At Half Mast

Yesterday, I was in downtown Mexico City.  As I passed the Zócalo, I saw that the enormous Mexican flag on the plaza was at half mast.

It was the anniversary of the Massacre of Tlatelolco.  In 1968 on this day, thousands of student protestors along with bystanders had gathered peacefully at the Plaza of Three Cultures in the Mexico City district of Tlatelolco.  The police and military fired upon them.  The exact death toll is uncertain, but probably between 300 and 400 people died.

Each year there are student marches on October 2nd to commemorate the massacre.  I had left the Zócalo long before the demonstrators had arrived at the plaza.  However, because major streets were going to be blocked by the marchers, service on the Metrobus was suspended on several lines.  I had to walk some distance before I was able to take a bus back to the apartment.

I read today that around six thousand people participated in the march.  For the most part it was peaceful, but there was a small group of perhaps 150 malcontents who were smashing windows, spraying graffiti on buildings, and throwing firecrackers at police.