In the smoke and escalating violence, an AP photo intern captured the intensity of a protest
Demonstrators and riot police face off during a protest commemorating the anniversary of the 1968 Tlatelolco killings, when soldiers fired on student protesters, in Mexico City, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Claudia Rosel)
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Photo intern Claudia Rosel is a recipient of a 2025 Overseas Press Club Scholar Award, which sponsored her internship with The Associated Press in Mexico City. Before earning her masters in documentary journalism from Columbia Journalism School, she spent four years working as a video producer and photographer across the East and Horn of Africa, where she covered stories on migration, climate and conflict.
Here’s what she had to say about this extraordinary photo.
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Why this photo?
Before the march commemorating the 1968 Tlatelolco massacre, AP’s chief photographer for Mexico and Central America Eduardo Verdugo warned me to expect some unrest but to stay calm and focused. When we reached the Zócalo – the city’s main plaza -tensions quickly escalated between protesters and police. I had just arrived in Mexico some days prior, and this was my very first assignment in Mexico City for the AP, so I did not know what to expect.
The afternoon turned violent quickly. Protesters dressed in black began throwing Molotov cocktails at police just meters (yards) ahead of me. Others picked up stones and threw them at officers. Flames, screams and thick white smoke filled one side of the square. As I tried to take some images, someone sprayed pepper gas toward me and other reporters. My eyes burned and for a few seconds I couldn’t see. I ran to the other side of the square not knowing if it was a moment to leave. After a short pause, I saw the clashes were intensifying. Even as a newcomer, it was clear this wasn’t a normal level of violence, and it was my job to document it. So, I found a safer angle to work from to capture this image.
How I made this photo
To avoid getting too close to the clashes, I used a long lens and positioned at an angle where both protesters and police were in the same frame. I set the shutter speed to 1/500 sec to capture the movement of people and pushed the ISO to 2000 as it was getting dark. After about 10 minutes, I had several frames I felt confident would show the clashes, including this one, and I stepped away to file the pictures.
Why this photo works
It tells part of what became the story of the day in one frame. The clashes left more than 100 people injured, including 94 police officers, and some reporters and civilians. Visually it works that the smoke helps define the instant a protester was about to strike an officer with a hammer.
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