| Tlatelolco massacre | |
|---|---|
| Part of the Mexican Movement of 1968 and the Mexican Dirty War | |
 Plaza de las Tres Culturas, October 2, 1968. | |
| Location | Plaza de las Tres Culturas, Mexico City, Mexico |
| Coordinates | 19°27′4″N 99°08′14″W / 19.45111°N 99.13722°W |
| Date | October 2, 1968 c. 6:15 p.m. (UTC−6) |
Attack type | Massacre |
| Deaths | 350–500 |
| Injured | +1000 |
The Tlatelolco massacre (Spanish: La Masacre de Tlatelolco) was a military massacre committed by the Mexican Armed Forces against the students of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), the National Polytechnic Institute (IPN), and other universities in Mexico.
The massacre followed a series of large demonstrations called the Mexican Movement of 1968 and is considered part of the Mexican Dirty War, when the U.S.-backed Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) government violently repressed political and social opposition. The event occurred ten days before the opening ceremony of the 1968 Summer Olympics, which were carried out normally.
On October 2, 1968 in the Tlatelolco section of Mexico City, the Mexican Armed Forces opened fire on a group of unarmed civilians in the Plaza de las Tres Culturas who were protesting the upcoming Olympics. The Mexican government and media claimed that the Armed Forces had been provoked by protesters shooting at them,[1] but government documents made public since 2000 suggest that snipers had been employed by the government.
The number of deaths resulting from the event is disputed. According to U.S. national security archives, American analyst Kate Doyle documented the deaths of 44 people;[2] however, estimates of the actual death toll range from 300 to 400, with eyewitnesses reporting hundreds dead.[3][4][5][6][7][8] Additionally, the head of the Federal Directorate of Security reported that 1,345 people were arrested.[9]
- ^ Kara Michelle Borden, Mexico '68: An Analysis of the Tlatelolco Massacre and its Legacy, University of Oregon thesis, p. 3.
- ^ "National Security Archive - 30+ Years of Freedom of Information Action". www.gwu.edu.
- ^ "Mexico '68". National Public Radio. Retrieved July 27, 2010.
- ^ "Memories of Massacre in Mexico". Washington Post. February 14, 2002. p. A21.
- ^ "Mexican leaders vow to open books on massacre". The Miami Herald. October 3, 2001.
- ^ "Unveiling A Hidden Massacre: Mexico Sets Honors For 300 Slain in '68". The Washington Post. October 2, 1998.
- ^ Joe Richman; Anayansi Diaz-Cortes (December 1, 2008). "Mexico's 1968 Massacre: What Really Happened?". NPR. Retrieved July 27, 2010.
- ^ "The most terrifying night of my life". BBC News. October 2, 2008. Retrieved July 27, 2010.
"Human rights groups and foreign journalists have put the number of dead at around 300." - ^ Fernando Gutiérrez Barrios, "PROBLEMA ESTUDIANTIL", October 3, 1968, in ADFS, Exp. 11-4-68, L-44, H-292.