Every year, Mexicans pay solemn tribute to los Niños Héroes – six boy soldiers who disobeyed orders to retreat as enemy soldiers advanced during the country’s 1847 war with the US.
One of the boys, Juan Escutia, is said to have wrapped himself in the Mexican flag and thrown himself from the ramparts of the Chapultepec Castle to prevent the colours from falling into American hands.
This year, however, a row has erupted on the 170th anniversary of the battle, after a chain of fast food stands used the event to promote its products, with the slogan “throw yourself at some tacos!”
“There are still heroes among us,” said the advert by the Taquearte chain, which portrayed the boy soldiers as fast-food employees.
¡Hay héroes que aún siguen entre nosotros!... 🇲🇽️🌮#Taquearte #TacosEnSerio #NiñosHeroes #EnEstasFiestasPatrias pic.twitter.com/CWqshTVH3T
— Taquearte (@Taquearte) September 11, 2017
Most historians now argue that the tale of the Niños Héroes is mostly myth, but even so, the advertising campaign provoked a furious response from those who accused the chain of belittling a key moment in Mexico’s national story.
“Because defending your country from an invasion by the United States is the same as making some greasy tacos. Repugnant your publicity,” read one response to Taquearte’s Twitter account.
“This ad is distasteful because it uses images of the Boy Heroes who were defending the country and trivializes their fight,” said Rodolfo Soriano-Nuñez, a sociologist.
Streets and public schools across the country are named for the Niños Héroes, monuments stand in their honour and their image used to appear on the country’s currency. But their story has started to lose some of its relevance for younger Mexicans, Soriano-Nuñez said.
“The Niños Héroes are not as central to Mexican identity now as they were,” he said. “I do not think people under the age of 20 are that aware of the story.”
Until recently, some cultural symbols and historical heroes – such as the Niños Héroes and past presidents like Benito Juárez – were considered off-limits. But those restrictions have loosened somewhat with the end of one-party rule – though many Mexican media outlets still avoid lampooning the president and present-day politicians.
“This would have been unthinkable 30 years ago,” said Ilán Semo, historian at the Iberoamerican University. “These taco stands would have been closed down.”
