Many Mexican feminists have not been happy with AMLO and don’t support Morena. Why?

In the first half of his term, AMLO made many disparaging remarks about “feminists, environmentalists, human rights advocates and animal rights activists.” He accused “neoliberals” of developing these organizations and  issues to sidetrack his agenda.

Of course, some were neoliberal organizations, like the charro unions and peasant organizations, corrupt appendages of the PRI. But he painted entire movements with the same brush.

He preferred not to work with civil organizations such as feminist NGO’s but rather to talk directly with individual Mexicans as he traveled around the country. He favored providing  direct cash transfers to those in need rather than funding existing programs.

The frosting on the cake that totally “frosted” women was his statement, “Let grandmothers take care of the kids.” Talk about no understanding of women’s oppression!

That said, in 2020 and later, the independent feminist movement became massive, holding huge demonstrations on International Women’s Day and on November 25, Latin America’s day against violence against women. At the same time, feminists were working within Morena. By the second half of his term, AMLO had stopped saying stupid things and did release some funds for shelters.

But haven’t there been gains for women during AMLO’s 6-year term?

Yes, the many old and young feminists working for a pro-woman agenda in Congress from several parties, including Morena, have been effective. A major win was gender parity for government officials. AMLO’s cabinet, for the first time in history, is half women. Where we had 9 women governors in 2018 out of 32, now we have 14. Half the members of congress are women. Another win — the Supreme Court declared abortion a human right and thus decriminalized it. An amazing victory, but not the same as ensuring safe and accessible abortion services; those rights have been won now in 14 states.

What are the main issues facing feminists today?

It’s not reproductive rights, as in the US. For old and young women alike, it’s the pervasive sexual and criminal violence against women in Mexican society. It ranges from verbal harassment to femicide — the murder of women just for being women. Women are demanding that the government recognize and prioritize their pain and fear.

Yes, the government has passed some new laws: the prohibition of online harassment, laws specifically against acid attacks, and legal repercussions for men who owe child support or have a history of physical or sexual violence. But laws on paper aren’t enough.

The government has found only a few of the country’s almost 100,000 disappeared. Frustrated, mothers have turned into investigators themselves. Hundreds of women have created brigades that comb forests, dig for forensic evidence, and go into morgues. One woman, who had been looking for her son since 2020, recently discovered that his body had been in the morgue for all those years. No one identified him or contacted her. This has sparked outrage!

Three women embrace as they contemplate the body of a man they discovered after identifying and digging up a burial pit last year. Photo: Mallika Vora for The New Yorker

The failure to convict perpetrators has also ignited widespread anger. In 95% of cases of violence against women, the accused is either not charged or not convicted; impunity reigns. Mexico doesn’t have trials by jury, so judges sitting in their offices review the paper evidence and make their decisions. One significant innovation mandating quicker oral trials rather than the paper ones is a step forward.

Police detectives don’t investigate crimes, a special ministry does. Their investigators are often in cahoots with the criminals — or at best, they're just plain sexist! Women don’t get justice.

And this is merely the “punitive” side, the side that looks at what to do with perpetrators. I and other feminists are fighting to look at what the victims need, too. Public discussion doesn’t emphasize services for the traumatized women (counseling, group therapy, help with work or family issues resulting from violence) or look more generally at the social side of crimes against women.

A plus: recently, a new Mexico City team of nine prosecutors specializing in the investigation of gender-based crimes, headed by a feminist lawyer that we respect, has been formed. And our movement and the new laws have changed the ethos of TV news: anti-sexism is now mainstream.

What strategies have worked to bring attention to women’s issues and to unify a feminist movement?

Mobilizations and marches are our most effective tools. In 2024, we had a massive march and brought together feminists of many stripes; when women come out in force, we can’t be ignored.

Certain feminist groups have also dedicated lots of time to lobbying the congress, and that has helped, too.

From another direction, in 2014, several well-respected feminist NGOs, instrumental in organizing these conferences, left the planning committee over differences with women in the PRD and boycotted the conference. This has led to a major split in the movement. My group participates in a women’s coordinating committee that convened the major marches in Mexico City, but it’s way too small to coordinate the entire movement, or even those marches. At the moment, the feminist movement is fragmented.

Her slogan, “With Claudia, we all arrive,” is a powerful message from a powerful woman. But she’s not encouraging women to organize or work with their civil organizations. We will see more financial assistance for the poor in recognition of their humanity and dignity. But that’s not the same as women’s empowerment — that remains the work of an independent feminist movement. We have to get our act together!