Anniversary stories are difficult. Barring a new development, they’re by nature a recounting of things already known. That couldn’t be truer of the story of Mexico’s 43 missing students. The families of the missing mark their tragic and mysterious disappearances not just annually, but monthly.
So with the 10-year anniversary approaching, Mexico City reporter María Verza began reaching out to contacts and the students who run the teacher’s college at Ayotzinapa. The missing students’ parents and the new classes of students are seen each month marching through the streets of Mexico City or protesting – sometimes violently — in Guerrero’s state capital.
But except for the initial weeks following the students’ disappearance, full access to the school’s campus has been very limited. With many calls and repeated visits, Verza negotiated all-formats access to Ayotzinapa, reminding those who had followed the saga that this is probably not what they imagine when they hear “teacher’s college.”
Photojournalist Félix Márquez and video journalist Martín Silva captured the first-year students with their shaved heads standing at attention and carrying out their many chores. They got drone images of the campus and were able to follow up with students when they made their monthly march in Mexico City in August.
The team also documented the resilience of the families to carry on their fight for justice. Photojournalist Marco Ugarte spent time with one of those families, showing how they prepare the crafts they make now to sell on their monthly protest trips to Mexico City.
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