Giving Compass' Take:

• Michelle Threadgould and Dana Preston explain how Casa Amiga Esther Chávez Cano is working to protect women and increase gender equality in Juárez, which is famous for femicide. 

• How can funders work to support groups that are working locally to improve gender equality? 

• Learn about a project working with men to advance gender equality in Mexico. 

The City of Juárez, Mexico makes headlines for two things: femicide or the “disappearances” of women, and being the center of cartel warfare. Since 1996, the murder rate in Juárez has been so high that at its peak, there were 10 murders a day. Now, Juárez is a city filled with posters for missing girls and murals dedicated to those who have passed away—and those whose murders remain unsolved. In the city, 95% of murders are never investigated or prosecuted.

It can feel like justice will never be served.

Amidst this backdrop, the nonprofit Casa Amiga Esther Chávez Cano is trying to make a difference. Through campaigns like “¡Ni una mas!” (“Not One More!”), marches, demonstrations, and community action, Casa Amiga is part of a larger movement in Mexico towards women’s rights and gender equity. The organization provides intervention services to help survivors of family and domestic violence, including medical attention, access to a women’s shelter, psychological treatment, and legal help. Additionally, Casa Amiga works to do outreach in the community and educate the public about domestic violence as a means of prevention.

Read the full article by Michelle Threadgould and Dana Preston about gender equality from Hispanics in Philanthropy.