Breathe
By Flor Aydeé Rodríguez
We are a few days away from the end of 2024 and it is inevitable to think that for women and our causes, it has been 365 days of constant struggle and resistance that has resulted in progress in some of the problems that afflict us.
Acid violence is one of the causes that resisted this year 2024, as various bills were presented in the congresses of the states in order to recognize and punish it. Naming the survivors who continue to fight the battle in forums, opinion spaces and work tables is of utmost importance not only to recognize their courage, but also the work they tirelessly champion. This is the case of Carmen Sánchez, María Elena Ríos and Ana Helena Saldaña. The latter two are still waiting for justice for themselves and fighting for others. During this year there have been constant calls for help through social networks; however, to this day there is no justice for María Elena or Ana Helena.
The 8M did not go unnoticed; once again women took to the streets throughout the country and it is no wonder: femicides and violence continue to increase and there is no law or public policy to put a stop to it. We marched, aware that the next time we do so, it will be to demand not to a President, but to a fellow President, as Vivir Quintana wrote.
Women's sports in international competitions were outstanding by Mexican athletes in different disciplines, a fact that made visible the lack of support not only financially, but also in terms of media coverage. Once again, women showed their talent and tenacity. Let's remember that in these Olympic Games held in Paris, for the first time in history, the Mexican delegation took more female athletes than male athletes, the flag bearer being the diver Alejandra Orozco. We must mention the outstanding participation of the Paralympic athletes, who gave us gold, silver and bronze medals.
This year was also marked by being historic in terms of elections, especially for the presidency, because according to the political landscape, two women were statistically the most likely to be elected as President, and so it was that on June 2 the first President of the United Mexican States, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, was elected. And yes, it is historic beyond partisan sympathy or dislike, because it is an achievement of a feminist and suffragette movement that began many years ago when those women fought for Mexican women to have the right to vote and be voted for. However, during the campaign for the presidency we were witnesses to the gender-based political violence experienced by Xóchitl Gálvez and Claudia Sheinbaum. The number of memes and hate speeches regarding their abilities and even their physical appearance were a constant and it seems that the more women participate in political and public life, the more we are exposed to violence.
Digital violence was again in the eye of the media and feminist collectives, due to the case of Diego N, who allegedly, through artificial intelligence, exercised this type of violence against his classmates at the National Polytechnic Institute. The hearing was controversial due to the result; however, there are still legal resources in this process that can modify the sentence. A major achievement was the launch of the first AI chat to support victims of digital violence developed by members of the Frente Nacional para la Sororidad, the Defensoras Digitales and AuraChat. Not least, Ley Olimpia continues to break boundaries throughout Latin America and reached Panama.
This year was very significant for the fight for women's sexual and reproductive rights, because as of 2024, 19 states have already decriminalized abortion in Mexico and the green tide is growing, but despite these achievements, resistance continues in some states such as Aguascalientes, where the possibility of abortion is restricted to 6 weeks, regardless of the international standards established by the World Health Organization.
These are very important advances, but the struggle and challenges continue in this 2025, in the national panorama with the constitutional reforms already approved on equality issues and with the creation of the Women's Secretariat, and in the international panorama it will be 50 years since the First World Conference on Women, 30 years since the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, 25 years since the adoption of Resolution 1325 of the UN Security Council on Women, Peace and Security and 10 years since the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the SDGs. We do not forget our fellow women who fight for their causes, such as the searching mothers, those who are victims of vicarious violence, those who continue to be violated in any space and have not found justice, we tell them that they are not alone. And if we learned anything this 2024 from the words of Giséle Pelicot, it is that shame has changed sides, because we are understanding that it is not the fault of women to go through situations of violence.
We close 2024 knowing that together and collectively is how we have managed to advance and that in 2025 we will be even more united in order not to go backwards and to take firmer steps.
The opinions expressed are the responsibility of the authors and are absolutely independent of the position and editorial line of the company. Opinion 51.
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