Interweaving experiences from Mexico, Guatemala and Spain: Testimonies on the violence faced by racialised migrant women in countries of origin, transit, destination and return

This session saw the exchange of experiences and knowledge among organisations that work on the ground with migrant women who face different types of violence in their countries of origin, transit, destination and return, as a result of the securitisation of borders and the criminalisation of migrants. From an intersectional feminist perspective, participants learned from the experiences of racialised migrant women.

The co-organisers of the session were organisations working with people directly affected by migration in Mexico (ODA and CAFAMI), Guatemala (ACCSS) and Spain (Red Latinas). These four organisations participated in the Leadership for Global Advocacy (LIGA) programme organised by the Women in Migration Network (WIMN). WIMN was also a co-organiser of the session.

Speakers

Diana Carolina Montenegro Gómez works at Asociación Coordinadora Comunitaria de Servicios (ACCSS) Guatemala, where she has acquired experience accompanying rural communities, most of them Indigenous, from the northern region of the country. She works to promote their rights, defend their territory and promote leadership of women and youth.

Itzel Polo Mendieta is an anthropologist specialising in international migration. She is the co-founder and currently the advocacy coordinator, of Centro de Atención a la Familia Migrante Indígena (Center for Accompaniment of the Migrant Indigenous Family – CAFAMI). She actively participates in local, national and regional initiatives to defend the rights of migrants.

Leni Alvarez Perez is a returnee woman (‘pocha’) born in Mexico and raised undocumented in the USA. She currently fights for the recognition of migration as a human right and the end of family separation. She is currently the coordinator of Poch@ House, a space for artivism of Otros Dreams en Acción (ODA), an organisation created by and for persons impacted by deportation and forced return. She is also the co-creator of ‘Pochas So What’, a community space across borders, and she channels her artistic expression through the character Sirena Monarca.