Gender, ethnicity and violence in Ayutla, Oaxaca

Research on gender violence has been conducted since the sixties. The problem has been conceptualized and documented, although not necessarily looked after. Oaxaca stands out as one of the states where women are more likely to be attacked. This paper analyzes gender violence in Ayutla, a Mixe community of Oaxaca. Data were gathered through quantitative and qualitative methods. The main results are: psychological violence is the most common one; numerous cases of incest and ravishment occur; economic violence generally involves men totally abandoning women; local and State authorities exercise institutional violence by neglecting women's charges. The paper analyzes women's discursive strategies to re-signify their rights, and a successful case of rape within marriage which strengthened the struggle for such rights.