The nightmare never seems to end, and clear solutions are difficult to imagine when the system that should be there to protect you sees you as a threat. The oppression towards the Mexican people is vastly recognized throughout the country with a large amount of self-awareness. Not only are the people feeling the pressure from the different cartels and gang members throughout the different cities, but also from police and government officials are running the country. Corruption within the system has led to many tragedies that have been attempted to stay under the rug but escaped creating mass hysteria. Sex trafficking, women’s violence, and murders against student protestors have been recent issues that have not been resolved.
The article, Los niños de Alcapulco, begins with the story of an eight-year-old boy who was given the name “chupi chupi” which translates slurp slurp (Niña). The boy lives in the region of Unidos por Guerrero, located in the city of Juarez, where he lives poorly without shoes and dirt all over him. His father is a drug dealer, and the boy also helps him steal drugs for the father to consume. The father sends the boy and his three brothers to “baby showers,” where each is being prostituted for money (Niña). Children near beaches where tourists often visit are threatened and taken to hotels. The Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development ranked Mexico in child sexual abuse, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children revealed that Mexico ranks first as an issuer of child pornography and the End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes (ECPAT) Association ranked Mexico as the second in making and distributing child pornography to other countries in Latin America (Niña). People are now attempting to gravitate more attention to the situation, but tackling these problems cost many people’s lives. The owners of these businesses state that the police officers would just accept a bribe and let them escape. Different journalists started to listen to other people’s testimonies and bring light to the situation. Feminist and journalist Lydia Cacho wrote a book called Los Demonios de Eden, describing the business, the people involved, who defended them, and the famous politicians involved. Her book was banned, and she got arrested for her book exposure as she exposed mayors and governors such as Mario Marin, former governor of Puebla (Niña).
The abuse continues with the murders of students against the government. On September 26, 2014, college students from the city of Ayotzinapa were detained and murdered by the municipal police. The students were on their way to Mexico City to attend a march in a commercial bus when they were stopped by the police and were brutalized; shortly after, 43 students were taken away and disappeared. The bodies were not found but were cremated at the Cocula garbage dump and thrown away at a river nearby (Dawson 351). There were a total of 80 arrests, with 43 of them being police officers, but the public believed justice was not served (Dawson 351). About 60,000 to 120,000 protestors marched with the hashtag #yamecansé after attorney general Jesus Murillo Karam, stated the case was solved (Dawson 351). The case set an example for students who had had enough of corruption. Numerous times in the past, students were murdered, such as in the massacre of Tlatelolco, which occurred in 1968. However, with the help of social media, the new wave of protests helped spread the news of how drastic the tragedy was, gaining more support and followers.
Bibliography
Dawson, A. (2022). Latin America since Independence: A History with Primary Sources (3rd ed.). Routledge. https://doi-org.remote.baruch.cuny.edu/10.4324/9781003146094
Niña de Rivera, Saskia. “Los Niños De Acapulco.” El Universal, 10 Feb. 2021, https://www.eluniversal.com.mx/opinion/saskia-nino-de-rivera-cover/los-ninos-de-acapulco?utm_source=web&utm_medium=social_buttons&utm_campaign=social_sharing&utm_content=copy_link.