A Month Burning Alive in the Gateway: Cultural and Political Considerations From Central America
- Nikola Ranick
- Sep 9, 2024
- 5 min read
The entire month of June, I was blessed to travel throughout all of Central America (minus tiny Belize). In true global traveler fashion- and a poor one at that, this adventure consisted of sweltering heat alongside seasonally insufferable rainfall, AC-absent and shock absorber-less chicken buses, and massive hostel rooms that were still somehow too tight-quartered. Discomfort aside, I was quickly attuned to the region's surprisingly simple transport. The world is truly our oyster, as long we know the rules and routes to go. I would love to tell you the most impactful part of my journey has been the people and the culture–in the long term, it will be. But in the short term, the 5 hours I did not have my phone (almost ¼ of a day!!) were perhaps the most confusing, exhausting, and yes, definitely, embarrassing. But I digress...
Panama: The Diversity-Development Paradigm
Central America embodies the developing world’s inequality. The rich hide behind their fancy shopping malls, skyscrapers, and, in the especially developed countries, their suburbs, while the poor wallow in slums run by an informal economy, and deep rooted patronage systems enabled or even actively run by governmental groups or gangs. This is a constant in any region, just more a matter of the ratio place-to-place. And the ratio in middle-income Latin America is notoriously imbalanced.
The stereotype is more muddled in the wealthier countries, Costa Rica and Panama. I was aware of this going into my journey, and it is why I chose to start south, and work my way north towards lower income enclaves. But nothing provides perspective as much as on-the-ground observations, especially relevant in Panama. If you look at raw GDP per-capita numbers, even once adjusted for purchasing power parity, you would expect European levels of development in Panama, with Costa Rica only slightly behind. But driving through Panama, it is clear that absolute poverty still resides in its slums. Even in the glittering capital, the poorer would not strike me as out of place in (significantly poorer) Mexico or Morocco, with shanty towns and gallons of trash that make the embarrassing urban disorder of Kansas City look ideal.
Along the way, I became acutely aware of the car-centric lifestyle of the (relatively small) middle and upper class, where even a sleek and modern subway system is looked down upon and unsavory neighborhoods are passed through with no eye contact but plenty of disdain; sadly familiar to the American Experience. Still, the slums speak volumes to underlying inequalities' ability to both create an illusion of growth as well as, in Panama’s case, somewhat segregate the population. It was by more than one local that I was warned about going to certain areas that were run down, yes, but only seemed to harbor the 'sin' of being populated largely by black people. This was sad, but not too unfamiliar either…
I was particularly startled by Colon, on the northern edge of the Metro's Isthmus, an overwhelmingly African-descendant city notorious for its corruption - that its glittering tourist letters were both falling apart and/or stolen were case in point. And that it harbors multiple 'pay-to-enter' free trade zones just seemed a bit too on the nose for the 'haves' and have-not's. But the mood was nonetheless upbeat with urban beach festivities encompassing young to old in a non-stop party on the weekends. Sure, the trash-filled blocks, blighted buildings, and degree of calls/taunting I received indicated a need for concern. A woman or even someone not obviously American (I got the name 'Blanco'), should be rightfully cautious. Armed police patrolled the streets in tricked-out vehicles and equipment, a bit of a startling approach to keeping the peace. But, even if uppity Panama City slickers say otherwise, these streets were accessible, as opposed to the no-go neighborhoods I would find in countries to the north.
That is not to say the situation was not worse in the country's east. Long held fears over the once impassable Darian Gap are relevant. It has become a smuggling point for refugees and drugs alike. Indeed, its remoteness to the capital and proximity to danger has resulted in the US State Department listing some border towns as off limits; shocking for a rich country. Much of this also had to do with indigenous self governance, a vulnerable situation which could make those communities especially ripe to cartel influence.
To summarize the gloom, naysayers could paint Panama as a Triple Liability for Development:
1. Its Latin American developmental history already creates a racial and class caste system that is especially difficult to break.
2. Its Beautiful Diversity. The country again has a large indigenous populations with some self-governance, alongside almost 1/3 of general citizenry having some African genetics. Tragically, this heterogeneity is also a notorious indicator of deep systemic inequality.
3. Capital-Focused Growth. Like several countries I spotlighted recently, it is a nation where one city takes all the attention. However, unlike the case of Hungary and France, around 75% of Panama's population is based in its big city metro, meaning most of the country is not left behind. Still, as Colon demonstrated, not all of the Isthmus grows equally. My time in the country's West, which juxtaposed the poor city of David against outrageously affluent tourist havens like Boquete, proved there are still many stuck behind.
Though the inequality appeared stark, I believe much of that can be explained by the specific areas I frequented. In wealthier countries, suburbanization is not only possible but largely desirable. The city slicker I am meant that I was perhaps overly focused on the urban dichotomy. Whereas much of Northern Central American Elitism was limited to urban and urban-adjacent shopping malls, Panama's model was a bit different,
Panama City had these urban malls but many, though well maintained, were largely emptied out or had simple businesses inside. It became clear that the urban center had evolved into a 9-5 model with an in and outflow of people according to the workday. Most Panamanian growth, then, lies outside of its skyscraper-studded downtown, and it has its developed world spaces; just not where I was looking. That the city was immaculately gay for its size or impressively cheap for it as well, only spoke further to the unique cultural and economic nuances of the country's development model.
The economy is also going through numerous changes. First and foremost, the initial source of its prosperity. The Panama Canal’s decline in importance is both a good and bad thing: Bad in that it was the traditional model of growth that has vaulted the country to increasing wealth, even if distributed extra unequally. Good, in that it demands economic diversification to the likes of commerce and finance, which could be a more inclusive growth model across class. Yet the industry most likely to benefit has been tourism, an economic category I am notoriously skeptical of. Even so, the standard of living is near the highest for Latin Americans, cutting across economic and racial lines in a way that Costa Rica, Argentina, and Chile simply do not. That Panama's greatest relic to its history was a privatized (and expensive) Canal History Museum puts its commercialization in line the US; a commonality for better and for worse.
Economics aside, the feel of this tiny country (its population is slightly larger than metro Seattle) is admirable indeed. In what national testament I could find (the museums need a lot of work), the narrative of the nation is as nuanced as it is triumphant. The complexity of its history, from Spanish colonization, to Colombian domination, to US influence, was neither swept under the rug, nor resented in a statement of victimhood. Despite infrastructural and youth unemployment needs, the narrative of the country has positive momentum. MENTION For now, warts and all, Panama is a model, if not globally, than certainly by the developing world, and definitely Latin America.
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