NYTimes: Toll of Mexican Crime Wave, Written in Faces on the Wall
By DAMIEN CAVE
March 21, 2012
ECATEPEC, Mexico — When residents of this poor industrial city look to the hills, they now see the faces of crime victims staring back at them. Enormous photographic portraits cover concrete homes as part of a community art project that captures what has become a Mexican obsession: visualizing victimhood or, more broadly, turning cold, mind-numbing data back into real people.
“We speak too often in terms of numbers,” said Marco Hernández Murrieta, president of the Murrieta Foundation, which organized the photo project here in a suburb of Mexico City. “We’re putting a face on the statistics.”
Other groups have recently given voices to victims, in videos with famous actors like Diego Luna playing Mexicans who have lost loved ones to drug violence or human rights abuses. Twitter accounts like @Tienennombre also name the dead, often adding ages and other personal details.
These efforts speak to more than just frustration with Mexico’s mounting insecurity. Experts and activists say they are also a shout of outrage against the impunity and lack of transparency that keep Mexicans in the dark, often unable to separate the guilty from the innocent.
And yet, while earlier examples of victim-focused advocacy in Latin America have been aimed mainly at governments, many of Mexico’s so-called victim visualizers say they are less interested in politics and marches than in changing their neighbors’ mind-sets. Their campaigns are mostly attempts to create a public conscience, to keep people from committing or accepting violence by making them feel the suffering that ripples out from crime — largely through efforts that can be shared easily by word of mouth or social media.
“These movements are significantly different from the good old ‘marchas,’ ” said Andrés Monroy-Hernández, a fellow at Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet and Society. “The stereotype of the marchas was that they were movements made up of working-class folk, led by charismatic union or political leaders. These new social media movements seem to be structurally different: they are networked, and attract a different demographic — middle-class youth who probably identify more strongly with Occupy Wall Street and the Arab Spring.”
The Ecatepec project was actually inspired by a star of both the street and the Web: the French photographer known as JR, who posts huge portraits on buildings and in public spaces. A few years ago, he displayed poster-size photos of young people from the housing projects around Paris. Later, in the Middle East, he hung portraits of Palestinians and Israelis side by side, on both sides of the walls that divided them. (Last year, JR won an annual $100,000 prize from TED, the tech-savvy conference juggernaut concerned with “ideas worth spreading.”)
The process in Mexico was more communal. The Murrieta Foundation gave photography classes to young people from rough neighborhoods and recruited crime victims as their subjects.
“Victim” was defined broadly. Along with those who had witnessed murders firsthand, lost relatives or been the victims of violent crime, the category included drug addicts, the girlfriends of criminals and an old man who feared that he would never see his imprisoned son before he died. The subjects’ stories were put together in a compilation of testimonials, their names withheld for security reasons.
Cerro Gordo, the neighborhood chosen for its sightlines, at first wanted nothing to do with the project. “Everyone thought it was political,” said Antonio Olvera, 24, a resident who helped hang the posters. “But really, it’s just art.”
Mr. Hernández of the foundation described it more as artistic crime prevention. Standing near a photo of a young woman with full lips and intense eyes here in this dusty neighborhood, he said he hoped the images would cause people thinking of committing a crime to reconsider, while also provoking Mexicans to challenge friends or relatives involved in gangs or drug trafficking.
A similar effort at public awakening can be found with 31K Portraits for Peace, which is posting 2,000 posters of Mexicans eager for peace in the country’s most violent cities, and in the work of El Grito Más Fuerte, an activist collective drawn from Mexico’s film, theater and communication industries.
The five-minute video that El Grito Más Fuerte produced and posted online this year, “In the Shoes of the Other,” received widespread coverage in the Mexican news media and attention on social networks like Facebook because it included celebrities’ telling the story of Javier Sicilia, a poet whose son was murdered last year, and several others with scarring, emotional stories.
The organizers described the video as an attempt to “accompany victims in their pain, their demand for justice and their right to live in peace.” Though the group also said it hoped the video would reverse the government’s attempt “to conceal the state of emergency we live in,” its political demands have stayed general, with calls for less impunity and more security.
“There are no concrete steps to take,” said Gael García Bernal, a star of “Amores Perros” and a new Will Ferrell movie, “Casa de Mi Padre,” at a news conference for El Grito Más Fuerte. Rather, he added, the collective aimed for the symbolic and practical “sharing of conversations.”
But for Mexico, a complicated democracy that has historically chosen stability over reform, are talking and sharing enough?
Homero Aridjis, a Mexican poet and longtime environmental activist, said he was encouraged by the passion surrounding those with “credenciales de sangre” (credentials of blood). “But what we need in Mexico is judicial transparency,” he said. “The only hope is to reform the judiciary.”
Without institutional change, Mr. Aridjis added, the popularization of the victim could lead to more trouble, not less, as people felt encouraged to act as vigilantes. “You have to be careful so that victims don’t become inquisitors.”
John M. Ackerman, a professor at the Institute for Legal Research at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, also questioned how much could be achieved through a protest movement largely devoid of specific demands. “It’s more of a social catharsis,” he said.
In Ecatepec, too, the limits are apparent. Residents say the portraits have stirred up conversation and civic pride. But many people had hoped that the attention the photos have attracted would lead the government to provide much-needed services, like better roads and policing.
Three months after the first image went up, that has not happened. Crime in the neighborhood has also not declined. Residents say there is still a shooting once a week on average.
Mr. Hernández nonetheless maintains that tiny acts of civic re-engineering are the only way to go. “We have to be like ants,” he said, “working hard on small things that are very focused.”
Like hope itself, however, the photos have proved hard to hold onto. Of the 35 that were originally hung up, only about 10 have survived. The rest have been destroyed by storms or stolen by neighbors who used the vinyl they are printed on as roofs for their homes. Basic needs like shelter, it seems, still trump conversation.
14 David Bowie - Modern Love.mp4
Best played at top volume, and for solo dance parties.
Singapore’s focus on its Creative Industries will ensure its position as the “creative hub” of Asia.
Singapore never fails to amazed me. Its government, always visionary, has moved the island country from an Information Economy to a Creative Economy to enhance it’s competitiveness. Technology is revolutionizing business models in the creative economy, altering the way culture is created, sold and consumed.
Singapore’s creative cluster, which is broadly categorized by Arts and Culture, Design, and Media, is a key contributor to this new Economy. Arts and culture industries play a vital role in attracting people, business, and investment, and in distinguishing Singapore as a dynamic and exciting place to live and work.
In 2002, the Singapore government produced a most ambitious and comprehensive blueprint on the creative economy, which included explicit and specific plans to develop the media and design sectors. Borrowing from the UK, the Singaporean authorities defined the creative cluster as “those industries which have their origin in individual creativity, skill and talent and which have a potential for wealth and job creation through the generation and exploitation of intellectual property”.
Singapore’s three defined creative sectors include:
Since that time, companies like London-headquartered VFX facility Double Negative have opened their first office outside of London in Singapore. Lucasfilm (one of the most successful independent production companies in the world) has set up with a fully integrated digital animation studio. Others include game developers Electronic Arts and Ubisoft.
The creative atmosphere remains positive for Singapore’s ad industry too. Several start-up agencies including Upbrandbuzz, Alchemy, Newton Circus, Arcade, The Mill (a visual effects studio and joint venture with ad agency BBH), and Blak Labs, to name but a few, have opened their doors confident that they can compete with the big, established agency brands. Integrated micro-agency Blak Labs offers heavy-weight, senior talents on their clients’ businesses so they can deliver superior creative thinking. The super-talented agency has so far attracted new business from Maybank, Fuji Xerox, Coca-Cola, NParks and other clients, as well as attracted some of Singapore’s top creative talents.
Singapore’s fashion industry also exudes creativity and entrepreneurship. Local fashion brands are no strangers to striking out in order to gain footholds in markets in South-East Asia, the Middle East and Europe. Brands such as Ashley Isham, alldressedup, Raoul, Iora, and Charles & Keith are flying the flag locally and globally.
For the media industry, Singapore is developing hubs including the Fusionopolis media park, which will be the new home of Double Negative, Ubisoft and Lucasfilm. Meanwhile, plans are also underway to open a media park dubbed Mediapolis. The complex is expected to cost $80 million to $120 million and could house three sound stages when completed in 2013.
The creative industries are one of the fastest growing sectors on the island. From 1986 to 2000, the sector’s growth was 13.4%, outpacing overall economic growth of 10.6%. In 2008, Singapore’s creative industries made up 5.6% of GDP, and employed more than 172,000 employees. Singapore has invested more than USD 120 million to facilitate its goal of raising the share of creative industries to 6% GDP (2010).
Why Singapore? Because it is home to some of the most appropriate and creative talent. In advertising and design, the market has truly international standards. Singapore has always been the creative hub in Asia for giant consumer product makers like Procter & Gamble and Unilever.
Singapore schools offer wide courses in advertising, new media, interactive visual arts, graphics design, filmmaking and communications. Singapore’s School of Art, Design and Media by structure alone, is jaw dropping. The building is a five-story piece of award-winning architecture with a spectacular grass-turfed roof.
Creative ideas and innovation, once considered impractical, are now part of everyday life in Singapore. Creativity and creative thinking is an important and much talked-about topic. The visionary government of Singapore has long realised that knowledge capital is by far superior to physical capital and without creativity and innovation, the country cannot progress and could lose its competitive edge in the global markets. It’s become obvious to them that creative ideas, innovation, and new technology are the forces that drive an economy—especially in a country which is not endowed with natural resources.
All over Asia, countries are producing goods at comparatively lower cost to survive in this global economy. Singapore’s strength must therefore reside in its knowledge and innovation to compensate for what it lacks. According to the World Economic Forum’s latest Global Competitiveness Index 2011-2012, Singapore is the most competitive economy in Asia, and ranked #2 behind Switzerland. Japan is now 9th globally among the 125 industrialized and emerging countries. Singapore has consistently been one of the most competitive nations for the last 2 decades. The United States and Germany rank 5th and 6th. To be competitive today, a country has to have strong institutions, skilled management, top-notch education, and be a driver of new technology and innovation.
The creative economy is the next big thing in Singapore, as the government sees this sector as necessary for the country’s economic survival. In a report on Singapore’s economic future, the Ministry of Information and the Arts declared:
“In the knowledge age, our success will depend on our ability to absorb, process and synthesize knowledge through constant value innovation. Creativity will move into the centre of our economic life because it is a critical component of a nation’s ability to remain competitive. Economic prosperity for advanced, developed nations will depend not so much on the ability to make things, but more on the ability to generate ideas that can then be sold to the world. This means that originality and entrepreneurship will be increasingly prized. The creative economy depends less on natural resources and more on labour, services and brain power. Making money from music, films, concerts, fashion, computer games, architectural services and other creative products is thus attractive for Singapore”.
Tourism has also played a lead role by both supporting and benefiting from the creative economy. Tourists consume many of Singapore’s creative products, especially those in the arts and cultural sector. A lively and exciting creative economy has promoted Singapore’s image abroad and attracted more tourists.
The Singapore Tourist Authority (STB) has actively sought out international conferences, exhibitions and events in various creative industries to be hosted in Singapore. In 2009, Singapore hosted the International Federation of Interior Architects/Designers Congress, helping inch the design industry into the global limelight.
Singapore is fast becoming a regional hub attracting global media industry leaders. MTV, Discovery Channel, HBO and BBC have already made Singapore their regional headquarters. The Media Development Authority of Singapore (MDA) is tasked with advancing Singapore’s media industry. MDA is promoting Singapore as a vibrant global media city and Asia’s leading media marketplace “where quality content is produced and digital media is developed”. Media services and projects are created, developed, traded and distributed to the international market.
Behind the move to enhance recognition of its creative industries, the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) is continuing to market Singapore’s brand story as a creative and culture hub. In 2010 the STB launched an evolution of Singapore’s destination brand – from “Uniquely Singapore” to “YourSingapore” – which underpins the island-state’s ability to offer the traveller “a personalised travel experience”, given its concentration of sights, sounds, tastes, culture and attractions coupled with unparalleled user-centricity.
The approach promises to provide a concentration of multi-faceted and user-centric travel experiences as well as position Singapore as a destination that is future-facing, and culturally inspiring. At the heart of the campaign is a digital approach that includes a new website, significant investment into search engine marketing, blogger engagement, mobile, social media and travel e-commerce.
When it comes to art and culture, Singapore is no match for some of its global rivals like London, Paris, New York, and Tokyo. Yet, it is aiming high, as the Lion City realises the need to make significant investments in order to establish itself as “a leading cultural capital” in Asia. It has earmarked its creative industries as a high economic priority for the next decade.
One of its key projects is Art Stage Singapore, a new international art fair starting with 90 galleries and “a clear Asian identity”. It’s six year goal is to become an international flagship event. Another project milestone for the the government is a National Art Gallery slated to open by 2015 in two heritage buildings, the City Hall and the former Supreme Court.
In 2010, Singapore played host to some 33,884 arts activities, an increase of 16 percent from 2009 and a more than twofold leap from 2003. This equates to more than 92 arts events being held each day. The number of museums and galleries has also increased steadily from 28 in 2004 to 53 in 2010. The total number of museum-goers went up by close to 1 million in 2010 to an estimated 7.609 million from 2009.
As the name suggests, “creative industries” create. Not just films, visual arts, music, dance, theatre, design or architecture, they create jobs, careers and the wealth an economy and society needs. Even more importantly, they help create a country’s cultural identity and the social environment we live in.
With its focus on Creative Industries, Singapore is embarking on a journey of reinvention, harnessing the multi-dimensional creativity of their people and leveraging it to their competitive advantage. It will mean a shift in the way people think about the link between the arts and the economic growth. The fusion of arts with technology and business will give rise to exciting new opportunities and possibilities.
The potential is huge for Singapore. Creative industries are a serious, dynamic and innovative part of the nation’s future economic growth. Though the creative industries are still under-recognised, I believe they will be one of Singapore’s great success stories.
Mike Fromowitz
OCTANE
