Searching mothers and relatives of missing people adapted the classic Cielito Lindo to denounce the crisis of disappearances in Mexico, which exceeds 135 thousand cases. It was at the Monument to the Revolution, hours before the Mexican National Team’s third game in the World Cup, where they placed canvases with the search cards for their loved ones and chanted unpublished lyrics.
A song to break the stigma
Nanzy Mendoza, who is looking for her brother Josué Ricardo Mendoza Martínez – who disappeared on August 3 in Lomas de Chapultepec – modified the melody. He explained that his intention is to move society and eliminate criminalization of families.
“It is a way to raise awareness and break the paradigm that is stigmatizing us… simply let our hearts speak,” he declared.
Mendoza said that during the Mexico-South Korea match he noticed the fans’ excitement when they sang Cielito Lindo. That’s why he chose that song: “I want to convey that same feeling with these lyrics.”
The lyrics include phrases like: “In every corner, sweetheart, we are searching” and “Families always brave… with a photo in their hands, never letting go”. The chorus: “Oh, oh, oh, oh, shout and don’t be silent, because your voice calls for them, sweetheart, everywhere.”.
Call to authorities and society
Angelina Castillo, mother of Joshua Daniel Rivera Castillo — who disappeared on August 9 — thanked those who came to listen: “That listening is the comfort to the soul that we often need.” Antonia Zamora, mother of Vianey Berenice Macías Zamora, asked not to vandalize the photographs of her children: “They are not just a piece of paper, they are our lives.”
The search companies denounced that the federal government does not meet their demands: more budget for the National Search Commission and state prosecutors’ offices. After the song, they named some of the missing: Marlenne Blando Aguirre, Juan Carpinteyro Pavón, Ángel Moreno Mosco, Guadalupe Ruiz González, among others.
“Today we want to name those who are missing, it is not a number, it is a story… as long as a person remains missing, our voice will continue searching for them,” they concluded.
