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Federal Police Opened Fire On Protestors In Oaxaca And No One Is Talking About It

By June 20, 2016 at 4:31 pm

While you were lamenting Mexico’s humiliating 0-7 loss to Chile in the Copa America quarterfinals, sh*t was going down in Oaxaca, Mexico. On Sunday, confrontations between a teacher’s union and police — both federal and state — resulted in nine people killed, at least 100 injured, and 22 missing people.


A teacher’s union in Oaxaca set up multiple highway blockades as a protest.

Credit: @adn_sureste/Twitter

Sunday’s confrontations were the violent climax of seven days of demonstrations by the National Coordinator of Education Workers (Coordinadora Nacional de Trabajadores de la Educación/CNTE). The teacher’s union has been protesting education reform that would change the way they are evaluated, as well as the arrest of two of its leaders for alleged money laundering.  That protest took the form of blocking major highways connecting Oaxaca to Mexico City. In some instances, the roads were blocked by passenger buses set on fire.


Federal and state police were called in to shut things down. That only made things worse.

Credit: @elmundoes/Twitter

It’s still unclear which side started the confrontation, but the presence of law enforcement made a volatile situation even worse. According to the Mexican federal police, the protestors began attacking first.


The protestors allegedly lobbed Molotov cocktails at police.

Credit: @Quadratinoaxaca/Twitter

The government claimed that its officers were unarmed. The evidence proved otherwise. Here are several images…

Credit: @reformanacional/Twitter

And here is video of the confrontation.

Credit: Animal Politico/YouTube

As many as 9 people have been killed, with hundreds others injured and 22 people missing.

Credit: @nss_oaxaca/Twitter

Credit:MexicAnarchist/Twitter

There have been conflicting reports over the number of casualties. Reuters has the body count at six. Other unconfirmed reports put that figure at 9:

Credit: @Ruantifa/Twitter

The Oaxacan clashes have received very little media attention, leading various people, including Mexican director Guillermo del Toro, to tweet out their frustration.

Credit: @RealGDT/Twitter

Credit: @RealGDT/Twitter

Credit: @Khanoisseur/Twitter

The violent clash has spurned even more protests in Oaxaca…

Credit: @MexicAnarchist/Twitter

… and in Mexico City, where people have called for the resignation of Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto.

Credit: MexicAnarchist/Twitter

The Oaxacan violence is only the latest public relations nightmare for the Mexican President. People are still demanding answers for the 2014 disappearance of 43 students.


READ: A Year Has Passed Since the Ayotzinapa 43 Went Missing, and These People Are Still Marching the Streets of Mexico

Do you think the media should do a better job at covering what’s going on in Mexico? Don’t forget to click the share button if you agree.

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This Indigenous Village In Mexico Trains Their Children As Soldiers To Combat Gang Violence

Things That Matter

This Indigenous Village In Mexico Trains Their Children As Soldiers To Combat Gang Violence

By May 12, 2021 at 10:13 pm
BY  | May 12, 2021 AT 10:13 pm
via Getty Images

In the town of Ayahualtempa, Mexico, in the state of Guerrero, reporters see a shocking image whenever they visit. Children armed with guns, trained to defend themselves. The disturbing scene is meant to be shocking. The village of Ayahualtempa is under constant attack. A prominent heroin “corridor”, they are the victims of violence and carnage at the hands of gangsters and the cartel.

In order to gain the Mexican government’s attention, the Ayahualtempa villagers dress their children up as soldiers. Then, they invite the media in.

Ayahualtempa
via Getty Images

When reporters arrive, the children of Ayahualtempa dutifully line up and put on a performance. They march, they show how they would shoot a gun from one knee, or from flat on their bellies. They tell reporters that their mock-violent performance is “so the president sees us and helps us,” as a 12-year-old child named Valentín told the Associated Press.

Because the Mexican government doesn’t protect Ayahualtempa, the display of child soldiers is a form of protest for the small indigenous village. The people of this remote region of Guerrero want protection from the National Guard, and financial help for widows and orphans who have been made so from organized crime.

The villagers don’t trust local authorities, and for good reason. Guerrera is the Mexican state in which 43 teaching students were abducted and killed in an event that is known as the “Iguala mass kidnapping”. Authorities arrested 80 suspects in connection to the event. 44 of them were police officers, working in conjunction with a network of cartels.

Although the demonstrations function largely as a publicity stunt, violence is very much a part of these children’s lives.

via Getty Images

Parents train their children to walk to school with loaded guns, ready to defend themselves against violent gangsters.

The attention-grabbing antics have, to some extent, worked. On one occasion, the government donated some housing material. On another, benefactors gave the community’s orphans and widows scholarships and houses. But as soon as the periodic media storms die down, the federal government continues pretending Ayahualtempa doesn’t exist.

The hypocrisy of the government’s response is frustrating to many. “We’ve normalized that these children don’t eat, are illiterate, are farm workers. We’re used to the Indians dying young, but, ‘How dare they arm them!’” said local human rights activist Abel Barrera to the AP, with a heavy dose of sarcasm.

As for now, until the government moves to protect the community, they say they will continue their demonstrations. “They see that the issue of the children is effective for making people take notice and they think: If that’s what works, we’ll have to keep doing it,” said Barrera.

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cartelDrug CartelsIndigenous PeopleMexico

Spanish Voiceover Actress For Jessie From Pokémon Dies And Fans Mourn

Entertainment

Spanish Voiceover Actress For Jessie From Pokémon Dies And Fans Mourn

By May 11, 2021 at 12:34 pm
BY  | May 11, 2021 AT 12:34 pm

Pokémon fans in Latin America are mourning the death of Diana Pérez, the Spanish-language voice of Jessie of Pokémon’s Team Rocket. The voice actress has been voicing the character since 1997.

Diana Pérez, the voice actress of Team Rocket’s Jessie, died at 51.

Lalo Garza, a famed voice actor in Mexico, confirmed the death of the Pokémon voice actress.

“Rest in peace Diana Pérez, a strong, cultured, intelligent, and very talented woman. You are good now, friend. Nothing hurts anymore. Have a good trip,” reads the tweet.

Pérez has been a staple in the Spanish-language Pokémon fandom for decades.

Pérez was more than just he voice of Jessie. The voice actress was the voice of multiple anime characters including Luffy in One Piece and Kagura in Inuyasha. In recent years, Pérez had started branching out to directing, producing, and other branches in the entertainment industry.

Pérez’s death is being mourned by Pokémon fans outside of the Spanish-language fandom.

Sarah Natochenny is the English voice of Ash Ketchum in the Pokémon series, Jessie’s mortal enemy. The death of Pérez has impacted the larger Pokémon community. Pérez was a pivotal part of the Latin American Pokémon community for decades and her loss has devastated fans.

Descansa en paz, Diana.

There have been no plans announced for a replacement to voice Team Rocket’s Jessie. No official cause of death has been released either. Our hearts and thoughts go out to Pérez’s family and the greater Pokémon community mourning her passing.

READ: I Was Today Years Old When I Found Out This Mexican Pokémon

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DeathLatin AmericaMexicopokemon