Mexican women fix lunches for U.S.-bound migrants

Mexico City, Agency
For the last 15 years, women from the small Mexican Gulf coast town of La Patrona have prepared daily lunches for Central American migrants making the treacherous journey north to the United States via freight train.

The leader of this group of women known as "Las Mujeres de La Patrona" (Ladies of La Patrona), Norma Romero, spoke to Efe on World Rural Women's Day and explained the work of these female volunteers.

The women prepare lunches for hungry immigrant travelers covering long distances by rail to the busy junction of Lecheria, on Mexico City's outskirts, where they will switch to another train that takes them near the U.S.-Mexico border.

Romero said she became aware of the plight of the Central American migrants one day when several Central Americans called out to her sister from one of the trains and asked her to give them the bread and milk she had bought for her family.

"They said to her: 'ma'am, bring me your bread and your milk.' We talked with them, we asked them why they were begging and since then we began to be more attentive to the train," Romero said.

Those migrants told Norma and her family that they fled their homelands because there was no work there and no hope of a better life.

She said she also knows many Mexicans who, desperate at the lack of opportunities, have had to leave their native country behind.

"We can't insist that the United States respect our Mexican emigrants if we don't do the same with our Central American brothers," Romero said.

Incidents like the August massacre in the northeastern state of Tamaulipas, where 72 immigrants were killed by suspected drug-cartel gunmen, have somewhat reduced the flow of foreigners through this small town in Veracruz state, she said.

In addition to the support from the Spanish non-governmental organization Ayuda en Accion, the women of La Patrona receive donations of rice, beans and other food from students and local stores.

Undocumented Central American migrants not only battle hunger but also frequently are victims of robbery and abuse by people traffickers, criminal gangs and, occasionally, Mexico's local, state and federal authorities as they make their harrowing journey northward to the United States.