Sleepless Nights in Zamora: What Goes Unsaid but Can Be Seen in the Dark

Reflections on Methodology

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.29340/en.v7n14.368

Keywords:

Visual methods, Night, Michoacán, Disappearance, Mourning

Abstract

This photo essay features moments captured during late-night walks in Zamora, Michoacán, between 2020 and 2023, the years in which the city had among the highest murder and disappearance rates in the world. It explores the use of home altars and cenotaphs in the face of the silence surrounding these crimes in public expressions. Following the lead of Zamorano (2022), Reyero (2007), and others, the images were handed out at random, generating an opportunity for people to discuss violence, mourning, fear, and the stigma that hangs over families who have lost relatives. The most moving part of the text—responses sent in anonymously by people who had seen these photographs—is shared in the captions.

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Author Biography

  • Laura Lee Roush, El Colegio de Michoacán

    Laura Roush likes to walk at night and during the pandemic began documenting aspects of the night in Zamora, Michoacán, where she lives. She holds a PhD in anthropology from the New School for Social Research and teaches at El Colegio de Michoacán.

References

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Published

2024-09-20

How to Cite

Sleepless Nights in Zamora: What Goes Unsaid but Can Be Seen in the Dark: Reflections on Methodology. (2024). Encartes, 7(14), 247-256. https://doi.org/10.29340/en.v7n14.368