Union groups and federal police face off as a result of the education reform. Screen capture of video shared by Libre Red on YouTube. Violence in Mexico is worsening, this time due to vehement protests against a reform to the constitution regarding education. The setting is the southwestern state of Oaxaca, particularly in the Nochixtlán region. The situation is tense and complex. Citizen media has spoken out against the vicious response by authorities, which has resulted in a number of victims. However, for many, the protesters are also perpetrating abuses that disrupt order and limit the possibilities of a dialogue. The reform in question was published in February 2013 and involves, among many other things, mandatory teacher evaluations. In addition, the reform takes away privileges from the unions that have controlled education (and the budget for it) in the country. The reform is in the process of being implemented, and the protests have broken out intermittently since it was discussed by lawmakers. The violence occurred in Nochixtlán on June 19, 2016. Clashes erupted between the National Coordinator of Education Workers (CNTE) and the federal police, leaving around 10 dead. By the time this article was edited in the original Spanish, no official records of the deaths or injuries had been made public; each side as well as news outlets have published their own numbers. Some international news organizations, like The Guardian, have confirmed that there are images of police agents firing weapons against protesters. Normally, the government calls on the federal police to clear roads and highways that are blocked by protesters, although they also execute attacks in the internal armed conflict or “war” against organized crime. Only a few months ago, the federal police played a role in what numerous media and opinion leaders called a massacre in Tanhuato, a region in the west. The CNTE is an extremist group of some teachers from areas suffering the most precarious conditions in the country, like Guerrero, Michoacán and Oaxaca. On other occasions, we have reported how this group's protests have disrupted the lives of ordinary citizens. In addition to roadblocks and protests, CNTE's main form of expression is strikes, which imply the closure of schools. In the past several days, CNTE has been joined by like-minded groups that have been blamed for some shocking acts, including the public shaming of teachers who didn't participate in a strike in the beginning of May by forcibly cutting their hair. An act, by the way, that no human rights organization in the country condemned, as journalist Carlos Marin pointed out. The CNTE's roadblocks and protests, which eventually morphed into confrontations with police, have also caused economic losses to the tune of many millions in only a few days. On June 22, 2016, an employer's union called Coparmex asked the government to declare Oaxaca an economic disaster zone, as La Crónica newspaper reported: La solicitud fue dada a conocer en conferencia de prensa por el presidente de la Coparmex en Oaxaca, Benjamín Hernández Gutiérrez, quien advirtió que la entidad vive una situación similar a la de un estado de excepción, debido a las afectaciones económicas derivadas de los bloqueos carreteros por parte de los disidentes. A través de un escrito, los empresarios exigieron a los actores sociales y políticos que no viven en Oaxaca a no emitir opiniones al respecto de la problemática que se vive en la entidad, porque confunden a la opinión pública y generan mayor polarización.’ The petition was made known during a press conference by the president of Coparmex in Oaxaca, Benjamín Hernández Gutiérrez, who warned that the organization was living under circumstances similar to a state of emergency, due to the economic damages caused by the protester's roadblocks. Through a written communication, business owners called on social and political leaders who don't live in Oaxaca to refrain from publishing opinions about the issue affecting the organization because it confuses the public opinion and generates more polarization.