A travel influencer declared that Albuquerque, New Mexico owns the ‘most frightful neighborhood in America’ after he was stunned by what he witnessed on a trip there.
YouTuber Nick Johnson, who has built a following of over 1.1 million subscribers by visiting the most squalid areas of the country, shared his astonishment during a visit to Albuquerque’s squalid International District.
Known as ‘The War Zone’ by locals, the area is littered with homeless encampments and open-air drug taking.
‘Oh my god, oh my god,’ Johnson said to himself as he filmed the streets filled with gangs, homeless people and trash.
The district’s decline into one of the worst areas in the nation stands in stark contrast to the dazzling beauty of New Mexico’s many natural attractions, including White Sands National Park.
New Mexico, nicknamed the Land of Enchantment, is no slouch when it comes to cities either, with Santa Fe famed for its gorgeous Pueblo-Spanish Revival architecture.
But while scenic areas of the state flourish, Albuquerque – the most populated city in New Mexico – has struggled as fentanyl trafficking floods over the nearby border with Mexico.
Johnson said he visited the city after being urged to do so by his followers, and said soon after arriving that he couldn’t believe the state of the area.
The International District in Albuquerque, New Mexico has been dubbed the ‘most frightful neighborhood in America’ by a travel influencer who was stunned by the area
Known as ‘The War Zone’ by locals, the area is littered with homeless encampments and open-air drug taking
Johnson said that one of the reasons Albuquerque has seen such a surge in vagrancy in recent years has been due to a parallel rise in other hubs such as Los Angeles and Austin, Texas.
He said that as those cities’ streets fill up, homeless people have looked elsewhere.
‘It’s an untapped market,’ he said. ‘There’s a lot less competition out here, and its warm, and they give them what they need.’
After trailing through the area and witnessing open-air drug taking, camps full of passed out people and gangs loitering on streets, Johnson asked locals why city officials put up with the situation.
‘I don’t think they care,’ local resident Sam Elliot said.
‘I think it’s kind of like population control… out of sight, out of mind. Why go stir it up? For what?’
Johnson said he was told almost everyone in the International District had a gun, to which Elliot responded: ‘If you don’t have one, you’re crazy.’
Albuquerque has its own stunning natural beauty, such as this vista of the Sandia Mountains. But the small city’s International District is anything but picturesque
The district’s decline into one of the worst areas in the nation stands in stark contrast to nicer areas of New Mexico, such as the picturesque White Sands National Park (pictured)
Johnson said he visited the city after being urged to do so by his followers, and said soon after arriving that he couldn’t believe the state of the area as it was filled with homeless people and drug taking
After filming the area’s squalid conditions, Johnson bluntly said: ‘You can’t save any of the people I witnessed on the streets of Albuquerque that day’
In a statement to the Santa Fe New Mexican, Johnson reflected on his experience in the state and said he hoped his video could deter others from falling into the same life as those he filmed on the streets.
‘You can’t save any of the people I witnessed on the streets of Albuquerque that day,’ he said.
‘But, hopefully every kid growing up in New Mexico watches this video and it scares them into never wanting to live their lives like that. This video should be required viewing for high school kids in your state.’
State Senator Nicole Tobiassen told the outlet that Johnson’s video was a frightful reminder of her own experience in the International District.
She recalled: ‘There was someone that we knew that got an apartment a few years ago in that district, and we went to help them move.
‘When we got there, I was like, ‘What?’ I was petrified. I’m like, ‘I can’t believe that you’re going to live here.’ There were, in the middle of the day, drugged-out people walking in the middle of the street, like where cars should be, walking in the middle of the street with shopping carts,’ she said.
‘There were people urinating and defecating in the street. That was a few years ago, and it’s worse now.’
Albuquerque has become the ‘center for the drug trade’, Johnson remarked, because it is near to the Mexican border and is intersected by Interstates 25 and 40
Albuquerque has become the ‘center for the drug trade’, Johnson remarked, because it is near to the Mexican border and is intersected by Interstates 25 and 40.
‘That’s part of the problem,’ he said. ‘They come here and cut the drugs, split it up, bag it up and then distribute it off to the rest of the country.’
The same drugs that have caused Albuquerque to fall into such disrepair have gone on to ravage numerous cities across the US, sparking a homelessness crisis that continues to plague cities and ruin communities.
