Mexico

On 27 January 2025, the collective Mujeres Colibrí, Defensoras de la Vida (Hummingbird Women, Defenders of Life) presented their research on the multiple forms of violence experienced by Indigenous and Afro-descendant women in the state of Guerrero, Mexico, to state representatives and local media.

A new-born baby discovered abandoned in a plastic bag sparked a public furore, pitting the church and pro-life defenders against advocates of women's right to choose and better sex education and support for young people.

Donald Trump wasted no time in ordering a dramatic reversal of his predecessor's immigation policy. He immediately reintroduced the controversial 'Quédate en México' policy. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum responded by repeating her country's commitment to 'humanitarian principles'.

Mexico's first female president, Claudia Sheinbaum, presented an account of her first hundred days in office at a huge rally in Mexico City on 12 January 2025. She promised to continue AMLO's 'Fourth Transformation' and placed social reforms at the top of her agenda. The imminent inauguration of Donald Trump cast a shadow, but Sheinbaum promised cooperation, but never subordination.

LAB council member Elva Narcía Cancino reports from Chiapas, Mexico, where Zapatista indigenous women meet for a training day for Resistance and Rebellion -- against the background of rising levels of violence fueled by drug trafficking gangs and a government which has been ineffectual at best.

A delegation visited London to talk about Indigenous struggles in Mexico and the state of human rights in the country today, and to build ties with organizations and activists in the UK. 

This list, put together for LAB by Camila Vergara Ruiz on the 10 year anniversary of the Ayotzinapa case, gathers informative resources to help us understand the forced disappearance of 43 students in Iguala in 2014. The list includes books, a podcast, a web platform and a documentary film.

Wirikuta is the most important sacred place for the Indigenous Wixárika people in the state of San Luis Potosí, Mexico. This place, which is of great importance for biodiversity and culture, is threatened by mining companies. The community has been fighting a legal battle to annul the 78 contracts threatening the site’s existence. They hope the Mexican judicial system will rule in their favour.

A new project, ‘Archiving Real-Time Literary Responses to the Covid-19 in Latin America’, is housed at the University of Birmingham. aims to document some of this literary production in this exceptional period of global history. It will make a body of viral literature in Latin America available through open access for future researchers and the wider public before it is lost.

The Kanan Ts'ono'ot collective is making history in Mexico by demanding that cenotes be granted legal status and the Maya people named as their guardians against threats posed by industrial farming.