Free Republic

Activists from Mexico’s Purepecha people used axes and sledgehammers Monday to knock down statues of their ancestors being forced to haul and work stones by a colonial-era Spanish priest. The Purepechas have objected to the statues since they were erected in 1995 in the capital of western Michoacán state, Morelia, and have repeatedly called for them to be taken down. The life-size statues depict Spanish priest Fray Antonio de San Miguel ordering one nearly naked Purepecha to cut a stone block, while another is depicted hauling a stone away on his back. A fourth figure in the group, known as...

The gruesome display of 19 bodies scattered in Mexico may be linked to a vicious war, not over drugs but avocados, according to a report. Mexican police on Thursday discovered nine bodies hanging from a bridge, seven more slaughtered and another three dumped in what authorities say was a gang-turf massacre in the western state of Michoacán. Falko Ernst, an International Crisis Group researcher who studies cartels, said the fight over the region’s billion-dollar avocado industry was likely the largest factor in the bloodbath. Around 80 percent of the avocados imported into the US come from Michoacán, according to the...

Travel Advisory January 10, 2018 Mexico – Level 2: Exercise increased caution C Exercise increased caution in Mexico due to crime. Some areas have increased risk. Read the entire Travel Advisory. Violent crime, such as homicide, kidnapping, carjacking, and robbery, is widespread. The U.S. government has limited ability to provide emergency services to U.S. citizens in many areas of Mexico as U.S. government employees are prohibited from travel to these areas. U.S. government employees are prohibited from intercity travel after dark in many areas of Mexico. U.S. government employees are also not permitted to drive from the U.S.-Mexico border to...