Jackson Free Press

Millsaps College senior Jessica Lester has traveled extensively through Latin America. "I've seen a lot of the injustices and extreme poverty [there]," she says. That's why it is so vital to her that people are aware of the mass femicide occurring in northern Mexico.

More than 400 women have been murdered there since 1993 and another 300 have vanished into thin air. "The most tragic part of these killings is that no one is doing anything about it," says Lester. The police do little; in fact, they often refuse to classify these cases as crimes. Why? The victims are young poverty-stricken females, most of whom work in maquiladoras—sweatshops that export clothing, 90 percent of which is destined for the United States.

In order to have their case investigated, a family must report that their daughter has been "kidnapped." If the family reports her "missing," the case is not classified as a crime. Still, the police question the claim and demand evidence supporting it.

The police somehow still manage to botch the case more often than not. Crime scenes are not secured, evidence is mishandled or destroyed, and DNA results are mixed up. On occasion, the police have detained suspects. Confessions obtained with brutal torture, admissible in Mexican courts, do not convince the families. They have lost all hope for justice.

As if all of that isn't bad enough, the wealthy maquiladora owners do nothing to protect their employees, and the Mexican government has done very little. A high-profile self-defense program, implemented for public relations purposes, proved to be ineffective in preventing further crimes. The same can be said of the whistles given to the female workers.

Lester and senior Brian Wallace, who co-chair the anthropology club at Millsaps together, feel that much more can and should be done to stop these brutal murders. "Spreading awareness about the issue is key. The popular media have given very little attention to the tragedies that occur [near] our border every day, so spreading information about what's going on is our first subject," Wallace says.

"This issue is important to me on a personal level both because of my general interest in human rights and my specific interests in facilitating justice for Latin American people who have been suffering for years at the hands of corporations that don't respect their rights and governments that are inefficient and corrupt," he adds.

The anthropology club hosts the International Caravan for Justice in Juarez and Chihuahua at Millsaps on Tuesday, Oct. 26, 7:30 p.m., in Academic Complex Room 215. Free and open to the public, the event is sponsored by Mexico Solidarity Network, a coalition of organizations striving for human rights and economic justice. Event slogan "¡Ni una mas!" translates "not one more!"

The tour consists of five caravans traveling across the U.S. and two across Mexico between Oct. 18 and 30. Political activists working with the Mexico Solidarity Network in Washington, D.C., speak at each stop, along with some of the victims' mothers. "When these people start talking, they are no longer just silent victims, they are in your face!" Lester exclaims.

But, awareness of this issue is only part of the answer. Concerned citizens must let elected officials know their feelings on this issue. Surely the government has some pull with authorities in northern Mexico as a result of free trade agreements.

Ultimately, the students say, the changes must be made in the hearts of the Mexican people. The Mexico Solidarity Network's Web site says, "The femicides in Juarez do not occur in a vacuum. This isn't a matter of catching a serial killer; it's a matter of creating a society where women are valued at home and in the work place."

Visit http://www.mexicosolidarity.org for to learn how to help.