Sofia
Women are the most cherished figures in Mexico as well as the most hated. Our whole culture is based around religious beliefs of "La virgencita" - the archetype that somehow women are made to be virginal and soft and at the same time the strong matriarchs of generations. The ones that cook, clean, speak loudly to others but never in defiance against their husbands. It is not to say that if you're soft you can't be strong but to be both at the same time - that's the tricky part.
We have been raised to expect wonders from our mothers and so little of our fathers. We demand food, shelter and warmth without considering that mothers also are in need of those. And yet there's a prevalent culture of judgment from women to other women who choose not to follow the norm.
It’s almost as if we all know that the norm is killing us and yet to not be part of it would mean exile from your community.
It goes from knowing that abortions are practiced from rich to poor. That domestic violence happens to more friends that you might expect. And still encouraging your daughters to find a husband instead of going to school.
I'm extremely privileged. My privilege lets me walk my country without the same consequences. The colour of my skin allows me to have more opportunities and it’s with that privilege that I've gotten to know different paths, different options that I know are not available to the majority of my country. Most of the time I don't know what to do with it apart from talking about it. I hope that one day I'll do something that can make other women see a different path.
There's always hope. Feminism is causing a wave in our country that can change the laws in order to protect us, to protect future generations, to make the country see us as full human beings. Not mothers or daughters or lovers - just humans.