#YoSoy132: A spontaneous Mexican student social movement Jaime Jiménez and Juan C Escalante National Autonomous University of Mexico Abstract for corruption and impunity observed globally. Some During the past presidential elections, in 2012, Mex - movements, like the Arab Spring, have succeeded in ico endured her own Mexican Spring . Iam132 overthrowing old dictatorships. Others, less violent, (#YoSoy132) is an ongoing Mexican movement cen - have impinged on large segments of the population, tered on the democratisation of the country and not really making a difference in the way ‘business’ is its mass communications. It began as an opposition done in the world. However, they seem to constitute to the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI, Partido a force that sooner or later will wield influence in the Revolucionario Institucional) candidate Enrique Peña way both governments and society conduct their af - Nieto and the Mexican media’s allegedly biased cov - fairs. They are organised, connected via Internet, and erage of the 2012 general election, surprisingly, by convinced that the fight is just starting and will go on students of an upper-middle class Jesuit University. for many years now. The purpose of this paper is to provide an insight for In this global turmoil where Mexican youngsters readers into the Mexican movement’s emergence and apparently played a minor role, a spontaneous move - the immediate events that led to the outbreak, place ment was sparked by the discomfort produced by the these in light of similar spontaneous mass movements way a presidential election campaign was conducted that have taken place around the world, and finally, by a powerful party and its candidate. Unexpectedly, examine common characteristics exhibited by the dif - this protest sprang from an upper-middle class private ferent movements. university, a social class not usually involved in this type of mass manifestations. Our main interest is to Keywords #YoSoy132, mass movements, indignant categorise some of these global mass protests and movements, Arab Spring, social uprisings, social unrest compare them to the # YoSoy132 Mexican movement, what they have in common and how, in the case of Mexico, they may influence the decision-making Introduction processes of factual powers in the governance of the In recent years the world has experienced a number country. of movements of mass protests primarily headed by young people, who are aware of the social injustices attributed to the actions of governments, politicians Framework of all tendencies, the financial system and banks, big Social movements are defined as collective political corporations, and the media. These groups, often actors who share with political parties, pressure and known as the factual powers are primarily responsible interest groups: a) a relative organisational stability, isa.e-Forum © 2015 The Author(s) © 2015 ISA (Editorial Arrangement of isa.e-Forum) 1 Jaime Jiménez and Juan C Escalante b) a communion of objectives, ideas and interests of which they are part, or as Sztompka argues (cited among members, c) a coordinated and organised in Martín, 2013: 2), such movements are collectives course of action (although with no fixed organisation that are loosely organised, and which act jointly and structure), and d) a will to intervene in politics to ex - outside the institutions with the aim of producing ercise influence in the course of social conflict (Martí change in their society. i Puig, 2013: 1). The author adds that social move - Closer to movements like those which are the ob - ments defy dominant interpretations on different per - ject of this paper, Martín (2013: 4) sees movements ceptions of reality, thus having an impact in all as ‘…factors that are present in the political or cul - political environments as follows (Martí i Puig, 2013: tural conflict, that grow through informal networks, 2) : that transcend conventional institutional participa - tion channels…and take advantage of opportunities • In the symbolic environment because it is a system that emerge in the political structure.’ of narratives that pretends to create new cultural referents, explications and prescriptions of how #YoSoy132 (#I am132) certain conflicts are socially expressed and how the On 11 May 2012, this social movement was initiated ante status quo ‘should’ be redesigned. by students of the ‘Universidad Iberoamericana’, a Je - • In the interactive environment because it is a po - suit university located in Mexico City. The presiden - litical actor that has an impact on social conflict tial candidate of the powerful PRI was invited by a and intends to change the extant correlation of student forum, the ‘Good Ibero Citizen (Buen Ciu - forces in a concrete context of conflict. dadano Ibero, in Spanish) to discuss his political plat - • In the institutional environment because it has an form on campus (Cervantes, 2012). Many students effect on those spaces that regulate and channel really wanted to show their discontent with the can - the conduct of actors through unconventional and didate because, among many other reasons, for the contentious actions. past six years, when Peña Nieto was Governor of the • In the substantive environment because it is an in - State of Mexico, a powerful TV consortium had ded - strument for change of reality. icated much of its prime time to promote his presi - dential candidacy, in what was perceived as a very However, they differ from political parties and biased coverage in his favour. Therefore, there were pressure groups in that their organic structure is fee - some attendants displaying posters of indignation. To ble, their discourse is thematic or cuts across topics, make matters worse, as the students were entering the their action strategy is contentious, they have a con - auditorium where Peña Nieto was going to speak, his flictive attitude towards power, and the nature of their assistants were offering them money in exchange for resources are more symbolic (emotional, self-disci - agreeing not to ask uncomfortable questions (Cer - pline and commitment of members) than material. vantes, 2012). They generally pursue a goal that comprises bringing Many of the attendees questioned and strongly ex - about, impeding, or annulling fundamental social pressed their opposition to the candidate. In addition changes, using to that end diverse organisational and to the illegal and prolonged propaganda by TV, the action strategies (Raschke, 1994: 123). Although questioning centred on the 2006 Atenco incident, in many deny any political association, to Mees (cited in which the then-governor Peña Nieto called in the Martín, 2013: 3), a social movement is always a po - state police to violently break up a protest by local res - litical movement, since all social change requires the idents. Two protesters were killed, many were arrested, participation of the political system. As Turner and and human rights groups have charged the police with Killian (cited in Martín, 2013: 2) assert, social move - numerous rapes during those raids. However, Peña ments are about acting collectively with some form of Nieto defended his decision to use force in order to continuity to promote or resist change in the society prevent an alleged greater evil. This has been 2 #YoSoy132: A spontaneous Mexican student social movement considered one of the gravest political repressions of media) are not that important in population terms, the last decade. The candidate’s answer was highly un - but they are a group that can make a lot of noise satisfactory and the audience started to chant the (cited in Torres and Rosenberg, 2012). motto `Atenco is not forgotten, and while he was On 19 May 2012, mass protests against Televisa leaving the premises, he was surrounded by a multi - and Peña Nieto were held in the country’s major tude that made it impossible for him to reach the exit. cities, led by students from many different colleges He finally was able to leave with the assistance of his and universities (Montalvo and Torres, 2012). On 23 body guards, followed by the students showing May 2012, another protest against Televisa was or - posters of repudiation, and shouting slogans in ganised by students from public and private universi - protest. The main TV chains and some national ties. This led the network to give widespread coverage newspapers minimised the incident in their reportage, of protests and to announce that the second presiden - arguing that the protest was not an authentic expres - tial debate would be broadcasted on Televisa’s main sion of university youngsters, but a political boycott. national TV channel 2 (the first debate was broad - The students were infuriated and put in the social net - casted on 6 May 2012 by a Televisa local network). works a video in which 131 of them showed their face On the same date (23 May), the movement released along with the ID card which identified them as uni - its manifesto , of which its General Principles are as fol - versity students. From then on, many members of so - lows (#Yo Soy 132: General Principles, 2012): ciety expressed in the social networks the motto I am132 (#YoSoy132) as a means to show support for Non-partisan the students. #YoSoy132 became a movement of First – we are a nonpartisan movement of citizens. As protest articulated by the initial group of students. such, we do not express support of any candidate or Peña Nieto was allegedly favoured by Mexico’s political party, but rather respect the plurality and di - only two nationwide TV networks, Televisa and TV versity of this movement’s participants. Our wishes Azteca, with extensive coverage during the years prior and demands are centred on the defense of Mexicans’ to the confirmation of his candidacy. As Governor, freedom of expression and their right for information, Peña Nieto disbursed several million dollars for `in - in that these two elements are essential toward form - formational support. Part of that money was paid to ing an aware and participating citizenry.