Stop apologizing for Pablo Escobar tours. Just don't take them.
An open letter from someone who grew up here. We don't need explanations — we need you to walk past the cartel-merch shops and into the actual city.
This is going to be short, and a little sharp. We don't need explanations for why the Pablo Escobar tours feel weird to live with. We need you to walk past the cartel-merch shops and into the actual city.
Medellín is twenty-two of us — paisas — for every tourist who thinks they're processing trauma at our expense. The murals you see in Comuna 13 are recovery work made by survivors. The man pictured on the keychain is the reason their grandfathers are dead.
Don't take the tours. Take the Metro to Comuna 13 instead, hire a local guide there, and listen to what they say. Full piece soon — the right way to engage, in our own words.