Chinese Firm To Build Friendship Wall between Mexico and US

1 April 2012, Great Barrington, Massachusetts—While construction slows in China, new opportunities for foreign investment and international cooperation beckon. The Northeastern Friendship Construction and Heavy Industry Transportation and Advertising Company (NFCHITAC), a division of National Pacific Patriotic People’s Southern Construction, Investing, Securities, and Commercial Services Group (NPPPSCISCSG), has been selected for the construction of what is expected to be the largest human-made object on the planet: a twenty-first-century “Great Wall” between the United States and Mexico. Berkshire Publishing Group will produce a trilingual television series, Facebook apps, mobile games, educational videos, and other high-quality content across many platforms to raise awareness and create engagement.

China’s Great Wall (Chángchéng) known as La Gran Muralla in Spanish, stretches across China and was built in pieces over the course of centuries, starting as early as the Warring States period (475–221 BCE). The Berkshire Encyclopedia of China article explains that, “these walls played a role in defending China from incursion by northern steppe peoples, particularly the Mongols.” The Ming-dynasty portion is estimated at 8851 kilometers (5,500 miles), making it more than twice the length of the new Friendship Wall (Yuyìchéng ). One of the project’s most enthusiastic proponents has been presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich, who in a statement said, “I look forward to being able to see the Friendship Wall from the President Gingrich Lunar Base in 2018.”

The building of a “Great Wall” between the United States and Mexico is supported by anti-immigration activists and politicians, but the awarding of the project to a Chinese firm has introduced a new controversy to current discussions of immigration policy. Some argue that instead of providing jobs for US construction workers many of the jobs are likely to go to Chinese laborers. The project plans call for recruitment from the United States and Mexico, and US government representatives insist that the bid from NFCHITAC was unassailable. The total project cost will be financed by Chinese backers, and the Friendship Wall will be complete in five years. The project includes a significant tourist component, with “commune” villages for camping similar to those along China’s Great Wall, and the wall itself will be designed as a long-distance walking route.

The preliminary design, say architects, is highly reminiscent of Maya Lin’s design for the Vietnam Memorial, while for some observers it evokes a horizontal version of the monolith in 2001: a Space Odyssey. Alamo-style stucco was, however, deemed impractical.

As another part of the revisioning of this part of North America, the Rio Grande (Great River) will be renamed at the opening ceremonies as the People’s River (Rénmínjing ). A swimming event echoing Mao Zedong’s famous 1966 crossing of the Yangzi River is also being discussed. The initial plan calls for participation by leaders from the United States, Mexico, and China, and other countries may be invited to join. The governor of Texas is expected to take a major role. Former president George W. Bush, who was governor of Texas and whose father was chief of the Liaison Office to the People’s Republic of China, has already signaled his willingness to join the swim. For more information on this monumental project go to NFCHITAC’s official project website.

Berkshire Publishing Group and Berkshire Patriotic Committee for Press, Publications, and Futuristic Media Projects
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