THE NAFTA EFFECT(2005) as THINK AGAIN (David John Attyah + SA Bachman)
THE NAFTA EFFECT (also published SALT IN THE WOUND) is a guerrilla public projection that challenged anti-immigrant rhetoric and policy in response to the escalation of xenophobia in the years following 9/11. It drew attention to the debates surrounding immigration reform and the criminalization of undocumented workers. On the level of policy, THE NAFTA EFFECT highlighted how international treaties like NAFTA, in concert with national anti-immigration efforts such as a 700-mile border fence, insidiously reshape the ways that families live and work on both sides of the border. Roaming the streets of Los Angeles and Boston, the project articulated that xenophobia is not an effective "immigration, trade, diplomatic, ethical or security" policy. THINK AGAIN utilized the metaphor of salt to signify an aspect of human suffering and misery. “Rubbing salt in a wound” invokes the gratuitous infliction of misery on those in already grueling situations. THE NAFTA EFFECT appeared in Boston and Los Angeles.
