Let’s Send The Innocents Abroad

Mark Twain said it best in “The Innocents Abroad”: “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry and narrow-mindedness.” I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately in the wake of our recent news cycle of closing borders and trade wars, and how it overlaps with the core mission of my company, Suiteness.

Travel is near and dear to me for its transformative ability. I wouldn’t be the person I am today if I hadn’t been given the chance to see how even a tiny fraction of the rest of the world lives. But, I realize, that not everyone has the opportunity to travel. In fact, less than half of Americans have a passport[1]. Meanwhile, more than half of the US workforces does not take all of its vacation days.[2]

I think that it’s because travel, and specifically international travel, has become out-of-reach for the average American that our viewpoints have become so polarized. The two sides are those who see the world as an exciting adventure, and those who see it as a threat.

I’m old enough to remember the feeling of rapture when the Berlin wall fell in 1989, and I celebrated, when the EU was formed and NAFTA was signed. But now, our news cycle seems to be a constant whirlwind–from Brexit, bans, and Bourdain–of reasons why we’re a little more at risk of never knowing parts unknown.

How I’m Taking Action

It’s easy to feel helpless, hopeless, and humorless when reading these headlines. But, instead, we can rally together to send those who are leading the rallying cry to close down our borders on the trip of a lifetime. I really do believe that travel is transformative.

I think Mark Twain himself would like what I’ve come up with. I’ve created a Go Fund Me page where you can go and donate toward my Twain-inspired Innocents Abroad initiative. I’ve kicked things off with a $1,000 donation. Because it’s my personal belief that the people who support these new policies haven’t experienced the world. In order to change how people with differing political viewpoints communicate, I think we need a shared language. It’s easier to empathize with people from different backgrounds if one has experienced a wide variety of cultures. Instead of “Take the Skinheads Bowling,” I say we take them to Paris, Morocco and Tokyo.

[1] Source: number of valid passports in circulation as estimated by the State Department divided by to total U.S. population according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

[2] Source: “State of the American Vacation, 2018 by the U.S. Travel Association