The electoral campaigns are underway in Mexico as the country is soon to "democratically" elect their new governing president. With a history of corrupt campaigns and presidential terms in their country, college students have decided to speak out against one of the candidates who they feel has suspicious affiliations. Students from the Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City organized a march against more right conservative candidate Enrique Pena Nieto. Pena Nieto is running with the Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI) and is accused of being unfairly favored by media companies like Televisa.
Students along with unions and other organizations took the streets this past weekend with the help of social media such as twitter and youtube. Students created youtube videos to help promote the march and also popularized #MarchaYoSoy132 or I am the 132 March on twitter. Videos from the march continue to be uploaded to youtube as students continue to voice their thoughts on the corrupt campaigns run by politicians and media systems. Students are more supportive of Left candidate Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador also known as AMLO who is currently behind Pena Nieto in votes.
This kind of social media usage has not been uncommon by college students. Last year students organized a massive demonstration in Madrid's Plaza del Sol as they spoke out against the low job rates and bad economy. Students in Spain continue to rely on websites like facebook and twitter to organize marches against budget cuts and privatization.
You raise some interesting issues about how social networks function as sites of political activism -- particularly for students -- in Mexico. I might want to know what specifically they are showing on Twitter and YouTube. Digital storytelling about corruption in the government? Or witness journalism that shows policy brutality or crackdowns of free assembly?
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