Algunas de mis más recientes publicaciones tanto en español como en inglés.
Below is a sampling of my work for various publications in English and Spanish.
Cruces rosas de Ciudad Juárez a Santiago: un breve análisis de los feminicidios en la región
20 April 2021
En América Latina las noticias prometen diariamente anunciar la muerte de al menos una mujer o niña a manos de la violencia de género. Conforme se acumulan un sinfín de nombres comenzamos a olvidarlos, son tantas que perdemos la cuenta. Algunas se recuerdan con cruces rosas, otras con pintas que existen justicia y unas aún esperan ser encontradas.
“In Mexico, the most effective influencers are either politicians or drug lords. […] COVID-19 has forced many small and medium-size businesses to close, and people no longer have enough to take care of their their families, let alone pay their derecho de piso.”
“What similarities we have are dwarfed, however, by an immense difference. At the beginning of April, Ana Paola—at the age of 13—was raped and killed in her home in Nogales, while I write this safely from between the covers.”
“I cannot fathom the extent of their pain, of course, but I know that if something were to happen to my mother or my friends, I would burn everything until justice were achieved.”
“Apparently, there is a significant difference between a woman who decides to show her breasts in a glittery outfit or a see-through dress—and someone who does it in the name of a social cause.”
“Now, pink glitter seems to be the spark of a new revolution in Mexico against gender violence.”
“En televisores, tabletas y teléfonos inteligentes aparece la imagen de un hombre anaranjado alardeando sobre los peligros de la migración, en otros encontramos a un señor cano ‘desmintiendo’ lentamente lo que otros dicen de él, algunos muestran al mandatario de bigote siendo invadido por el espíritu de su predecesor. Desde Alaska hasta Ushuaia, el continente conoce una nueva era: la era de la posverdad.”
“This may sound as if Mexico were evil and did not want to help others, but this is not the case. If we become a safe third country, we would be biting off more than we can chew by condemning migrants to hellish conditions—mainly due to organized crime and lack of resources—and becoming the U.S. backyard.”
“I know several Latin American brothers and sisters who have fled their country. Some were born in the era of Chavismo and have not known anything new, until now.”
“In the end, whether it is rich businesspeople donating their money for the reconstruction of a national monument or ‘average Joe’s’ trying to help others in need, foreign aid is, and always will be, flawed.”
“The ‘Spain Affair’ is not a foreign policy strategy, but a national strategy to achieve López Obrador’s political goals. At 7 am tomorrow, we are convinced a new controversy regarding Mexico’s foreign policy will arise. This is not over yet.”
“We know a lot of cases of corrupt and fraudulent men, but we are not used to seeing female names associated with this type of behavior. One of the main reasons is because the percentage of women in leadership and influential positions is quite low.”
“There are more men named John running large companies than women.”
“Just being a woman in politics has not necessarily meant supporting policies in favor of other women. For example, a deputy in Veracruz proposed establishing a 10pm curfew for women to avoid more femicides in her state.”
Illustrations by Malena Guerrero
“In delivery rooms all across Mexico, babies are born with a little monster by their side. The monster is called machismo”
“Every four hours a woman in Mexico ceases to exist, a family is left heartbroken, a pile of dreams and hopes is shattered. If you still don’t believe me, just take a quick look at María Salguero’s map and remember that we are dying…”
“Juan Ricardo Pérez-Escamilla is the founder and CEO of Central de Inteligencia Política, a consulting group dedicated to improving communication strategies of institutions, candidates, and other axes of Mexican politics. Pérez-Escamilla is also co-founder of Oraculus, a platform that uses a poll-of-polls mechanism to give people free access to information about candidates and their media coverage.”
“The biggest problem is the lack of public policies that encourage the training and funding of civilian forces. As well as the inability of the Mexican government to create a system of checks-and-balances and make ‘risky’ areas more secure. This inability comes from crippling institutions that allow corrupt politicians to be a part of major decision making.”
“Anyone who doesn’t want to grow can either leave or be killed. – A young man with a hard look on his face and a weapon by his side said this to a group of farmers in Nariño, a department in western Colombia, according to a source who witnessed the interaction.”
“What should be done to protect human rights from corruption? There is still no clear answer to which mechanisms are best to prosecute and punish the perpetrators.”
“I was twelve years old, and a man on the street was already verbally harassing me. He looked at me as if I were a juicy steak instead of an innocent child.”
“Machismo may not kill as quickly as a gunshot, but it is a silent and insidious torture.“
Verónica A. Lira Ortiz 