Bulletproof Education: Porrismo Estudiantil, the Paradox of School-Shootings in Gun-Controlled Mexico, and the Legacies of Scholastic Gun Violence in the Americas

By: Kristopher Lomelín-Orduña

Advisor: Dr. Kent Eaton - Politics Dept.

Content Warning: The following information and media within this presentation are graphic in nature and might be disturbing for some audiences.

What is Porrismo/What are Porros/Porras?

-Porros are student gangs/thugs/shock groups hired by university authorities, political parties/interests, and religious/business organizations in Mexico to violently disrupt student protests and suppress dissent on and off campuses. They have their origins in the late 1920s to early 1930s, when the UNAM's rectorship began employing youth groups consisting of prefects and other vigilante students willing to intimidate and attack protesting students.

-Porros (derived from "porra" meaning "cheer squad") are historically recruited from impoverished, marginalized, and vulnerable backgrounds, nowadays with ties to drug trafficking organizations, being granted privileges like academic favors/money in exchange for their services.

-The term which is used today and its connections to cheering/cheerleading are due to porrismo and its linkage with American football which stems from the 1940s and 1950s when cheerleading and sports teams were used as a cover for recruiting and organizing these groups, which were then co-opted by political authorities to distract students from politics and, when necessary, to act as shock troops against student activists.

-They remain largely absent from classes but enroll to maintain student status, resurfacing to violently break up protests using brutal force with weapons like batons, explosives, bladed weapons, and firearms. This is despite an ordinance which was finally passed, limiting students from registering more than 50% beyond the normal length of a course leading to a degree.

-Porros are closely linked to Mexico's formerly ruling PRI party and other establishment parties who use them to quell dissent and maintain control over universities. As well as to give their political opponents a "black eye," when necessary (i.e: Attempt to make a politician look incompetent, weak, or unable to quell unrest/violence)

-University authorities are often accused of financing porros, rewarding their leaders with positions of influence, and shielding them from prosecution for attacks on students. The presence of porros armed with firearms and their violent clashes with student protesters has contributed to gun violence on and off Mexican university campuses, escalating the threat students face when exercising rights to protest and organize democratically.

Research Question/Arguments & Evidence

-This research examines the evolution and impact of porrismo and its mutations into narcoporrismo and neoporrismo within Mexican educational institutions, including its contribution to the prevalence of firearms violence in schools and against students, laying bare a genealogy of gun violence in schools throughout the Americas that has been understudied.

-My work traces the historical trajectory of porrismo from its inception in the 1920s through its peak during the PRI's dominance, to its current forms under the presidency of Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO).

-This study highlights the role of porrismo in facilitating and exacerbating general/political/gun violence in schools, their mutations through time, how porros are discarded as delinquents when they have outlived their usefulness or become loose ends, and the overall impunity they have enjoyed while becoming further entrenched in powerful roles through a pipeline to power; Thus, becoming in some instances, federal police, high level functionaries, and directors of national universities or institutes like the IPN.

-Moreover, the findings suggest that despite Mexico's strict gun laws following 1971, porrismo-related activities have continued to have access to political patronage-systems, supplying firearms and other weapons/combat training, effectively undermining the efficacy of these regulations.

My mother having her cast removed by medical personnel to examine her injuries after a gun-wielding porro attack three months earlier.

June-July of 1976. Source: G. Orduna

Research Design

I performed a Comparative-Historical Analysis (CHA). This approach is characterized by its focus on large-scale and often complex outcomes of enduring importance, its emphasis on empirically grounded, deep case-based research, and its attention to process and the temporal dimensions of politics.
CHA is particularly useful for understanding the evolution and change of phenomena, like porrismo, over different periods within a country and their relation to broader national and international contexts.

Front page of the national newspaper, Excelsior, the day after the Jueves de Corpus massacre with estimates as low as 6 dead when in truth 50+ died, the actual numbers will never be known due to government intervention and cover ups. Source: La Matanza Del Jueves De Corpus: Fotografía y Memoria

Images from a porro attack at CCH Naucalpan on 5/8/2024. Source: Metro Noticias

This CHA involved the systematic comparison of different periods from Mexico’s history following the 1910 revolution in order to identify patterns, causes, and effects of political and social phenomena in relation to porrismo. It employs a combination of mainly qualitative and some quantitative methods to analyze historical data, making it a robust tool for examining the continuity and change in political orientations, policies, and institutions over time.

Cycles of the student movement in LatAm, 1900-2020. Source: Imanol Ordorika, Student movements and politics in Latin America: a historical

reconceptualization (p.310).

My CHA involved a detailed chronological analysis of different periods, focusing on how the use of hired thugs and agent provocateurs (porros) by political elites influence student unrest and broader social and political dynamics. This method allows me to trace the development of porrismo from its origins in the 1930s through its role in the 1968 student movement to its multi-party form today. By situating porrismo within the larger framework of Mexican political history, CHA helped me uncover the causal relationships between state actions, student activism, and societal responses, providing a comprehensive understanding of this complex phenomenon.

Case Selection Outline:

Historical Background Context: 1920s Post-Revolution History, (1920-40) Porro-Prototypes and Porrismo Origins
The Ascendancy of the PRI and the Instrumentalization of Porrismo (1940-68)
From Tlatelolco to the Turn of the Century: The Evolution of Porrismo as a covert Parastatal Tool for Violently Suppressing Student and Public Democratic Dissent/Political Expression in Mexico (1968-2000)
Contemporary Multi Party Porrismo: Narcoporrismo, Neoporrismo, and Mercenarial Mutations through Fox, Calderon, Peña Nieto, and AMLO’s Administrations (2000-2024)
Epilogue - Beyond Porrismo: Reflecting on the Shifting Landscape of School Violence in Mexico

"Hello, I'm the candidate for mayor..."

"You were, now our candidate is another"

Source: Miguel Falcon

Independent Variables (Causes)

Political Patronage Systems: The support and protection provided by political elites to porros for their use in suppressing dissent and maintaining control.
Historical Context and Evolution: The historical development of "porrismo" from the 1930s to its modern forms, including the influence of Cold War politics and subsequent political changes.
Access to Firearms and Weapons: The availability and supply of firearms, knives, and explosives to porros despite strict gun laws, facilitated by political connections and corruption.
Educational Institution Policies: The role of university and school administrations in either tacitly supporting or failing to effectively counteract "porrismo" activities.
Socioeconomic Factors: The broader social and economic conditions that contribute to the recruitment and use of "porros," such as poverty, lack of opportunities, and social inequality.

Porro attack at CCH Naucalpan on 5/8/2024 leaves a student picking up his younger brother dead. Source: Metro Noticias

Dependent Variables (Outcomes)

Prevalence of Firearms and General Violence in Schools: The incidence of gun violence and other forms of violence within educational institutions, influenced by the activities of porros.
Impact on Student Movements and Activism: The suppression, intimidation, and violence against student activists and movements, leading to a climate of fear and reduced political engagement among students.
Impunity and Entrenchment in Power: The continued impunity enjoyed by porros and their integration into more powerful roles within political and criminal structures, perpetuating cycles of violence and corruption.
Effectiveness of Gun Regulations: The challenge to the effectiveness of Mexico's strict gun laws due to the continued access to weapons by "porros" through political patronage systems.
Public Perception and Media Representation: The portrayal of "porros" and related violence in the media, and its impact on confusing public perception and policy responses.

My mother standing after months of recovery. She was virtually immobile for 6+ months while her bones re-solidified. July-November of 1976. Source: G. Orduna

Additional Research Needed

Female porros/porras and their involvement has been understudied despite their presence in porril groups.

Porrismo as a mainly male phenomenon and how this affected its formation over time, as well as its potential contributions to misogynistic culture/notions within their groups/the university at large, not to mention female-focused violence and femicide.

Implications of this Argument/Findings

Neoporrismo: Evolution of Porrismo

Modern porros operate on a multi-party mercenary system involving state and non-state patrons/padrinos.
Narcoporros: Escalation into armed conflicts over drug-dealing territories within UNAM’s CU and other campuses. No longer sell drugs merely to distract students for political ends, but for personal gain

Side by side photos showing porros in action during the 2018 student protests, and the porros active during the 1971 Halconazo. Source: El Pais

3/6/2024: Parents & Protesters, not porros, in support of the missing 43 Ayotzinapa Students breaking down the door of the National Palace in Mexico City after months of being brushed aside by government authorities. Source: El Pais

Elements Defining Neoporrismo in Ayotzinapa

State and Criminal Collusion:
- Collaboration between police and Guerreros Unidos.
- Systemic violence to maintain control and suppress opposition.
- Plausible deniability for the state using non-state actors.
Targeting of Student Activists:
- Students known for left-wing activism targeted en route to an annual commemoration remembering the 1968 Student Massacre.
- Mirrors historical porrismo tactics of student socio-political repression in favor of (conservative-business leaning) patron benefactors enabling/authoring violence.
Violence and Intimidation:
- Brutal methods including torture and forced disappearances.
- Reflects violent tactics of traditional porrismo.
Impunity and Cover-Up:

Lack of accountability and cover-up efforts by government.
Consistent with historical porrismo patterns of impunity.

Key Takeaway from this administration: AMLO, despite advances in other areas of the country, has not been able to greatly curb violence or porrismo, again highlighting how cyclical porrismo is here to stay due to its deep entrenchment.