aAs the sun rises over Mexico City, Marquigua sets out on a 45-minute bike ride from the edge of the city to Alameda Central Park. There, the 37-year-old activist joins a vibrant group of people lining the sidewalk with blankets and holding banners with messages supporting women’s rights.
The woman wears a green and purple scarf, the colors of Latin America’s equality movement.this Mercadita Feministaor Feminist Market, is one of several markets in the city that deals with more than commerce.
The stalls are also a protest against Mexico’s persistent gender inequality, with sidewalks transformed into canvases of colorful products ranging from jewelry and crafts to soap and vintage clothing.
On weekdays, Marquigua prints stickers and posters with slogans on them and sells them or exchanges them with his peers. She was tired of the discrimination and abuse she received at her workplace over her sexuality and chose to work in her market. She now calls herself a full-time activist.
“Part of our philosophy is to highlight the act of occupying public spaces as women and gender opponents, to make a political stand,” she said, adding that in the first sale of the day, she was selling $2 stickers. I handed over the set. “It’s about demonstrating our ability to sustain ourselves and create our own resources.”
Mexican human rights activist Mar Cruz has been following the development of Mercaditas Feministas since 2016. Mercaditas Feminista started as a Facebook group where women sold and exchanged food and other goods.
This embodies a “new economic approach” that involves not only the exchange of money, but also “the exchange of products, knowledge and services tailored to individual needs, from menstrual care to psychological assistance and legal services.” will also be held, she says.
During the coronavirus pandemic, increase in murderers Not only violence against women record number of layoffs With its work in Mexico, the group has grown as a support network.
“There was an emergency, so we needed to find a way for women to support themselves and help the unemployed make ends meet,” Cruz said.
As restrictions eased, women set up markets in Alameda Central Park, Colonia Roma, and Plaza Insurgentes.of Mexico City Human Rights Commission (CDHCM) says about 600 people are involved.
Nelly Lopez, 64, is a grandmother who not only sells products but also provides emotional and legal support, especially to victims of violence.
More than 3,000 women are murdered each year in Mexico, and the conviction rate continues to hover around 5%. Approximately one in four murders in Mexico is classified as a homicide.
Inequality is rampant within families. CDHCM Report A 2019 study found that women spend 67% of their time doing unpaid work such as childcare and housework, compared to 28% for men.
Ms. Lopez believes in developing economic opportunities for women in her country. “The state has failed us, so we only have each other. If we don’t save ourselves, no one will save us,” she says.
Mercaditas are unlicensed and are sometimes harassed by police and other street vendors, but they are locally recognized and the city’s rights commission has issued a warning: report To support A transformative impact on the capital.
For sellers, the real impact of their efforts lies in the networks they build.
Laura Lopez, 28, who sells stuffed animals and handmade jewelry, has not only made a living but also found a support network in Mercadita.
“I’m a single mom,” she says. “Sometimes I feel alone. But the politics of putting myself on the street makes me feel like I’m not alone. On the street, we’re all one.”
