Brainstorm #5 - Angie Lai

Senorita Extraviada was a very sobering and upsetting movie, putting a spotlight on the corruption and atrocities that occur among the borderlands. Although the young women of Juarez, Mexico are rendered disposable, the film tells their stories by interviewing family members and women who have fallen victim to the abuses. Some of these women have come out with their stories, calling out the abuse of the police (30:00). While it is true that this disposability was challenged, sadly, justice was not served. Lisa Cacho describes "social death" as an experience of being torn away from society or not integrated into society, experienced by people of color. Her idea of "de facto status crime", laws that only criminalize people with certain identities (5:30), like sex workers, was highlighted in Senorita Extraviada when blame was put on the disappeared women for their status as "prostitutes" (9:00). One way these women and families have confronted these tragedies is by painting black crosses on pink backgrounds in public places (Fregoso, 20). The grassroots group Voces sin Eco, a group of families of victims, painted these in public spaces to "[forge] a new public identity for women, claiming public space for them as citizens" and making them visible (Fregoso, 21). These demonstrations have grown, drawing more attention to these tragedies and holding authorities accountable (Fregoso, 22). Art, like the film Senorita Extraviada, functions as witness in that it often reveals the truth and sheds light on the realities of situations.