The Grisly Deaths of a Woman and a Girl Shock Mexico and Test Its President

I applaud the Mexican women for marching, identifying these murders as "femicide", and demanding social and political change. Basically, women are still second class citizens most everywhere. We can barely get a woman to be a serious contender for president in the U.S.Young women are sexual chattel, and older women are work mammies. Women need to trust themselves more, learn how to trust other women, vote for representative government that includes parity for women. Women need equal salaries and access to capital. They need to start more businesses and acquire more wealth. They need more representations of womanhood and possibility beyond Barbie and Hello Kitty. And if the macho police and government doesn't want to punish men for murder in a "domestic" situation, then maybe they should be replaced by people who will do their job.

What needs to be reported are, is there a difference between the rising rate of homicide generally, and the rising rate of murders of women. The term "femicide" explains nothing - no evidence is cited that women are being killed "because they are women". If the murders cited are those of a violent man against a female partner who rejected him, it is very often the case that a rejected, paranoid, or, for some other reason, a man whose hatred is unconstrained, will kill a woman (usually a domestic dispute), and her children, whether they are his children or not, as the hostility metastizes from "you", to "you and yours". Mexico has been spiraling downward for decades, as the societal, tribal, and familial bonds that once constrained all manner of violence, have been washed away by poverty, grotesque income inequality, the rise of drugs, and the associated brutalization, and use of violence as a usual "management strategy" by the people in the "industry". Males are biologically qwired, physically, and psychologically, to be more aggressive than females. Soicieties, and other civil institutions are the tools people use to reduce violence, and particularly biolence against women. When the society is failing, violence will escalate rapidly. Welcome to the "progress" brought about by the industrialization of an agrarian, civil, society traditionally governed by relationships, not rules.

Look at the world and there seems to be only one way out. Men should get out of the way and let women govern. There’s a reason it’s called Mother Earth .

How about we quit the disgusting identity politics and focus on violence against people.

For me an additional high risk in the tragic and increasingly rapid downward spiral, is that a Mexican Bolsonaro is inevitable. It will solve nothing and be a superficial, emotional panacea. But when the wrong person saying the "right" things comes along, anything goes.

I honestly have to wonder how anyone can think that this mentality is not imported to the USA via immigration (legal or illegal). It permeates Mexico and other "machismo" styled countries. From the streets to the governments.

I honestly have to wonder how anyone can think that this mentality is not imported to the USA via immigration (legal or illegal). It permeates Mexico and other "machismo" styled countries. From the streets to the governments.

As appalling as they are, these crimes are not unique to Mexico. Just this week a man in Australia — a former rugby star, no less, burned himself and his entire family alive while they rode in their car. Mexico is a vast country, with more than 120 million people, at least half a dozen distinct regions and scores of different indigenous groups. Certainly there are some sick and demented men there, and on this issue, AMLO is the very definition of tone deaf. But the one thing that anyone who spends any time in Mexico notices is the deep love of family the Mexicans have, and in my view, the calls for a boycott of the country being made here are misguided. The country I am boycotting is the United States of America, where persecution of the weak and marginalized is not the work of criminals, but official government policy.

There is danger for women everywhere. The US Embassy in Madrid just sent out warning that women are at increased risk for sexual assault. Women are targets everywhere. The situation in Mexico is very sad and needs to be addressed immediately. AMLO, as the president is known, spent weeks talking about a raffle of a presidential airplane worth about $10M USD. I could not believe how excited he got about explaining this to journalists—in the end the raffle was not feasible because, ahem, where would the winner keep the airplane?? Couldn’t he have spent his time addressing in of the countries many problems? I am a Mexican/American dual citizen. I travel to Guanajuato every few months and have never felt unsafe. I travel to Tijuana to volunteer at an shelter for migrants and never feel unsafe. Civil society in Mexico needs to be strengthened. Those with the means to do something about femicide in Mexico do not have the will to help because they think it’s not a problem that affects them.

Asylum is the only option for the women of Mexico and Central America. US rule of law, as weak as it can be in domestic violence, is their only salvation. Long term the US needs to take over Central America and make these countries states of the Union. The prosperity with the introduction of US law will be spectacular. Those who talk about culture and language have never been to LA or are lying and members of the oppressing classes. I spent seven years working with the poor in Honduras. Most everyone I worked with are now in the US and prospering. More than half the kids in our local school speak Spanish. The US will be a bilingual country with essentially the same demographics as Brazil in 20 years.

Until men are taught to live in equality rather than rule, nothing will change.

I have been to Mexico City three times in the last three years and always felt safe. I twice traveled by myself and took my cues from the other women I observed. I do have friends there, but mostly went about on my own. I am trying to understand is there a connection to these horrible crimes? Is it cartel related ( although my understanding is those crimes are mostly happening in other areas/regions). The president's response is lukewarm at best, but then look what we have to deal with in the US. I know Mexico is a macho country. Will we ever see a decrease in violent crimes against women in any country?

It breaks my heart to read stories like this where innocent people die. Whether it's in Mexico with the increasing femicide or a person shooting and killing dozens at a school in US. I've been lucky enough to have lived in both countries and I can assure you that it is not about the country, it's about how we treat others and our selfishness to satisfy our needs before thinking about others. Just yesterday I walked to a Starbucks in a big city in Mexico and within 5 minutes 9 men had either honked or yelled at me. A month ago I was in New York and two guys stared at me the entire time I used the metro making me feel unsafe. I guess sometimes being brave is not enough if you're a woman. I hope we can make a change in Mexico and that Lopez Obrador finally takes his place as the maximum authority in the country and do his job, or at least pretend he cares. On March 9th, women in Mexico will protest by "disappearing" for a day, for some this movement might be pointless, I only hope it can help create awareness and save more women. And to all of you who are deciding not to visit Mexico as a solution: Mexico will always always always make you feel at home and we will be happily waiting to have you in our country.

I use the world's population when I was born as a marker. We were at four billion, when I was born in the Caribbean. I was fortunate to come to the US, to be educated here. I've always been interested in what is going on in society and the world, but there were things unseen and unknown, that I've tapped into in earnest. From the murderous acts of ISIS in the Middle East to those of the Cartels in Mexico, I've seen hundreds of hours of videos. I feel the need to keep going because I have not seen enough to know what their methods are. I balance that with the humanity that I show my fellow New Yorkers from the Americas. I rent out an apartment for no profit, I find them work, I make them feel like the most important checkout girl in the world. I may not be able to change the horrible situations that they have escaped, so I try to care for those within reach. When one is old enough, we learn to layer and superimpose feelings. I met a cleaning woman from Serbia, who spoke of her experiences during the Croatian War. I don't remember what she said, but I remember the /sadness/ in her voice as she spoke across the empty office. It's the same sadness that I feel for Mexico, and I can't be the only one who both feels this way and steels his mind to their methods. There must come a time for change. My mind is not at rest with seven and a half billion people and my meager efforts to ameliorate suffering. Good men must learn to focus their capacity for evil and act.

Programs for battered women including shelters is non existent in Mexico. How can a child be taken away from a school by a person who is not a parent, guardian or designated friend or family member? In Michoacan, my friend's daughter attended a nearby elementary school that only released her to her mother or designated person. The campus. was locked during the school day and students left through a door when the designated person presented him or herself.

What has happened down there? I remember vacationing in Mexico City in the 80’s and 90’s, exploring all the Mayan ruins from there to the Yucatán Peninsula, and a few solo trips to Cancun even...I loved those trips, met lovely locals, and always felt safe. I absolutely won’t go now. What a shame.

These criminals are worse than will animals. Where is the Mexican President looking?

Femicides, criminal acts in many countries (so, not only in Mexico but in other nations where 'machismo' remains dominant, i.e. Bolivia) do remain our deepest shame...for not doing enough to stop it. And the police seems to be looking the other way; do they forget that 'indifference kills'? Although the ideal is to have families lead by example, so the children learn to respect, if not love, each other early on, we are living in a violent world where we must take vigorous remedial action now! That Lopez Obrador is not doing enough is an outrage. Does he need to wait until it happens in his own family, or what, before he takes specific action? Domestic abuse is pandemic but inaction seems the law of the land. Who are we, tolerant of this horror, the assassination of human beings just because they (and almost exclusively 'they' are men!) can?

Obrador has proven to be engaged in a full-blown charade. Elected on a change society mantra, especially relating to the lives of the less fortunate common folk, he is now known to be helping enrich his cohort, ignoring the less fortunate and as for the violence and death inflicted upon Mexican women, he is not especially concerned, personally or governmentally. He is a fraud. Mexico deserves much better.

What a disappointment AMLO has turned out to be; I had such high hopes after his election. So glad the women of Mexico are taking things into their own hands now; it's the best path.

I will not go to Mexico again until this is completely eliminated. How dare there be any such situation.

Women abducting and killing girls, what a disgrace!

I know some readers and commenters will laugh at my remark, but I mean it earnestly and soberly: The senselessness and randomness of these crimes has a definite demonic aspect to it, as does the savagery of the drug wars in Mexico. This is real-life horror literature. Hope that no one you care about travels to Mexico until that nation returns to sanity, if it ever does. And if your loved ones are not there, keep them from traveling there.

This is the real -- horrible -- face of machismo, that Latin American culture trait that permits men to own and use women. A typical Colombian male will say, "Oh, I've got myself a really good woman," and you understand that it is that she serves him and his needs and purposes well. Ergo she is good. It is ingrained in history, which often was far-west-wild and required the protective strength of men for women and children. But then under the immense strains of history in this Hemisphere, machismo became hard-wired and just an excuse for men to be savage and selfish. López Obrador is going to have to evolve at the speed of light to keep up with contemporary Mexican women, though. Many strands in Latin (and also Afro and Amerindian) culture, like the primacy of mothers, the food, the dancing and the singing and acting by women, have combined to pose a very sudden challenge to male superiority, one that is increasingly becoming a fact of life.

Hit the country in ‘the pocketbook’: stop traveling to the All-Inclusives, stop cruising to their ports and boycott Dodges, Fords and VWs exported from Mexico until.....

Women and girls are imperiled all over the world simply because of their gender. It's shameful!

Are there a lot of street security cameras in Mexico?

So, in response to these latest heinous acts of femicide, the Mexican Congress votes to increase the maximum prison sentence from 60 years to 65 years. And this is supposed to be a deterrent? If 60 doesn’t do it, how is 65 the magical solution, pray tell? How absurd! Congress just wants to be seen as doing something, when in fact, it has no idea how to address the problem.

I am grateful for this coverage of the courageous efforts of Mexican women and feminists, and the lives lost to femicide, including Ingrid and Fatima - but the language in this article unfortunately demonstrates part of the problem. The article refers to "the murders of" Ingrid and Fatima, and "violence against women," as if this is just something that happened out of the air, without an agent - but these women were murdered by men. Violence against women is men's violence against women & girls. This is not just "gender-based violence" - women & girls are murdered in Mexico and everywhere in the world by men because they are female. It is incorrect to refer to femicidio as being "because of their gender." A 7-year-old girl has not yet developed a sense of gender-identity - she was murdered because she was a girl - a female child. This is part of Mexican feminists' message - that femicidio is a hate crime against women by men. They are saying that it is in men to stop the violence - "ni una muerta más." Coverage of their work should recognize what they are trying to do and say - no more of this "gender-based" or "VAW" that obscures the true issue - men's violence - which has claimed so many women & girls' lives.

Obrador has been strikingly feeble when it comes to protecting the rights of refugees. After that, Its disappointing but hardly shocking to read of his initial response to these terrible crimes.

The population of Mexico in 1950 was 28 million. This year it is 100 million more than that. This level population growth is unsustainable. The numbers in Central America are even more dire. The underlying problems in most of the world are caused by too many people.

López Obrador has come up woefully short on this urgent issue. Women throughout Mexico and Central America are menaced by the threat of violent death, for which no one is accountable. Women's and girls' lives are deemed inconsequential—these cases are not solved, impunity reigns. I doubt if changing the sentencing for these crimes from 60 to 65 years will do anything—there has to be much more dedicated investigation and prosecution of violent crimes (murders) against women, and huge campaigns to change a culture of machismo. Mexican women are standing strong in protest, and I applaud them. Rest in peace, Ingrid and Fátima—and so many others.

I still do not know why people vacation in "safe areas" of Mexico. I worked in Mexico for many years and there are no safe areas, just areas that are safer than dangerous areas. Anywhere in Mexico, Mexicans and tourists are at risk of violent crime, its just a question of degree. Be very careful even if you are in an area that the hotel tells you is "safe".

"femicide"? How about just homicide. The overwhelming majority of all people murdered are men so maybe they're focusing on the wrong issue?

Absolutely gut wrenching. My family lives in Mexico and I fear for their lives every single day. No one can escape the violence there.

"How do you eliminate the Machismo attitude that is pervasive in several generations in the matter of a few years?" This is the question that the Mexican government needs to tackle, but also the society on a whole, the media contributes to the Machismo attitude; advertisers, sports leagues, music, and two to three generations of male attitudes toward women as the 'weaker sex'. The change needs to start int he home and needs to focus on what is purely a downside (there is no upside) of Machismo.

What are the highest political offices held by women in Mexico? Until women have political power, women will have no protection in Mexican society.

Somebody should forward this article to Amy Klobuchar and Tom Steyer.