Thanatourism, Caminata Nocturna, and the Complex Geopolitics of Mexico’s Parque EcoAlberto

Authors

Marouf A. Hasian Jr., University of UtahFollow
José Ángel Maldonado, University of UtahFollow
Kent A. Ono, University of UtahFollow

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

9-2015

Citation

Southern Communication Journal 80:4 (September–October 2015), pp. 311–330.

doi: 10.1080/1041794X.2015.1043138

Comments

Copyright © 2015 Southern States Communication Association; published by Routledge/Taylor & Francis. Used by permission.

Abstract

This article provides readers with a critical analysis of Mexico’s Parque EcoAlberto. Utilizing some of the theoretical work of interdisciplinary scholars who are interested in the study of “thanatourism,” the authors illustrate how this park, with its Caminata Nocturna (night hike), is much more than simply a “dark” tourist attraction that deters those who might travel North to the U.S. border. This study shows how the indigenous Hñähñú in Mexico have to confront a host of symbolic and material forces that are sometimes hidden in the patriotic metanarratives that swirl around this park.