La Tumba del Mojado
 
 

"Seconds after this photo was taken the three men
atop the fence dropped into America.
They were quickly apprehended."
Paolo Vescia

"La Tumba del Mojado"
Los Tigres del Norte

No pude cruzar la raya,
Se me traveso el R’o Bravo.
Me aprendieron malamente.
Cuando viv’a al otro lado
Los d—lares son bonitos.
Pero yo soy mŽxicano.

No ten’a tarjeta verde
Cuando trabajŽ en Louisiana.
En un s—tano viv’
Porque era espalda mojada
Tuve que inclinar la frente
Para cobrar la semana

La rosa de Mexicali
Y la sangre del R’o Bravo
Son dos cosas diferentes
Pero en color son hermanos
Y la linea divisoria
Es la tumba del mojado

La cerca de la tortilla
Es ofensa para el pueblo
En MŽxico se pasean
Franceses, chinos y griegos
Y algunos americanos
Son caciques en los pueblos

La rosa de Mexicali
Y la sangre del R’o Bravo
Son dos cosas diferentes
Pero en color son hermanos
Y la linea divisoria
Es la tumba del mojado

The lyrics give no hint of a hopeful future for the immigrant. They offer no solution and they leave the immigrant remaining homeless. In "Juala de Oro", the perpetual gray area is conveyed in lines like "But they no longer remember/ my beloved Mexico,/ which I can never forget/ and to which cannot return." The protagonist is loosing his own past to provide a new one for his family that he no longer identifies with. In Tumba del Mojado, the lyrics, much more jolting, frankly refer to the border as the "tomb" of the immigrant. Other corrido genres (like narco-corridos, or revolutionary corridos) depict a defiant, bold protagonist. The protagonist in the older corridos, was very aware of his identity. The older corridos describe a time when the border was not clearly defined or regulated, in the case of revolutionary, or specifically being defied in the case of the narco-corridos.

As the border became more defined and regulated to immigrants trying to cross it, the immigrants' self and national identity abated. Immigration corridos give a sense of complete defeat. The protagonist has been defeated with no other opportunities to find personal history to rely on. Neither one of the songs give a hint of hope for the future of the immigrant. The lyrics suggest no solutions or end to the immigrants' transition. The hope and future for the immigrant lies in the popularity of the song and the band. Because the song was so popular and recognized by the establishment (the Grammys), a space has been made in American culture for these immigrants and their history. An identity is evolving for not only the new Americans from Mexico, but also for the eclectic American culture as a whole. The lamentations of the songs are themselves providing the immigrants with a sense of identity and history. Despite the lyrics' overwhelming sense of defeat for the immigrant, the songs are providing the solution.

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