In October 2014, indigenous women in Mexico won a landmark victory in their struggle for political rights.

It came after years of campaigning by Eufrosina Cruz Mendoza, a Zapotec woman who had been prevented from becoming mayor of her local community.

She believed a system of special laws, allowing indigenous communities to self-govern with their own traditions, had allowed men to maintain their patriarchal positions but left women marginalised.

After Eufrosina challenged those traditions, the Mexican Senate amended the constitution to ensure indigenous women had the right to vote and stand in elections. She speaks to Jacqueline Paine.

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(Photo: Eufrosina Cruz Mendoza. Credit: Pedro Flores Belmonte)

I fought for Mexico’s indigenous women to get political equality

Witness History

I fought for Mexico’s indigenous women to get political equality