Mina Himlie, copy editor

I wrote this poem as part of my final project for a class while I was studying abroad in Mexico last spring. I decided not to edit the poem to reflect current news (such as Roe being officially overturned) because I think the chronological and cultural contexts in which I wrote it are important. Spanish is not my first language, but I was inspired to blend Spanish and English to connect some of the similarities between the experiences of women and feminine-presenting people in Mexico and the U.S. 

In 2019 there were

10 cada día.

Yo no pude encontrar

More recent numbers,

Pero, does that matter?

No matter what

Hay demasiado.

Son un gran problema aquí en México

But they happen in the U.S. too.

We just don’t have the language for them

Escrito en nuestras leyes.

The United States

Ha declarado una guerra contra las mujeres

With the draft to repeal Roe v. Wade.

But that’s just the most obvious declaration of war.

What about las mujeres indígenas

Who are 10 times more likely to be disappeared

Or murdered.

What about las situaciones de violencia doméstica?

Las violaciones?

El abuso?

El miedo que sentimos when we walk alone?

Las cosas que hacemos para protegernos 

Without a second thought:

Keys between our fingers

Llamadas con amigos, reales y falsas

Theorizing escape routes

Mirando la mapa 

To be sure the Uber driver isn’t kidnapping you.

All of these things are part of

La guerra contra las mujeres

In both the United States y México.

Pero en los Estados Unidos and Mexico

We are fighting back.

We take to the streets.

We make our voices heard.

And we demand the right to live.

El futuro es feminino

So fuck the patriarchy,

And do it like a girl.