In this essay, Luevano initiates a theological reflection on the cases of the approximately 250 missing and 500 murdered women of Juarez-Chihuahua, Mexico. The women are victims of femicide, the murder of women by men. Luevano’s main purpose is to engage femicide as a theological challenge. After presenting a brief description of the social, political, and economic conditions that have fostered violence against women in Northern Mexico, the author focuses on exploring how the mutilated and dismembered bodies of these women call for an appropriate theological analysis. Finally, the essay concludes with a reflection on the power and the necessity of developing theological and ethical responses to the reality of femicide.
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In Northern Mexico, increasing numbers of violent events have dramatically affected women’s lives. Since 1993, more than 250 women have disappeared and at least 500 women have been killed in the border town of Juarez, Mexico, and surrounding state of Chihuahua. (1) Domestic violence was the cause of approximately two-thirds of these murders. The rest can likely be attributed to targeted violence surrounding narcotics trafficking. Young women between the ages of ten and thirty are kidnapped, tortured, raped, and murdered. In many cases, their bodies are mutilated; in most cases, their remains are dumped in the desert slums on Juarez’s outskirts. On occasion, murderers leave victims’ bodies in the city’s central business district, in what appears to be an arrogant display of perpetrators’ immunity from the law. (2) These crimes are commonly referred to as “The Maquiladora Murders,” a reference to the women’s factory-worker status. I contend that they are part of a wider cycle of violence called “femicide.” (3)
I base my approach on observations and data gathered during field research in Juarez and El Paso, Texas, where I interviewed people directly affected by murder and others beyond the borderlands who have taken an interest in the situation there. I approach the Juarez-Chihuahua femicides from the standpoint of my own theological sensitivities and concerns. Their deaths call for an appropriate response in which the horror of femicide is opposed and denounced in word and deed. Such a response must analyze and address all conditions that cause or allow these women to be murdered without consequence. Thus in this essay, I focus on our response to the call of these events. Ultimately, I believe the Juarez-Chihuahua femicides are a modern-day summons to conversion for us all.
Only bold attention to the stark reality of the Juarez-Chihuahua femicides constitutes an adequate starting point for comprehensive consideration of this evil. Lack of such attention would more likely than not result in failure to see and accept the Juarez-Chihuahua femicides for what they are. Such failure would undermine the prophetic potency of this event and could lead to an idealization or glorification of the historically imposed suffering of these women. A wealth of comprehensive feminist theology rightly argues against such idealization and glorification.
I have divided my reflection into three sections. First, I present a brief description of the social, political, and economic conditions that created the environment fostering violence against women in Northern Mexico for more than fourteen years. Second, I focus on exploring how the mutilated and dismembered bodies of these women are part of the Juarez-Chihuahua theological event that calls for an appropriate response. Last, I point out the necessity of developing theological and ethical responses from the theological community to the reality of femicide.
A Culture of Violence as the Context of Femicide: The Impact of Globalization
Several factors have contributed to support an environment of violence against women and femicide in Northern Mexico. I suggest that these factors are structurally related to the processes of globalization affecting this specific context. Among these factors, my research shows the importance of considering the prevalent governmental corruption, North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), las invasiones (the invasions), the drug cartel, and shifts in gender roles.