News
What is happening to the women of Juarez, Mexico?
By Liz Carrasco
carrascl@mscd.edu
On Sept. 27, another woman was found dead in Juarez, Mexico, half-naked, close to a police station. And no one had any answers.
It would seem like another unanswered question, another murder, but, multiply her death by 400 women since 1993 and still no answers?
That's the question asked by Laura Garcia, an activist and editor of Tribuno del Pueblo, a national bilingual magazine, who spoke at the Tivoli Sept. 28 in hopes of shedding some light on the brutal murders.
When Garcia first traveled to Juarez, a city separated from the United States by the Rio Grande and an unforgiving border, she went to see for herself if she might find answers. She was told, "It is the police, family members, psychopaths, and it all points to a society that turns women into a cheap commodity."
Photo by Jonah Heideman heidemaj@mscd.edu
Journalist and activist Laura Garcia gives a lecture on Latino and women's rights on Sept. 29. The event focused on the unsolved murders of 400 women in Juarez and Chihuahua, Mexico.
Garcia blames the introduction of the maquiladoras, or factories run by U.S. corporations in Mexico.
"Sixty-four percent of the workers in maquiladoras are women. Why? Because women are more submissive. Now, these women are walking through impoverished colonias (colonies) where there is no running water, no electricity and no public transportation," Garcia said during her presentation.
She went on to explain that the women tend to choose the later shifts at these factories because they have to take care of their families during the day.
"They are being dropped off at midnight on these dark roads, leaving them vulnerable," Garcia said.
On the third day of her visit to Ciudad Juarez July 29, another woman's body was found. She was a maquiladora worker.
According to Amnesty International, more than 4,600 women are missing and close to 400 dead by now.
"The problem is one of the State. The State does not create a state of safety for women. Now, the Mexican and U.S. police force within that area is under investigation by the FBI, for the lack of answers," said Garcia.
Holding back tears, Garcia described a monument to these women, which features a cross to the youngest victim, a 13-year-old girl.
The families of these victims are fighting and demanding answers from their government, for fear that their daughters', cousins', friends' deaths will soon be forgotten. "It is the mothers that come forth because often the fathers or brothers are harassed by the police," said Garcia.
She explained how David Mesa, a cousin of one of these girls, was tortured and forced to admit to the murder in exchange for his life in prison.
Garcia said that Patricia Cervantes, the mother of a victim, asked that she continue to tell these stories to continue to distribute information because, "If we let this be forgotten then there will be no justice."
Luz E. Molina, sister of a Metro student and Fund Development and Outreach Coordinator for the Rape Assistance and Awareness Program of Denver, is originally from a colonia of Juarez.
"We, as women, cannot sit, arms crossed, waiting for the next one," Molina said. "I am afraid now to go back and visit. What if the next person is my cousin or someone I know?"
"I am a survivor of rape and I know that here in the U.S. we Mexican-American women will be heard."
Molina is hoping to organize a group of students, therapists for the families, anyone interested in attending a march in honor of these women's deaths on Nov. 1, that begins from the frontera into Chihuahua.
"It scares me that one out of every four women is raped by the age of 18 and one out of every six men. I am going there, not just to march, but to scream, protest, to be heard. To let people know that you can do something. It is a lot, but it is not impossible," Molina said.