Mexico City: No more 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.