#NOSFALTAN43 Favorite 

On December 2014 I've been artist in residence at MANY MINI RESIDENCY a short-term residency program organized by Sarrita Hunn and Ryan Thayer and hosted by GYB BYG in Mexico City. During my 12 hour residency I’ve worked on the case of the 43 students from Normal Rural de Ayotzinapa who went missing while in the custody of Iguala’s police force in September 2014.

I’ve spent half part of the day talking on Skype with Sarrita and Ryan about social justice and the over-militarization of local police departments, both in Mexico and the US. We have been analyzing the role of street protests and demonstrations and the different way they can be organized, while focusing on the role that direct action and activism can play in this framework. We then talked about human rights violations in US, UK, India, Israel, Russia and Mexico.

During the second part of the day I’ve been working in my studio at Flux Factory (New York) on a small book project with portraits of the 43 students desaparecidos. I investigated the meaning of the word “desaparecido”, that as we all know it’s not just about missing individuals, but it involves the State. According to Wikipedia the forced disappearance “occurs when a person is secretly abducted or imprisoned by a State or political organization or by a third party with the authorization, support, or acquiescence of a State or political organization, followed by a refusal to acknowledge the person’s fate and whereabouts, with the intent of placing the victim outside the protection of the law.” Another interesting definition of the word is coming from the Oxford dictionary that states that it refers to “(Especially in South America), a person who has disappeared, presumed killed by members of the armed services or the police”).

Key words in this framework are: State, political organization, armed services and police. As far as I’m concern all this words involve serving a specific community by respecting and protecting human dignity and maintain and uphold the human rights of all persons. Is that what it’s happening? No. This words become a problem just in societies that are so judgmental, racist and corrupt that don’t have respect for human rights anymore.

That’s why people both in the US and in Mexico should stand up for human rights.

That’s why #ayotzinapasomostodos.

Because these are global problems and everyone should feel legitimate to stand up against such horrible violations.

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You can download the pdf of the book #NOSFALTAN43 for free at http://www.instituteforautonomouspractices.org/manymini/mexicocity/wp-co...