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Two Nations Indivisible: Mexico, the United States, and the Road Ahead
A lawless border shootout with American guns in Mexican hands. Tragic stories of immigrants dying in the desert while heading north. Decapitations, kidnappings, and body counts. These sorts of grim tales dominate the media, infiltrate movies and TV shows, and ultimately shape Americans' perception of Mexico as a dangerous country, overrun by brutal drug lords.
Without a doubt, the drug war is real. In the last six years, more than 60,000 people have been murdered in narco-related crimes. But there is far more to Mexico's story than this gruesome narrative would suggest.
Hidden behind the headlines is a more hopeful Mexico, one undergoing rapid and widespread social, political, and economic transformations. It is one of a globally competitive economy, a rising middle class, and increasingly influential pro-democracy voters. It is a thriving Mexico whose people, communities, companies, and commerce are intricately tied to the United States.
In her groundbreaking book, Two Nations Indivisible , Shannon K. O'Neil argues that the United States is making a grave mistake by focusing on the politics of antagonism toward Mexico. Rather, America should wake up to the revolution of prosperity now unfolding there.
This is the Mexico Americans need to get to know. Now more than ever, the two countries are indivisible. It is past time for the United States to forge a new relationship with its southern neighbor. In no uncertain terms, America's future depends on it.
Without a doubt, the drug war is real. In the last six years, more than 60,000 people have been murdered in narco-related crimes. But there is far more to Mexico's story than this gruesome narrative would suggest.
Hidden behind the headlines is a more hopeful Mexico, one undergoing rapid and widespread social, political, and economic transformations. It is one of a globally competitive economy, a rising middle class, and increasingly influential pro-democracy voters. It is a thriving Mexico whose people, communities, companies, and commerce are intricately tied to the United States.
In her groundbreaking book, Two Nations Indivisible , Shannon K. O'Neil argues that the United States is making a grave mistake by focusing on the politics of antagonism toward Mexico. Rather, America should wake up to the revolution of prosperity now unfolding there.
This is the Mexico Americans need to get to know. Now more than ever, the two countries are indivisible. It is past time for the United States to forge a new relationship with its southern neighbor. In no uncertain terms, America's future depends on it.
260 pages, Hardcover
First published March 22, 2013
11 people are currently reading
179 people want to read
About the author
Shannon K. O'Neil
5 books17 followersShannon K. O'Neil is the vice president, deputy director of studies, and Nelson and David Rockefeller senior fellow for Latin America Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations. She is an expert on Latin America, global trade, U.S.-Mexico relations, corruption, democracy, and immigration.
O’Neil is the author of the forthcoming The Globalization Myth: Regionalization and How America's Neighbors Help it Compete (Yale University Press, 2022), which chronicles the rise of three main global manufacturing and supply chain hubs and what they mean for U.S. economic competitiveness. She also wrote Two Nations Indivisible: Mexico, the United States, and the Road Ahead (Oxford University Press, 2013), which analyzes the political, economic, and social transformations Mexico has undergone over the last three decades and why these changes matter for the United States. She is a columnist for Bloomberg Opinion, and frequent guest on news, radio, and podcasts. O’Neil has testified before Congress on both Mexico and Latin America, and regularly speaks at global academic, business, and policy conferences.
O’Neil has lived and worked in Mexico and Argentina and travels extensively in Latin America. She was a Fulbright scholar and a Justice, Welfare, and Economics fellow at Harvard University, and has taught Latin American politics at Columbia University. Before turning to policy, O'Neil worked in the private sector as an equity analyst at Indosuez Capital and Credit Lyonnais Securities. She holds a BA from Yale University, an MA in international relations from Yale University, and a PhD in government from Harvard University. She is a member of the board of directors of the Tinker Foundation.
O’Neil is the author of the forthcoming The Globalization Myth: Regionalization and How America's Neighbors Help it Compete (Yale University Press, 2022), which chronicles the rise of three main global manufacturing and supply chain hubs and what they mean for U.S. economic competitiveness. She also wrote Two Nations Indivisible: Mexico, the United States, and the Road Ahead (Oxford University Press, 2013), which analyzes the political, economic, and social transformations Mexico has undergone over the last three decades and why these changes matter for the United States. She is a columnist for Bloomberg Opinion, and frequent guest on news, radio, and podcasts. O’Neil has testified before Congress on both Mexico and Latin America, and regularly speaks at global academic, business, and policy conferences.
O’Neil has lived and worked in Mexico and Argentina and travels extensively in Latin America. She was a Fulbright scholar and a Justice, Welfare, and Economics fellow at Harvard University, and has taught Latin American politics at Columbia University. Before turning to policy, O'Neil worked in the private sector as an equity analyst at Indosuez Capital and Credit Lyonnais Securities. She holds a BA from Yale University, an MA in international relations from Yale University, and a PhD in government from Harvard University. She is a member of the board of directors of the Tinker Foundation.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
January 25, 2025
Have read a few books about Mexico US relations, like Distant Neighbors and The Mexicans, etc, and this one is definitely one of the best I have ever read. I wish we could have Shannon do a follow up now, 12 years later--just to see how much or how little, according to the observer, we (Mexico) have advanced or gotten worst.
Well, the fact that Trump is now (2025) the No 1 in US--will change things drastically--he has a few days working and already is making some key moves. Will see how US and the rest of the world deals with the after-effects.
One thing is for sure--Shannon has a way to explain things and concepts in a way that even I can understand, even if I do not agree. Like in the case of legalizing drugs--I feel it is the same as alcohol--and now, maybe robot cars will make it easier to reduce and even eliminate car accidents. We need to expedite the transition to EVs, not stall it. However, these are just my two cents.
However, this book should be a required reading for any politician, student, or lay person working on bi-lateral issue that affects both countries. Bottom line; we are next door neighbors, we should try get along and work together, better.
Well, the fact that Trump is now (2025) the No 1 in US--will change things drastically--he has a few days working and already is making some key moves. Will see how US and the rest of the world deals with the after-effects.
One thing is for sure--Shannon has a way to explain things and concepts in a way that even I can understand, even if I do not agree. Like in the case of legalizing drugs--I feel it is the same as alcohol--and now, maybe robot cars will make it easier to reduce and even eliminate car accidents. We need to expedite the transition to EVs, not stall it. However, these are just my two cents.
However, this book should be a required reading for any politician, student, or lay person working on bi-lateral issue that affects both countries. Bottom line; we are next door neighbors, we should try get along and work together, better.
April 29, 2013
The only thing that makes me sad about this book is that it probably won't get as wide distribution as it should, as I believe it should be read by the rest of the world, not only American decision makers. Very thoroughly researched, the author makes a compelling case for the Mexico most Mexicans outside of the troubled areas experience. There's a reason why the country is the darling of the international investment community, and why it is starting to show more confidence on the world stage. Now let's hope the good work continues and the remaining issues (which are not small) are fixed.
November 27, 2018
Bien, un libro que quizás debíamos haber leído antes de las elecciones de 2017.
Me gustó el análisis general que hace, aunque la verdad, desde una perspectiva totalmente gringo-céntrica, por ejemplo, en el asunto de las drogas, elude el problema del consumo, que es en buena parte responsable de la producción y la violencia.
Obviamente la mejor parte es en lo que se refiere a las relaciones comerciales y económicas entre los dos países y muestra el beneficio mutuo que han tenido del NAFTA.
Es interesante revisar lo que la autora escribe en el libro, contra cómo se ha ido desarrollando la historia, particularmente en temas migratorios, donde la migración ha caído de forma significativa después de la publicación. Al respecto del tema migratorio, quizás es la única parte donde hace unas "recomendaciones" más serias al lado gringo de la ecuación, particularmente lo que se refiere a cortar el trabajo ilegal del lado norte de la frontera y favorecer en cambio, una política migratoria más incluyente que añada visas de trabajo temporal para poder ofrecer trabajos legales
Finalmente hay una parte que espero que no sea la profecía, donde habla de que en México se empieza (empezaba) a revisar las leyes para permitir la reelección, lo que en su opinión, causaría una mayor responsabilidad de parte de los oficiales electos. Honestamente, si eso ocurre, no creo que pase, la tradición democrática de México es muy diferente a la de Estados Unidos, y parece que lo que hace es equiparar a los oficiales electos mexicanos con el senado o cámara de representantes americana, y así, no es.
Me gustó el análisis general que hace, aunque la verdad, desde una perspectiva totalmente gringo-céntrica, por ejemplo, en el asunto de las drogas, elude el problema del consumo, que es en buena parte responsable de la producción y la violencia.
Obviamente la mejor parte es en lo que se refiere a las relaciones comerciales y económicas entre los dos países y muestra el beneficio mutuo que han tenido del NAFTA.
Es interesante revisar lo que la autora escribe en el libro, contra cómo se ha ido desarrollando la historia, particularmente en temas migratorios, donde la migración ha caído de forma significativa después de la publicación. Al respecto del tema migratorio, quizás es la única parte donde hace unas "recomendaciones" más serias al lado gringo de la ecuación, particularmente lo que se refiere a cortar el trabajo ilegal del lado norte de la frontera y favorecer en cambio, una política migratoria más incluyente que añada visas de trabajo temporal para poder ofrecer trabajos legales
Finalmente hay una parte que espero que no sea la profecía, donde habla de que en México se empieza (empezaba) a revisar las leyes para permitir la reelección, lo que en su opinión, causaría una mayor responsabilidad de parte de los oficiales electos. Honestamente, si eso ocurre, no creo que pase, la tradición democrática de México es muy diferente a la de Estados Unidos, y parece que lo que hace es equiparar a los oficiales electos mexicanos con el senado o cámara de representantes americana, y así, no es.
December 9, 2025
Have read a few books about Mexico US relations, like Distant Neighbors and The Mexicans, etc, and this one is definitely one of the best I have ever read. I wish we could have Shannon do a follow up now, 12 years later--just to see how much or how little, according to the observer, we (Mexico) have advanced or gotten worst.
Well, the fact that Trump is now (2025) the No 1 in US--will change things drastically--he has a few days working and already is making some key moves. Will see how US and the rest of the world deals with the after-effects.
One thing is for sure--Shannon has a way to explain things and concepts in a way that even I can understand, even if I do not agree. Like in the case of legalizing drugs--I feel it is the same as alcohol--and now, maybe robot cars will make it easier to reduce and even eliminate car accidents. We need to expedite the transition to EVs, not stall it. However, these are just my two cents.
However, this book should be a required reading for any politician, student, or lay person working on bi-lateral issue that affects both countries. Bottom line; we are next door neighbors, we should try get along and work together, better.
Well, the fact that Trump is now (2025) the No 1 in US--will change things drastically--he has a few days working and already is making some key moves. Will see how US and the rest of the world deals with the after-effects.
One thing is for sure--Shannon has a way to explain things and concepts in a way that even I can understand, even if I do not agree. Like in the case of legalizing drugs--I feel it is the same as alcohol--and now, maybe robot cars will make it easier to reduce and even eliminate car accidents. We need to expedite the transition to EVs, not stall it. However, these are just my two cents.
However, this book should be a required reading for any politician, student, or lay person working on bi-lateral issue that affects both countries. Bottom line; we are next door neighbors, we should try get along and work together, better.
December 14, 2020
- American news coverage of Mexico primarily focus on just few things: drug and violence while ignore the rapid development in Mexico (American media does the same thing to Africa (poor) or Russia (Putin))
- The US relationship with Mexico has always been rocky
- Mexico was heavily reliant on oil. Oil tank in the 80s result in mass migration from Mexico to the US
- Mexico didn't have a true democracy till 2000
- The US relationship with Mexico has always been rocky
- Mexico was heavily reliant on oil. Oil tank in the 80s result in mass migration from Mexico to the US
- Mexico didn't have a true democracy till 2000
April 19, 2024
Very good general overview. Used as basis for a seminar I gave at work. At times a bit surface level.
April 17, 2013
From http://weeksnotice.blogspot.com/2013/...
It is very hard to say something new or original about U.S.-Mexican relations (as is the case with U.S.-Cuban relations). Books and articles are churned out at a rapid pace, all with variations on a "we're partners and need each other whether we like it or not" theme, with a laundry list of things to do. What Shannon O'Neil does in Two Nations Indivisible: Mexico, the United States, and the Road Ahead (2013) is to carve a niche she had been showing on her blog and elsewhere. Her take looks primarily at the way in which Mexico is perceived in the United States.
Basically, she argues that Mexico is ascending, but that too few in the United States recognize this. Instead, they are stuck on the idea of a backwards country on the road to nowhere. Instead, there is a strong economy and growing middle class, a persistent expansion of democracy, and a highly cosmopolitan population. She makes this argument through a narrative that takes care not to exaggerate claims (and places drug-related violence in perspective). It takes the reader through economic reforms, the fall of the PRI, and the cracking of soft authoritarianism, all of which make Mexico a very different place than it was just a short time ago.
The policy prescriptions that flow from the narrative aren't really new, but those aren't really the point of the book. Instead, the idea is that the relationship can't move forward productively until false images are dispelled. Ultimately, the vast majority of Americans don't know Mexico much at all. And I would wager that many think they understand Mexico when in fact they don't.
Toward the end she mentions a trip she took with House and Senate staffers to Mexico City, and how they expressed surprise at how nice the city was, even more impressive than the places they came from. Getting over that hurdle, she argues, will help policy a lot. This makes sense, as the pervasive popular image is a Mexico of dirt streets and ragged children. They do exist, but more and more Mexicans are equally educated and prosperous as their northern counterparts.
I've cautioned before about overly optimistic views of the middle class in Latin America. Aside from measurement questions, aggregate figures can obscure the number of people who are on the brink of falling back. But O'Neil provides plenty of evidence for her glass-half-full perspective perspective. In the end, the book plus a trip to Mexico would be a good thing for most members of Congress and their staffers.
It is very hard to say something new or original about U.S.-Mexican relations (as is the case with U.S.-Cuban relations). Books and articles are churned out at a rapid pace, all with variations on a "we're partners and need each other whether we like it or not" theme, with a laundry list of things to do. What Shannon O'Neil does in Two Nations Indivisible: Mexico, the United States, and the Road Ahead (2013) is to carve a niche she had been showing on her blog and elsewhere. Her take looks primarily at the way in which Mexico is perceived in the United States.
Basically, she argues that Mexico is ascending, but that too few in the United States recognize this. Instead, they are stuck on the idea of a backwards country on the road to nowhere. Instead, there is a strong economy and growing middle class, a persistent expansion of democracy, and a highly cosmopolitan population. She makes this argument through a narrative that takes care not to exaggerate claims (and places drug-related violence in perspective). It takes the reader through economic reforms, the fall of the PRI, and the cracking of soft authoritarianism, all of which make Mexico a very different place than it was just a short time ago.
The policy prescriptions that flow from the narrative aren't really new, but those aren't really the point of the book. Instead, the idea is that the relationship can't move forward productively until false images are dispelled. Ultimately, the vast majority of Americans don't know Mexico much at all. And I would wager that many think they understand Mexico when in fact they don't.
Toward the end she mentions a trip she took with House and Senate staffers to Mexico City, and how they expressed surprise at how nice the city was, even more impressive than the places they came from. Getting over that hurdle, she argues, will help policy a lot. This makes sense, as the pervasive popular image is a Mexico of dirt streets and ragged children. They do exist, but more and more Mexicans are equally educated and prosperous as their northern counterparts.
I've cautioned before about overly optimistic views of the middle class in Latin America. Aside from measurement questions, aggregate figures can obscure the number of people who are on the brink of falling back. But O'Neil provides plenty of evidence for her glass-half-full perspective perspective. In the end, the book plus a trip to Mexico would be a good thing for most members of Congress and their staffers.
March 23, 2014
If you are looking for a good read on US/Mexico relations or even how we got to where we are today, you could do much worse than this book. What is remarkable is how O'Neil does all this within the confines of a slim volume. The audience is clearly the north side of the border and O'Neil does take us aside every now and then to remind Americans of the promise of Mexico and how it's success could very well mean our continued success. There are, naturally, challenges. There is the immigration issue, security and drugs. Immigration and security are handled somewhat deftly but on the drug issue she punts in a way. O'Neil dismisses legalization on the US side, noting the high social costs without considering what should stop Mexicans from doing the same. She also cops out stating that even if drugs were legal that gangs would just move on with human trafficking, extortion and kidnapping. True but those are high risk/high reward prospects dealing with live cargo...cargo that could fight or talk back. Drugs are much more easier to move. Honestly to even belabor the point is unfair. It is that in such an exceptional book that a giving quick shrift to a topic just sticks out.
On the trade side O'Neil points out how NAFTA actually helped save US jobs. On immigration, again she offers unique takes on how the US was able to win.
Considering this is a CFR book I was struck by what a good read it was in terms of prose. There is a lack of technical turgid writing. O'Neil has written a gem. It deserves a wide audience.
On the trade side O'Neil points out how NAFTA actually helped save US jobs. On immigration, again she offers unique takes on how the US was able to win.
Considering this is a CFR book I was struck by what a good read it was in terms of prose. There is a lack of technical turgid writing. O'Neil has written a gem. It deserves a wide audience.
December 5, 2015
The title of O'Neil's book is meant to correct the perception promoted by Alan Riding of Mexico and the United States as "distant neighbors."
O'Neill occasionally pokes fun at the Hermes silk tie elites of Mexico City and yet it is clear that she surrounds herself with this very group. Her research was supported in part by the Mexican Businessmen's Council and her acknowledgement a section is a who's who of the (very wealthy) Mexican elite.
She frequently stresses the importance of civil society as a force to hold government institutions to account, but we are not introduced to their work with the exception of a few market-oriented think tanks.
Strange that there was no mention of the Walmart bribery case and no call for US business to abide by the foreign corrupt practices act.
O'Neill occasionally pokes fun at the Hermes silk tie elites of Mexico City and yet it is clear that she surrounds herself with this very group. Her research was supported in part by the Mexican Businessmen's Council and her acknowledgement a section is a who's who of the (very wealthy) Mexican elite.
She frequently stresses the importance of civil society as a force to hold government institutions to account, but we are not introduced to their work with the exception of a few market-oriented think tanks.
Strange that there was no mention of the Walmart bribery case and no call for US business to abide by the foreign corrupt practices act.
May 8, 2017
Reread this for Diplomacy Book Club. My mini-review from December 27, 2014 stands:
This would be a great book to give to someone who asked "Why should the United States care about Mexico, today?" Ms. O'Neil covers the recent history of and issues related to immigration, the growth of democracy post-PRI, economics and security. The book is a well-rounded argument about why we should improve our diplomatic/political/economic/security relations with Mexico. I did not enjoy how she described the problems caused by our immigration laws, but she did do a thorough job of describing all the ways our two countries could benefit from working together more pro-actively.
This would be a great book to give to someone who asked "Why should the United States care about Mexico, today?" Ms. O'Neil covers the recent history of and issues related to immigration, the growth of democracy post-PRI, economics and security. The book is a well-rounded argument about why we should improve our diplomatic/political/economic/security relations with Mexico. I did not enjoy how she described the problems caused by our immigration laws, but she did do a thorough job of describing all the ways our two countries could benefit from working together more pro-actively.
December 31, 2013
This is a well-written, thorough, and very accessible book about the state of US-Mexican relations. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a better understanding of the deep, complex, and very important relationship between the US and Mexico.
It is a pretty quick read and it is written with a general audience in mind.
Topics include: immigration, security, and democratization.
It is a pretty quick read and it is written with a general audience in mind.
Topics include: immigration, security, and democratization.
October 24, 2014
Really more of a 3.5 than a 3. A short but well written book on the development of US-Mexico relations, with suggestions for a path forward. Would highly recommend for anybody interested in learning more or wants to stay up to date on what's going on
March 7, 2013
Read the pre-release version. Great new book on modern Mexico and the future of US-Mexico relations.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews