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An Oral History of the Attacks Against the Students of Ayotzinapa: City Lights

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Published in I Couldn T Even Imagine That They Would Kill Us: An Oral History Of The Attacks Against The Students Of Ayotzinapa (City Lights Open Media)

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On the night of September 26, 2014, a group of 43 students from the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers' College in Mexico were attacked by police and gunmen in the city of Iguala. Six people were killed, and the students were forcibly disappeared. The Mexican government's investigation into the incident was widely criticized as being incomplete and inaccurate, and the case remains unsolved.

This oral history, compiled by the human rights organization Centro Prodh, tells the story of the attacks from the perspective of the students who survived.

I Couldn't Even Imagine That They Would Kill Us: An Oral History of the Attacks Against the Students of Ayotzinapa (City Lights Open Media)

by John Gibler

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Language	:	English
File size	:	1979 KB
Text-to-Speech	:	Enabled
Screen Reader	:	Supported
Enhanced typesetting	:	Enabled
Word Wise	:	Enabled
Print length	:	266 pages

The Events of September 26, 2014

On the evening of September 26, 2014, a group of 43 students from the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers' College boarded buses in the city of Iguala. They were on their way to a protest in Mexico City. The students had been planning the protest for months, and they were hoping to raise awareness about the poor conditions at their school. The students were also planning to demand the release of two of their classmates who had been arrested earlier that day.

As the buses approached Iguala, they were stopped by police. The police ordered the students to get off the buses and line up. The students complied, and the police began to search them. The police then ordered the students to get back on the buses. As the students were getting back on the buses, they were attacked by gunmen. The gunmen opened fire on the students, and six people were killed. The students who survived were forced to hide in the surrounding fields.

The gunmen then left the scene, and the police returned. The police began to search for the surviving students. The students who were hiding in the fields were eventually found by the police and taken into custody.

The Aftermath of the Attacks

The attacks against the students of Ayotzinapa shocked Mexico and the world. The Mexican government launched an investigation into the incident, but the investigation was widely criticized as being incomplete and inaccurate. The government's investigation concluded that the students had been killed by a drug cartel, but this was based on flimsy evidence. The government's investigation also failed to identify the gunmen who carried out the attacks.

The Ayotzinapa Oral History Project

The Ayotzinapa Oral History Project was launched in 2015 by the human rights organization Centro Prodh. The goal of the project is to document the experiences of the students who survived the attacks of September 26, 2014. The project has interviewed dozens of students, and their testimonies have been compiled into a book, Ayotzinapa: An Oral History of the Attacks.

The Ayotzinapa Oral History Project is an important step towards ensuring that the truth about the attacks is known. The testimonies of the students provide a firsthand account of what happened that night, and they challenge the government's official narrative. The project also provides a platform for the students to share their stories and to demand justice for their classmates who were killed.

The attacks against the students of Ayotzinapa were a tragedy. Six people were killed, and 43 students were forcibly disappeared. The Mexican government's investigation into the incident was widely criticized as being incomplete and inaccurate, and the case remains unsolved. The Ayotzinapa Oral History Project is an important step towards ensuring that the truth about the attacks is known. The testimonies of the students provide a firsthand account of what happened that night, and they challenge the government's official narrative. The project also provides a platform for the students to share their stories and to demand justice for their classmates who were killed.

The families of the missing students have continued to demand justice for their children. They have organized protests and demonstrations, and they have met with government officials. The families have also filed lawsuits against the Mexican government. The families have not given up hope that their children will be found alive, and they are determined to continue fighting for justice.

Donate to the Ayotzinapa Oral History Project

The Ayotzinapa Oral History Project is a non-profit organization. We rely on donations to fund our work. Your donation will help us to continue to document the experiences of the students who survived the attacks of September 26, 2014, and to demand justice for their classmates who were killed.

Thank you for your support.