What we as women experience

Posted by Barbara on November 9, 2025 in feminism, Living today, security, Travel, Women's equality issues | 2 comments

It really beggars belief: President Sheinbaum has a mountain to climb: the first woman President of Mexico took office just over a year ago. Her triumphal speech spelled out her vision: ‘It is time for women,’ she said to applause. ‘Women have arrived to shape the destiny of our beautiful nation….I’m a mother, grandmother, scientist, a woman of faith, and now, president!’ she said as she concluded her inaugural speech. 

So how could a man get near enough to her to physically grope her as she spoke to supporters in the street near the National Palace in Mexico City?  Where the heck was her security detail? Are they men or women? What does this say about attitudes to women in Mexico?

The man was arrested; he had allegedly harassed other women in the crowd, and it is great news that President Sheinbaum is going to press charges.  ‘My view is, if I don’t file a complaint, what will happen to other Mexican women? If they do this to the president, what will happen to all women in our country?’ Sheinbaum said at a news conference.

‘I decided to press charges because this is something that I experienced as a woman .. that we as women experience in our country,’ she is reported to have said.  ‘A line must be drawn.’

Women’s rights groups and feminist commentators have said the incident shows the extent of ingrained machismo in Mexican society, where a man believes he has the right to accost even the president if she is a woman.  Femicide is also a huge problem in Mexico, with around 98% of gender-based murders avoiding sanction. 

The World Population Review publishes rankings on the Most Dangerous Countries for Women 2025.  Do follow the link for greater detail, but Mexico does not actually feature in the Top Five. They are: Afghanistan, Yemen, Central African Republic, DR Congo and South Sudan.  No real surprises there.

In an attempt to determine which countries are the most dangerous for female travellers, husband and wife journalists Asher and Lyric Fergusson studied and ranked the 50 most popular tourist countries. Their Women’s Danger Index ranked each country based on eight factors: street safety for women, intentional homicide of women, non-partner sexual violence, intimate partner sexual violence, legal discrimination, global gender gap, gender inequality index, and violence against women attitudes.

According to this index, Mexico ranks fourth overall in the most dangerous countries for women, as well as ranking fourth for the percentage of women who do not feel safe walking at night and for intentional homicide against women. Only about 33% of women in Mexico reported feeling safe walking alone at night. Additionally, Mexico ranks third for non-partner sexual violence, which about 16% of women experience.

While at university, my daughter travelled solo in Mexico during one of the vacations. She had a fascinating time and did not personally experience any threatening situations. One day she met an Austrian student who was staying at the same hostel as she was.  They had a brief chat about their travels and went off to their respective rooms. Tragically, the Austrian girl had met up with a local guy, who shot her a few hours later.  The murderer was never found.

President Sheinbaum has a mountain to climb.