Trading in the American Dream for the Mexican Dream
Imperfect Paradise
LAist Studios
4.5 • 535 Ratings
🗓️ 6 July 2025
⏱️ 30 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
For decades, there’s been a persistent story about Mexican immigrants crossing the border for a better life in the United States. But there’s a new trend emerging: Mexicans and Mexican Americans, disillusioned with American politics, moving to Mexico for a more fulfilling life. In the second episode of a three-part collaboration with Latino USA, Imperfect Paradise host Antonia Cereijido and Latino USA’s Maria Hinojosa sit down with a Mexican American creative who moved to Mexico, as well as a Mexico City native, to discuss the “Mexican Dream.”
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Transcript
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| 0:34.8 | For decades now, there's been this persisting narrative from Mexican immigrants and even family members |
| 0:40.7 | that every opportunity for higher education, jobs, a better life, those things could only be found in the United States and not in Mexico. |
| 0:50.2 | My whole life I grew up, Mexico doesn't have any opportunities. |
| 0:53.4 | Mexico doesn't set you up to be successful. |
| 0:56.0 | And Mexico, blah, blah, blah. |
| 0:58.4 | But I've noticed that that's been changing. |
| 1:01.3 | People who have lived in the United States for much of their lives are now talking about moving back to Mexico. |
| 1:07.4 | And that's a big shift from even 10 or 15 years ago. |
| 1:12.9 | And oh my God, was I wrong? |
| 1:19.2 | I finished high school here. I went to university here. I got great jobs, great paying jobs. |
| 1:25.4 | I purchased a home last year. I'm able to travel internationally. I'm able to have a good life here. That's from a TikTok video of a user named Annie Manzanaris. |
| 1:29.9 | Oh, I'm Annie, by the way. |
| 1:31.2 | She's talking about her family, how they moved back to Mexico a few years ago, |
| 1:35.1 | after her parents had immigrated to the United States for what they believed would be the American dream. |
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