WATCH NOW
Watch on the app
Latinas vs. Machismo: The Women Fighting for Change in Latin America
Machismo has long been a deeply rooted cultural reality across Latin America. It’s a mindset that enforces strict gender roles, placing men in positions of power while expecting women to be submissive and self-sacrificing. It affects everything, from how families are structured to workplace dynamics, politics, and even the justice system.
But Latinas have always fought back. From the rise of feminist movements like Ni Una Menos to the tireless work of activists pushing for legal reforms, Latina women are redefining what it means to be powerful in a society that often tries to silence them.
Machismo and Gender Violence in Latin America
Machismo isn’t just outdated, it can be deadly. Latin America reports some of the highest rates of gender-based violence worldwide, with at least 3,897 femicides recorded across 27 countries in 2023. That’s roughly 11 women killed daily simply for being women, and these statistics aren’t getting better. In the first half of 2024 alone, 2,128 femicides were documented, averaging one every two hours. The United Nations has labeled this crisis a “pandemic.”
Femicide is just one piece of the puzzle. Between 63% and 76% of women in Latin America have faced violence from either partners or family members. Many of these incidents go unreported due to issues like corruption, victim-blaming, and insufficient resources for survivors.
Even though laws are in place to fight gender-based violence, they are often not effectively enforced. While countries such as Mexico and Chile have taken steps to increase penalties for femicide, conviction rates are still low. The deeply rooted machismo culture, resistance to change, and lack of funding make it challenging for victims to get the justice they deserve.
Even with these obstacles, Latina women are standing up for themselves. Activists are advocating for policy reforms, coordinating protests, and spearheading movements that call for justice and accountability. These women leading the charge aren’t just focused on legislative change but on transforming societal attitudes.
Latina Feminists Leading the Way
Mónica Roa
View this post on Instagram
Mónica Roa is a Colombian human rights attorney who has dedicated her career to advocating for women’s reproductive rights. In 2006, she played a pivotal role in the landmark ruling that partially decriminalized abortion in Colombia, permitting it in cases of rape, fetal malformation, or threats to the mother’s health.
Roa’s work laid the foundation for Just Cause, a movement that fought for complete abortion decriminalization in Colombia. In 2022, Colombia became one of the most progressive Latin American countries on abortion rights, allowing the procedure up to 24 weeks. Her fight inspired movements across the region, including recent abortion law changes in Mexico and Argentina. However, her work has made her a target. She has received death threats and harassment from anti-abortion groups, but she refuses to be silenced.
Arussi Unda
If you recall Mexico’s massive “Un Día Sin Nosotras” (A Day Without Us) strike on March 9, 2020, you can thank Arussi Unda for that. Unda is a feminist activist from Veracruz, Mexico, and the founder of the feminist collective Las Brujas del Mar (The Sea Witches). She spearheaded the national strike, during which millions of women across Mexico refused to go to work, school, or even leave their homes for a day, to illustrate what the country would be like without women.
The protest was a direct response to the alarming rise in femicides and gender violence in Mexico, a country where 10 women are murdered every day. Unda’s movement was so powerful that it got international attention and forced the government to acknowledge the crisis. In the same year, TIME magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world.
Marcela Lagarde y de los Ríos
View this post on Instagram
Marcela Lagarde is a Mexican anthropologist, writer, and former politician whose work has been crucial in understanding and defining femicide. As a legislator, she helped push for the legal classification of femicide in Mexico, recognizing it as a distinct crime fueled by misogyny and structural inequality.
Through her academic work, Lagarde has emphasized that femicide is not just a result of individual acts of violence but a systemic issue rooted in patriarchal power structures. Her research and advocacy have shaped policies across Latin America, making her one of the most influential feminists in the region.
Tarcila Rivera Zea
View this post on Instagram
Born in a Quechua-speaking Indigenous community in Peru, Tarcila Rivera Zea began her career as a journalist, gathering testimonies from Indigenous women who experienced sexual violence and discrimination.
She later founded the International Indigenous Women’s Forum (FIMI), an organization dedicated to advocating for Indigenous women’s rights around the world. She has collaborated with the United Nations and human rights organizations to highlight the challenges faced by Indigenous women, particularly in Latin America.
Rivera Zea believes that Indigenous women should be recognized not only as victims but also as leaders driving social change. She advocates for education access, land rights, and protection against violence for Indigenous communities.
Rita Laura Segato
Ver esta publicación en Instagram
If you’ve ever read about feminism in Latin America, you’ve probably encountered Rita Segato. The Argentine anthropologist and activist has devoted her career to examining gender violence, masculinity, and how society perpetuates sexual violence.
Her groundbreaking research on feminicides in Ciudad Juárez argued that sexual violence isn’t just a crime but a system of power meant to dominate women. Her work has helped redefine how we understand and combat gender violence.
She has also criticized the justice system and the media for normalizing violence against women and failing to hold perpetrators accountable. Her books and essays are considered essential readings in Latin American feminist studies.
Machismo isn’t going to disappear overnight, but these women, and many others, are proving that change is possible. They’re challenging laws, breaking stereotypes, and pushing back against a culture that has long silenced women.
Latin America still has a long way to go, but thanks to activists like Roa, Unda, Araya, Rivera Zea, and Segato, the region is moving toward a more just, more equal future. And if history has taught us anything, it’s this: when Latinas fight, they win.
for the latest updates from LatiNation