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Physical autonomy is defined as “the capacity to freely decide on issues of sexuality and reproduction, and the right to live a life free of violence (ECLAC, 2020). This section looks at gender violence women face that includes physical, psychological, and sexual harm. The impacts of various forms of gender violence on women are highlighted in the following sections, as well as the different ways that feminists, activists, and survivors are resisting gender violence and fighting for women’s autonomy throughout Latin America.

[First section]

The second section explores the epidemic of gender-based violence in Mexico, taking a closer look at intersectional identities among the victims. Examining race and class along with gender allows for a more well-rounded understanding of the most vulnerable groups of women. Investigating race, especially in Mexico is a complex area of study considering the country’s race-blind ideology that strives to equalize the nation; the reality is much more convoluted for Afro-descendant and Indigenous women – two of the most underrepresented groups in all facets of Mexican society. Tying this into the historical background of Mexico and its colonial influence today, there is evidence to suggest the intricate design of violence against women of color. Delving into the concept of “mestizaje” or the implicit preference for lighter skin unpacks the erasure of marginalized identities. With all this in mind, the relationship between race, class, and gender is important to distinguish as a study of its own regarding violence against women.

The third section focuses on the fight for reproductive justice in Central America, looking at the impacts that highly restrictive abortion bans have on the lives of women in El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua, three countries that have the strictest abortion laws in Latin America. Contextualizing the criminalization of abortion with other reproductive health issues, such as trends in maternal mortality rates, unmet demands for family planning services, high rates of adolescent pregnancy, and unmet demands for family planning services, this section seeks to analyze the status of reproductive health and rights in the subregion from an intersectional lens. Additionally, this section explores the emergence of the Latin American “Green Tide” movement for safe and legal abortion, analyzing how women women and feminists in the Central American subregion are responding to reproductive injustices and forming part of a larger movement for women’s autonomy in the face of social and political challenges.

The fourth section analyzes cyberfeminism’s role in the movement for legal abortion in Latin America. Because of the punitive restrictive abortion laws in Latin American countries, feminists have been fighting in the struggle for an expansion of reproductive rights for decades. With the creation of the internet, feminists see its potential in social movements. However, the internet has been gendered over time and has evolved into a male-dominated space. But feminists’ and women’s participation has been increasing. This brings cyberfeminism in to the conversation. It helps bring race, gender, and class to the forefront of the discussion and impede misogyny online. Digital spaces created from it can have a hand in organizing rallies, sharing information or testimonies to show their opposition to the abortion laws in place. Two collectives are studied to understand how cyberfeminism contributes to combat the criminalization of abortion in Latin American countries. Concerns for digital activism are explored because it is seen as not effective. It is known to be little to no effort placing limitations on its part in moving social movements forward. With all that being said, cyberfeminism centers intersectionality which is important to understand who is impacted the most in countries where abortion is criminalized. We learn there are unconventional modes and tools feminists can use for the advancement in social movements.

Finally, section five provides an overview of domestic violence in Honduras as a formal step leading into feminicide, and consequently, a driving contributor towards the forced migration of Honduran women towards the U.S. Honduras is identified as a war zone where the female bodies are its battlefield. Whether its sending messages of terror, instilling fear in the society, and/or enforcing control, disfiguring and violating the female body achieves these goals through grotesque manifestations of violence. Women are abused, not only by strangers but also within the (dis)comfort of their own homes, leaving them no place to escape. The laws, instead of protecting them from domestic abuse, enable it. Without any prosecution or protection, women are left with the single choice to attempt to escape and seek asylum in the U.S. – where their bodies would also be policed and exploited for labor, culminating in a cycle of oppression for low-income women and mothers from Honduras.