Remembering Tlatelolco. October 2, 1968–50 years ago.
By Christie Seeley published in Vallarta Tribune
vallartasounds.com
I remember the date well as many of my Mexican friends were proudly awaiting the 1968 Olympic Games to be held in Mexico City in just 10 days. Most Mexicans were thrilled to be hosting the event that would put them among the prestigious countries that had been selected to host the games over so many years.
This was a period of unrest worldwide and In Mexico as in other countries students, professors, workers and other groups were feeling unsettled. Reflecting on the political climate of the time in the US we recall that Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy were assassinated in April and June of that year. At the same time huge demonstrations took place in Paris and many parts of the world over workers wages, civil rights and many other issues.
Peaceful demonstrations calling for greater democracy were planned in Mexico City for early October. An over zealous government fearing a bad impression at the games decided to take proactive measures and the result was a tragic attack on the demonstrators. On October 2, 1968, students, professors, parents and children were herded by military tanks and police into the Plaza of Three Cultures in the neighborhood of Tlatelolco, Mexico City where they opened fire resulting in the death of over 300 people and the arrest of thousands. The government claimed students had opened fire on the troops.
At the time many blamed Luis Echeverría, Interior Secretary in charge of police and internal security under President Gustavo Díaz Ordaz. (Two years later Luis Echeverría became the 50th president of Mexico.) 30 years after the event Echeverría spoke out to CNN saying he had nothing to do with the decision making the day of the tragedy and the order to open fire could only have come from President Díaz Ordaz. He also maintained that indeed there was no firing of arms on the part of the demonstrators as the government had claimed. The majority of the demonstrators, he said, were sons and daughters of workers, not provocateurs.
Just as in the case of the 43 students who were disappeared in 2014 from Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers College in Iguala, Guererro as they were on their way to commemorate the 1968 Tlatelolco Massacre, there has been no official consensus on the identity of those actually responsible (although popular consensus is that both were caused by some level of government oppression with, in the case of Ayotzinapa, collusion by police and local officials). There is no doubt that both incidents have had a lasting effect on Mexican society.
Music has always had a strong voice reflecting the mood of a period. The music that accompanied the student movement of the late 60’s called “música de protesta” ( protest music) in Latín America was that of voices like Oscar Chavez in Mexico, Violeta Parra and Victor Jara in Chile, Joan Baez and Bob Dylan in the United States and Leonard Cohen in Canada. They all spoke out for the downtrodden and disadvantaged with their music while at the same time the Beatles’ “Hey Jude” gave the people hope. This music, like the corridas of the Mexican Revolution (ballads of the revolution) is still very much with us and the themes are carried on by groups like Cafe Tacvba, Manu Chao, Los Tigres del Norte and many others today.
These tragic events are not unique to the country of Mexico. They certainly underscore the importance of people’s right to be free to express their needs and concerns without fear of violence.
Christie Seeley
Vallartasounds.com
By Christie Seeley published in Vallarta Tribune
vallartasounds.com
I remember the date well as many of my Mexican friends were proudly awaiting the 1968 Olympic Games to be held in Mexico City in just 10 days. Most Mexicans were thrilled to be hosting the event that would put them among the prestigious countries that had been selected to host the games over so many years.
This was a period of unrest worldwide and In Mexico as in other countries students, professors, workers and other groups were feeling unsettled. Reflecting on the political climate of the time in the US we recall that Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy were assassinated in April and June of that year. At the same time huge demonstrations took place in Paris and many parts of the world over workers wages, civil rights and many other issues.
Peaceful demonstrations calling for greater democracy were planned in Mexico City for early October. An over zealous government fearing a bad impression at the games decided to take proactive measures and the result was a tragic attack on the demonstrators. On October 2, 1968, students, professors, parents and children were herded by military tanks and police into the Plaza of Three Cultures in the neighborhood of Tlatelolco, Mexico City where they opened fire resulting in the death of over 300 people and the arrest of thousands. The government claimed students had opened fire on the troops.
At the time many blamed Luis Echeverría, Interior Secretary in charge of police and internal security under President Gustavo Díaz Ordaz. (Two years later Luis Echeverría became the 50th president of Mexico.) 30 years after the event Echeverría spoke out to CNN saying he had nothing to do with the decision making the day of the tragedy and the order to open fire could only have come from President Díaz Ordaz. He also maintained that indeed there was no firing of arms on the part of the demonstrators as the government had claimed. The majority of the demonstrators, he said, were sons and daughters of workers, not provocateurs.
Just as in the case of the 43 students who were disappeared in 2014 from Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers College in Iguala, Guererro as they were on their way to commemorate the 1968 Tlatelolco Massacre, there has been no official consensus on the identity of those actually responsible (although popular consensus is that both were caused by some level of government oppression with, in the case of Ayotzinapa, collusion by police and local officials). There is no doubt that both incidents have had a lasting effect on Mexican society.
Music has always had a strong voice reflecting the mood of a period. The music that accompanied the student movement of the late 60’s called “música de protesta” ( protest music) in Latín America was that of voices like Oscar Chavez in Mexico, Violeta Parra and Victor Jara in Chile, Joan Baez and Bob Dylan in the United States and Leonard Cohen in Canada. They all spoke out for the downtrodden and disadvantaged with their music while at the same time the Beatles’ “Hey Jude” gave the people hope. This music, like the corridas of the Mexican Revolution (ballads of the revolution) is still very much with us and the themes are carried on by groups like Cafe Tacvba, Manu Chao, Los Tigres del Norte and many others today.
These tragic events are not unique to the country of Mexico. They certainly underscore the importance of people’s right to be free to express their needs and concerns without fear of violence.
Christie Seeley
Vallartasounds.com