Juarez Today
The level of violence in Juarez has tapered off, and life is slowly returning some level of normalcy. Through Dec. 23, homicides declined 38% in 2011, according to a report in the El Paso Times. Earlier in the year, the city hosted an event called Jurez Competitiva that included high-profile speakers such as former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and former Soviet Union President Mikhail Gorbachev.
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The event was designed to showcase the positive aspects of the city. Ethicon's parent company Johnson & Johnson and other major employers in the area participated in the event. As part of the feel-good spirit engendered by the event, Ethicon offered to pay for six different surgeries for people in the city. One of the recipients was Juarez Competitiva volunteer Uriel Ivarra.
Ivarra was battling obesity and the company identified him as a candidate for laparoscopic gastric bypass surgery. Just two weeks after receiving the surgery, Ivarra said he already lost 35 pounds and his diabetes was under control. The results of the surgery have provided Ivarra with confidence boost that will help him finish school, find a good job and complete his future goals, he says.
Ivarra described his work with Juarez Competitiva as an opportunity to provide "a new face for Juarez."
Indeed, the city seems to be on the road to recovery. But life for many Juarez residents may never be the same. Edgar Vazquez, the plant's process excellence manager, says he no longer goes out to clubs or other downtown attractions in the evening.
"I was born and raised in Juarez," Vazquez says. "I love this city. However, you know the places you need to go and the places you don't need to go."
While the violence has changed lifestyles for many Juarez residents, 31-year-old Vazquez says it's not necessarily for the worse.
"In the end, those are not the basic things you need to live," Vazquez says.
The situation in Juarez has helped place more emphasis on spending time with friends and family, Vazquez says. House parties have replaced many of the nights out on the town.
"People are closer to their values and their families," says Vera Ortiz, Ethicon's lean coordinator. "People used to work for cars and more materialistic things. Now family is much more important."
