In a new ad that is rapidly making the rounds on the internet, a Mexican airline cleverly makes fun of the U.S. border wall debate and Americans’ xenophobic anti-Mexican sentiment—by offering discounts based on customers’ Mexican ancestry.
In the ad, AeroMexico begins by pointing out that Mexico’s top destination is the U.S., but the same is not true in reverse. So, to find out why, they travel to a “typical American town” in Texas and ask people if they’d like to go to Mexico. The answer is a resounding no.
“Let me stay here in peace, and let those folks stay on their side of the border,” one cowboy-hat wearing elderly man snarls.
“So how do we increase U.S.A. flights to Mexico if a big part of Americans do not like Mexico?” the announcer asks.
In the next segment, amidst breathtaking footage of Mexican landscapes, the ad points out that the long history of Mexican immigration to the U.S. means that lots of Americans have Mexican DNA, but might not know it. So they give people DNA tests and offer discounts equivalent to their percentage of Mexican ancestry.
“The more Mexican they are, the more discount they get,” the announcer says.
The fun really begins when people are told how Mexican they are.
“Bullshit. That’s bullshit,” says a bearded man who looks like he knows his way around a honky tonk when they reveal he’s roughly one-fifth Mexican.
Then they tell him about the discount.
“Come on. Seriously? Is that for real? So what if I want to take my wife?” he says with a look. AeroMexico’s troll game kicks into high gear when they reveal the promotional tagline: “Innerdiscounts. There are no borders within us.”
The ad was met with resounding applause on Twitter.
https://twitter.com/ksieff/status/1085933954446905351
https://twitter.com/MuslimIQ/status/1086027676035567618
This Aeromexico ad: When marketing and trolling collide. pic.twitter.com/L22mszPZjo
— this place is hell (@OkayWordsByJoel) January 17, 2019
.@Aeromexico wins Troll of the Month award. Hands down. pic.twitter.com/e9vrpXoUNh
— ian bremmer (@ianbremmer) January 17, 2019
More like troll of the tear.
