Museum as Hub

Hub Notes: The Hidden Massacre, 3/6/08

A woman who had lived in Tlatelolco as an exchange student during the time of the 1968 massacre revealed to me an even more horrifying aspect of the occurrence: that the Mexican government successfully kept it a secret for months. She was an anthropology student in Mexico City and did not even hear about the grave extent of the situation until months later when she returned to the US and read it in the New York Times. She told me that the primary reason it surfaced in the international media was because a journalist from Le Monde was murdered in the massacre; this demanded some investigation. She believes that had it not been for the pressure of the international community, the 400-1000 lives of the students/protesters and the cover up by the Mexican government would still be out of the public eye. This discussion led us to current concerns with media and the Iraq war and the significance of captured investigative journalists for developing an image of war conditions. She was thankful that the Museum As Hub was open to bringing these issues to light and allowing for such a politicized environment.

-Lena Imamura