La urgencia de borrar: archivo sobre la gráfica de protesta en el espacio público // The urgency of erasing: archive of graphic protest in public space

"The Urgency of Erasing" documents protest graffiti in Mexico from 2019-2024, focusing on their role in preserving the memory of public dissent against violence and government inaction, particularly regarding femicide and human rights violations. The project comprises two main components: a collective archive and public projections of protest messages.

A Collective Archive

A public call was issued for photographs of protest-related graffiti and street art from across Mexico (Baja California, Sinaloa, Nuevo León, Guadalajara, Querétaro, Mexico City, Morelos, Puebla, Veracruz, Oaxaca, Chiapas, Mérida, and Quintana Roo).

These submissions are compiled in a searchable Google Map archive. Each entry includes the photograph, text from the graphic, a description (contextualizing the image), the year it was created, and the source of the image.

The archive is ongoing, and submissions are accepted online.

Public Projections

Protest messages were projected onto public spaces in Ecatepec de Morelos and La Paz, State of Mexico, areas known for high levels of violence. The projected messages included: "Love does not shout, it does not hit, it does not hurt," "I want myself alive," "11 women are murdered per day and a painted wall bothers you more," "The press profits from femicides," "We are not statistics," and "The pandemic is sexism." These projections were accompanied by information about gender-based violence and femicide, giving voice to the realities of gender-based violence, biased reporting, dating violence, and the struggles women face daily. The projection re-establishes their presence and amplifies their call for change.

This project is led by Diana Cano: @dianae.cano http://www.dianaecano.com/