Bicycles As a Vehicle For Protest in Guatemala Favorite 

Practitioner: 

Date: 

Feb 13 2021

Location: 

Guatemala City

Non-profit organizations and a multitude of Guatemalan girls protested together demanding justice and security from the government. Guatemala's insecurity and cases of girls' disappearances have increased over the years. The protest started outside the Government Ministery (Ministerio de Gobernación) early in the morning, where protestors gathered riding their bikes. Then they started their route towards the Plaza de la Constitución, considered to be an iconic site where the most important official ceremonies take place.
The girls wore headbands with slogans written in purple: " Quiero salir a jugar" I wanna go play outside / "Solo queremos vivir en paz" We only want to leave in peace / and "Exigimos una vida digna" We demand dignity. They also decorated their bikes with posters, teddy bears, and toys.
The protest was an immediate reaction to the last known case of 8-year-old Sharon Jasmine Figeroa Arriaza, whose body was found on February 8th, 2021, a day after she disappeared while riding her bike around the neighborhood where she lived.

External sources: 

https://www.soy502.com/articulo/ninas-protestan-contra-violencia-guatemala-63338
https://www.prensalibre.com/guatemala/comunitario/manifestantes-exigen-justicia-…
https://www.democracynow.org/2021/2/16/headlines/guatemalan_women_and_girls_prot…
Posted by iws2010 on Feb 27 2023

Staff rating: 

0

Effectiveness

How does this project help?

Activates (people)Energizes and organizes people into action. Can include emotion work
Amplifies (issue or campaign)Brings public and political attention to an issue or campaign.  Can include prefigurative action, making the invisible visible.
Strengthens (community)Strengthens, builds and celebrates community through ritual and/or symbol.

Timeframe For change

This project seems to be part of a campaign with a clear long-term goal. Long-term goals tend to be things like: end racism; end homophobia; make the sun stand still in the sky. A campaign with a long-term goal also needs to have some kind of theory of change.
The long term goal is to prompt the local government to take action and make the outdoor public a safe speace for women and girls to safely roam and be free, have fun, and do day to day tasks without fear of abduction and murder which has continued to occur in Guatemala.

Notes

The project, though no major change is described is effective as it manages to stand face to face with the authority it is challenging and speak freely and peacefully about what they hope to accomplish with the work the have prepared for their cause. It is a visual key to represent a desire for fun, but fun cannot be ensured without a call for safety and equal treatment.