Narcocorridos accordionist and member of the musical group Máximo Impacto, Gabino Ayala was killed in his car by a group of unknown individuals
Read More »Mexico: Narcocorrido musician killed for singing to the wrong cartel
On 3 March 2017, Rolando Arellano Sánchez, a member of the narcocorrido band Contacto, was shot and killed by cartel members in Tijuana city.
Read More »Censorship continues on online platforms
Online media platforms continue to come under fire for taking down content, including artistic works, seemingly arbitrarily or unevenly.
Read More »Mexico: New city constitution protects art, culture and free speech
The Constituent Assembly of the Mexican capital has embarked on a project to create its first constitution and has approved a new article in which art, culture and education will be protected and granted by authorities. The article states that cultural diversity and freedom of expression must be respected and …
Read More »Mexico: Congress proposes restrictions on “narcoseries”
A Senator and a parliamentarian both called for hardening restrictions on the airing schedules of “narcoseries” – television series in which the main topics are drug kingpins and the crimes they’re responsible for, reported El Economista on 31 October 2016. Senator Zoé Robledo and parliamentarian Lía Limón, both presidents of …
Read More »Mexico: Colombian painter censored in museum exhibition
The Museo Nacional de la Acuarela ‘Alfredo Guati Rojo’ in Mexico City has refused to display a painting by Colombian artist Darío Ortiz Robledo, considering it “too hard and offensive for some sensibilities”, due to its mix of nudity and religious symbols, reported Mexican newspaper La Jornada on 8 March …
Read More »Mexico: Two more states ban narcocorridos
The governors of the states of Sinaloa and Coahuila are imposing restrictions on public performances of narcocorridos and movimiento alterado artists, joining the state of Chihuahua, which was the first state in the newest round to ban narcocorridos beginning in 2015. There are now three states in Mexico imposing limitations …
Read More »Mexico: Musicians abducted, one killed
After midnight of 17 November 2015, the narcocorridos band Los 4 Herederos was attacked in the town of Taray in the state of Jalisco. One of the musicians was killed. An armed commando in three trucks intercepted the band’s pickup truck and violently kidnapped the members of the band as …
Read More »Mexico: City bans ‘narcocorridos’ after shooting at concert leaves two dead
The Chihuahua city council has banned the performance and distribution of a genre of music known as ‘narcocorridos’ – songs whose lyrics are inspired by drug trafficking and organised crime bosses – within city limits. The new law was implemented shortly after a shooting at a narcocorrido concert in the …
Read More »Mexico and Honduras: Writers have no freedom of expression
Corruption; the control of the media; impunity; censorship and its counterpart self-censorship; the role and responsibilities of a writer as citizen; and the vital importance that freedom of expression plays in challenging the status quo. At ‘Free The Word!’, an event held on 30 January 2014 at Hay Festival Cartagena, …
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