As I came out of the Torre Latinoamericana on December 9, I quite literally stumbled into a group of women, children, and a few men, marching and carrying posters, calling for an end to violence against women.

I was swept into the group; to try walking against the human stream was fruitless.

Besides, I was compelled by the woman pushing a stroller, her baby covered by a poster that read (translated): “I have the right to live in a world without violence.”

But for the past couple weeks, I debated with myself about whether I wanted to share these photos. The main reason I considered just leaving them in my portfolio was because I didn’t want to reinforce stereotypes about Mexico and violence against women. Ultimately, though, this isn’t so much about violence against women in Mexico– it’s about violence against women everywhere, and violence in general.

And if we decide to be quiet about violence, to be passive about it, and to not take a stand against it, then we’re simply colluding with perpetrators of violence.

So as you look at these photos, I hope you won’t just think about Mexican women. I hope you’ll think about squatters in Buenos Aires, students in Puerto Rico, disenfranchised voters in Nairobi, and people in Thailand who are dissatisfied with their political leaders.

And I hope you’ll think, too, about the people whose stories we still don’t–and may never–know.

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The marchers came up Francisco Madero Street and stopped in front of the Palacio de Bellas Artes (Fine Arts Museum), where the organizers gave speeches.

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Many of the women and children in the march wore homemade butterfly wings. This woman's sign reads "Not one woman less. Not one more death."

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This woman's sign reads "There are more deaths of women caused by domestic violence than by organized crime."

Intermission

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4

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This woman's sign reads "This body: You don't touch it. You don't rape it. You don't kill it. It's mine."

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This woman's sign reads "When a woman says no, it's no. Listen to us."

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This woman's sign reads "Neither whores nor saints. Just women."

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This is the second half of a large sign. In its entirety, the sign reads, "If they kill me, I'll take my hands out of the tomb...and I'll be stronger."

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A little girl gets her wings fixed.

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Organizers distributed copies of the "Law of Access of Women to a Violence-Free Life.