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Drug War Itself Had Minimal Impact On Americans Visiting Mexico

Credit: Atlantic Wire
Credit: Atlantic Wire

Did the wave cartel violence during 2007-2011 impact the number of Americans visiting Mexico? Of course, but not as much as you would think.

In three years, drug war related deaths in Mexico increased 440 percent — from 2,826 deaths in 2007 to 15,273 in 2010.

The Atlantic Wire compared the deaths of those years with air travel data from the U.S. government. The impact across a 12-month average is not as dire as one would expect.

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However, this was not the case when U.S. tourists were killed. Travel declined sharply during that time.

Credit: Atlantic Wire
Credit: Atlantic Wire

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