa. The only conditions to my stay was the expectation that I would be gone within 90 days. I am an undocumented. I will leave by the end of November only to return in three days. Then I will leave again in February, and once more in May before I finally come back to the states. What a luxury I have to be able to walk into a country and live here for a year without needing a Visa or other documentation to prove that I am going to leave. As someone who has traveled internationally quite a lot, there was only one occasion that I needed to apply for a Visa before entering and that was Bangladesh. That may have also been because I was with a class. Even during that period we all left the airport during a layover in Dubai without any issues. Actually no, my friend with a Haitian passport had a problem with customs. I have been to Spain, Italy, France, Hungary, and Finland all without needing consent prior to my arrival. When my peers and I went to El Salvador all we needed was to pay $10 at the airport. This past summer in Peru, again, I just walked right out of the airport. In real time any one of these countries I could have just missed my flight and stayed and no one would have known the difference.

What I have learned so far is that this luxury is absolutely not universal.  I was speaking to my Argentine friend about a trip to the United States he was planning to take in the spring. He said in a few weeks he had to go to the embassy to apply for a Visa. I remember looking at him confused as to why he needed a Visa.  Everyone needed a Visa to get into the US apparently and it was not just a simple application. He had to bring proof of Argentine employment, housing, other bills that would prove he has a reason to return to Argentina and that he would not stay in the United States. I was baffled. For maybe two minutes I repeatedly kept saying “Wow,” completely at a loss for words. At first I felt like an idiot for not recognizing my own privilege to be able to come and go as I please. Then I began to feel secondhand embarrassment for my country as they think everyone wants to migrate here. Little do people realize that Argentina is another hot spot for immigration and many people that I have met here are quite happy. If I were to take inventory of all the people I know from Latin America and the Caribbean, I cannot think of one person that I know of Argentine descent. Even though the economy is not as strong as the U.S., it has shown to be a bit more stable than many of their neighbors. Public University is free for all residents. Many high school and primary school students have four hour school days and are still accepted to one of the world’s best universities, University of Buenos Aires. Families can live off of one income. The people I have met in Argentina are interested in travelling rather than moving. Well to each its own, right.

Sometimes I think about staying here after my year, a very irrational thought I know. Yet as the elections get closer, these thoughts of not returning continually pop up. What would the life of a Masters holding U.S. citizen be in Argentina? Would I end up working in the kitchen of a restaurant like my Venezuelan friend with a degree in journalism? He shares an apartment in the Capital with four other men from northern Latin America. Maybe someone would want to marry me and I would live as an Argentine house wife. Could I tutor youth in English?

 I look at some of the other immigrant communities here and observe how they survive in a foreign context. Apparently the Bolivian community sells knock off products. The Paraguayan community is known for their Verdurias (Fruit/ Vegetable markets) and is also hired for construction jobs. The Chinese community has its own neighborhood in the Capital and run supermarkets and knick-knack stores in my neighborhood.  The Senegalese and other African immigrants sell watches, jewelry, and bags by the train stations and on major streets. One man even owns an actual store in my neighborhood. Many Latino immigrants have opened up small restaurants and sell baked goods on the street. For those who have not been as successful with day time labor many immigrant women work in the evening. Some people may have their own conceptions of why people migrate and the questioning of migrant work ethics. Regardless if there is employment or not, someone who has left their family and everything they loved to pursue life in another country is more than likely hustling.

Healthcare-----The longer I am here the more I learn about how much prosperity there is in Argentina even with their recent economic crisis. During dinner with friends I shared my fears of getting sick in another country more so for insurance purposes. Argentina does not have a mandate for health insurance. Martin, the med school friend, said “our emergency room is free in our public hospitals.” He told me how many people from other countries will take trips to Argentina to have basic medical procedures done because the trip is cheaper than the services in their country. After listening to the Presidential debates around Obama Care and the growing prices of insurance, I thought about how much easier it would be for us to just create free basic healthcare. For everyone that is Pro- Life, why are we not advocating for enhancing the quality of life through healthcare? What a concept it is to offer proper care for the poor and rich alike. Every year we seem to increase the spending of national defense while cutting the spending of other social programs. Should not all people at least have access to basic healthcare regardless of employment or living conditions?

On the reverse side of things, not all ailments can be treated in the public hospital in Argentina. For those with long term illnesses or unconventional diseases, they are recommended to see a private hospital which would then require health insurance. We began to compare prices for medication and adhesives. When I explained that some allergy medicine in the states can cost about $1 a pill, my friends stared at me like I was crazy. A box of adhesives in Argentina are anywhere between $1 and $2 while in the states they are significantly more expensive.  It is upsetting at times to see how badly Capitalism has damaged our culture when we think paying high rates for certain items is normal. In reality, many products we use are made with cheap labor overseas and marketed to us at astronomical rates. We of course pay it when it comes to medicine because we value our health.  

Accesibility------In the Province of Buenos Aires, public transportation is very accessible and quite affordable. I am able to travel to the heart of the city within an hour on the train for the cost of $3.40 Argentine Pesos equivalent to $0.22 USD. The Subway is only a peso and change more expensive. Most bus trips can be anywhere between $6.00 to $6.75 Argentine Pesos.  I pay less than $0.45 USD for a bus ride. On transit it is not uncommon for people to sell chocolate or candy during ones commute. If a chocolate bar is being sold at $15-$20 pesos a bar ($1- $1.33 USD), the vendor makes back their round trip fare in one exchange. In somewhere like New York, for a candy vendor selling for $1.00 USD a piece, they would need to sell three pieces in order to pay for their one way fare. Though this may not sound exciting to the average person, affordable transportation makes it easier for some less conventional models of labor to take place and enables greater opportunity for someone to support their family. The trains run often throughout the day and stop running efficiently around 10:30pm (I have gotten on an 11:30pm train and was greatly mistaken). The buses run all night long, fairly consistently as well. This makes it tangible for people to live in the suburbs and commute into work in the Capital as the cost of housing is significantly cheaper outside of the Capital.

Thoughts-----There is still so much more to uncover about Argentina. Though I would like to dive deeper into their politics and social welfare programs, I will hold off for another post to draw even closer comparisons to the United States. What I will say though is while there are times that I deeply miss home; there are other times when I am very much captured by my environment. There are small businesses and that last decades and room for healthy competition. In one street there are two vegetable markets, three butchers, two pet supply stores, and a handful of empanada joints. Every single business is doing well enough even with a supermarket that sells all of these items on the same street. Parents walk their children to and from school. Teachers create assignments and learning environments not shaped around standardized tests. Street dogs are treated like neighbors. Mate is shared amongst even strangers. Even in a poor neighborhood like mine, I understand why people are happy with where they live.

Maybe U.S. citizens need to travel more. Cross borders and live somewhere for a few weeks or months. Engage in a culture other than your own and open your mind to the idea that we may not have all the answers. Maybe then can we make better informed decisions around border patrol, immigration, and our domestic social policies. This is not even to purely advocate for the liberal agenda. One could absolutely experience life abroad and feel even more inclined to support conservative politics than before. I would rather we make these decisions with real life experiences rather than just based on hearsay. But I digress. This piece was painted with privilege. Read with care.

#ReclaimMissionary