El Grito: President Pena Nieto's Independence Cry Gets a Testy Response Whitney Eulich - Christian Science Monitor
go to original September 16, 2015

On the night of September 15, Mexico celebrated the 205th anniversary of the beginning of the country's struggle to achieve independence from Spain. Many social organizations held alternative Independence Day events. Clayton Conn reports from Mexico City. (teleSUR English)

Thousands of Mexicans peered up toward the balcony of the National Palace late Tuesday night and erupted into a cacophony of shouts.

“Viva!” the revelers screamed, many decked out in the red, white, and green of the Mexican flag. “Viva Mexico!”

"El Grito," a call and response led by Mexico's president, rings in Mexico’s independence day of Sept. 16. The ear-piercing tradition harks back 205 years to revolutionary leader Miguel Hidalgo’s call for Mexicans to revolt against Spanish colonial rule.

This year's celebration was typically festive – with music, fireworks, kids sporting fake mustaches, and the president waving the flag and honoring the leaders of Mexico’s battle for independence. But it also underscored Mexicans' deep disillusionment with their current leader.

A social-media campaign leading up to El Grito called for people to boycott the event. And some in the crowd last night booed at President Enrique Peña Nieto’s balcony entrance, a discourtesy that caught some by surprise, including construction worker Fernando Garcia Hernandez.

Ricardo Noriega, an accountant who says the administration has given the country plenty to shout about – in frustration – was blunt about his participation in the revelry: “We are here to celebrate Mexico, not for the president."

From the blundering investigation into the disappearance of 43 college students, to a weak economy and the embarrassing escape of a high-profile criminal, El Chapo, Peña Nieto has earned himself one of the lowest presidential approval ratings in more than a decade.

Read the rest at Yahoo News

Related: Mexico’s Cry of Independence Is Now A Cry of Indignation (RYOT)

Related: Protests During Mexico's Independence Celebration (teleSUR)

Related: What Donald Trump Can Learn from Mexican Independence Day (Good)

Grito de Independencia 15 de Septiembre 2015 "Memes" (sasha kidman)

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