On International Women’s Day in 2021, a large march in Mexico City took the issue of widespread violence against women in the country to the house of Mexico’s president. Hundreds of women were marching through the city, demonstrating in the country’s seat of government power, carrying everything from blowtorches and hammers to children and diaper bags. The women hoped to bring attention to the issues plaguing the country, including one of the worst rates of violence against women in the world.
Part of the protestors’ frustration lay with Mexican president Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who has backed a candidate named Félix Salgado Macedonio in his bid for governor of Guerrero. Salgado has been accused of rape by multiple women, and many activist groups have called on the president to disavow Salgado. However, Lopez Obrador has resisted these calls, backing Salgado ahead of the June elections.
Frustrations Boil Over into Violence
Protestor frustration boiled over as many women wearing black balaclavas targeted a metal fence erected to keep the crowd from the president’s home. Working together, a group of women managed to pull the fence down in places, leading to police firing flash-bang grenades into the protestors.
The flashbangs, in turn, led to scattered tramplings as the crowd moved out of the way of the bright, concussive explosive devices. According to reports from the region, over 60 police officers were injured, while roughly 20 civilians were also hurt in the chaotic, violent melee.
Violence Against Women Remains Astonishingly High
Lopez Obrador has insisted that his government represents a populist movement that is a champion for all of Mexico’s most marginalized people. However, activist groups for women’s rights point to the astronomical rates of violence against women in the country as evidence to the contrary. Last year, an average of ten women were killed in the country per day.
The number of rapes in the region is also shockingly high, with over 16,000 cases recorded in 2020 alone. The protest on International Women’s Day revealed a stark inequality and massive issues still to overcome for women in the country.
The protestors say that resorting to violence is a valid tactic because less than five percent of reported rapes actually lead to a conviction. “We fight today so we don’t die tomorrow,” the protestors chanted during the march. “The fault is not mine, not because of where I was or what I was wearing.”
