Ann Deslandes
Bio:
Ann Deslandes is an independent correspondent based in Mexico City. Follow her on Twitter @Ann_dLandes.
International Women’s Day marches mark how feminist movements have exploded across Mexico, as elsewhere in Latin America — a region with some of the highest rates of sexualized violence in the world.
The Mexico City government erected barricades around the National Palace of Government as a "wall of peace" intended to protect the historic building ahead of the 8M International Women’s Day protest on March 8, 2021. It did not go well.
As the #MeToo movement steadily grows throughout Mexico, with thousands of actions, collectives, and ongoing projects in operation throughout the country, women are finding their power to fight back and build a society in which their lives are not in constant danger.
Organized criminal gangs displaced hundreds of families from their homes in the mountains of Guerrero state, Mexico. It's the women—mothers, grandmothers, aunties, and sisters alike—who are keeping their communities together.
As the number of cases of attempted kidnappings in metro stations mount, feminist civil society is fighting to create a safe city for women, against the inefficacy of law enforcement and a city government that appear ill-equipped to address the daily reality of violence committed against them in public.
A year after Rio de Janeiro city councilwoman Marielle Franco's murder, justice remains elusive, but her life and work live on with her supporters.