Latin America, or as we named our land before conolization: Abya Yala, is a region where we live and feel incongruity. The Abya Yala is one of the regions with the highest levels of inequality in the world. In the region, we see great advances in the exercise of f girls’ and young women’s rights, such as access to free and public legal abortion in Uruguay, Colombia, Mexico City, and Argentina.
Simultaneously, we are confronted with the severe repercussions of drug trafficking in Mexico, Central America, and Brazil, not solely Colombia. The criminalization of social movements, particularly of young women, in Nicaragua, Guatemala, Peru, Ecuador, and Bolivia raises grave concerns regarding the right to choose, the right to demand accountability from governments, and the rampant femicide violence. The alarming levels of femicide violence primarily target young women, children, rural communities, indigenous people, Afro-descendants, individuals with disabilities, and those with diverse sexual orientations, including trans and intersex individuals.
On the other hand, Abya Yala is a region rich in movement history and legacy, this land and its people are characterized by our creativity and resistance. This region has been the birthplace of regional feminist assemblies since 1981, which have expanded to such an extent that Latin American feminisms now comprise different schools of thought and perspectives. The feminist youth movements have emerged as a significant force, resulting in increased presence, mobilization, and accomplishments. In Argentina, for instance, the “Pibes” or adolescents, have played a crucial role in reinvigorating the feminist movement, providing a new generation of women with the autonomy to make decisions regarding their bodies. Through organized protests, the youth were able to achieve legal access to abortion on the streets.
Abya Yala, Latin America, has gifted us with tales of resilience against oppressive forces, embodying creation, strength, art, poetry, music, and diverse means of combating the systemic violence that we all strive to dismantle each day. These stories gave us a meaningful gift: hope for our stories.
“Behind me there are many girls whom we are fighting for because there are many girls who have been raped, and well, it seems like this is a little push, an inspiration and that gives me the inspiration to continue fighting because we are not only fighting for ourselves, but it’s like a movement and we’re all supporting each other and there’s so much ahead of us, as well as behind us, and we’re trying to get ahead together and create a society where there isn’t so much discrimination.” Itzel, 15 years old, Código F collective, Melel Xojolabal.
