Features Editor Ben Floyd interviews a member of El Bloque Negro Feminista (BNF), an anti-fascist feminist protest group in Mexico.
“It’s about the government. It's about the icons, the things that they actually value instead of valuing the life of the 11 women they get killed per day in Mexico.” - Ramona
El Bloque Negro Feminista (BNF) is an anti-fascist feminist protest group in Mexico that challenge the patriarchy through direct action. Donning black attire, face masks, and the occasional flaming torch, BNF stand as a formidable addition to the marches of several other groups across Mexico. They are often alongside Las Madres Buscadoras, an ever-growing organisation of women who search for their missing loved ones with posters and shovels. A common partner for the BNF is La Collectiva Morras Feministas, a feminist community collective; the two groups just recently united to protest the harassment caused by male football fans who were allowed to use female-only subway carriages during post-match traffic.
We were fortunate enough to speak to Ramona, a BNF member in Monterrey since 2017. For the sake of anonymity, our interviewee has had her name changed, and all information which could potentially reveal her identity has been removed from the following excerpts of our interview.
Q&A Section
Q: Please briefly describe the group that you are a member of and what you collectively do.
So it's basically a group of women. I think we're between 30 to 40 women here in Monterrey. And what we do is, we are in charge of the response to the violence against women. Iconoclasia is basically when you have this symbolic violence against specific monuments or things that are a symbol to the people, so the violence is directed to these places, not towards people. So it's basically making visible the anger of women. And also, sometimes it's used to protect against police [at protests]. So we are the ones that are in charge to protect the other women.
Q: And then would you know when they were formally established?
No, I have no idea. I joined the Bloque Negro in 2017. But they have been here [in Mexico] since we have had marches for women. We have maybe, I don't know, 25 years for this. But the Bloque Negro were the first ones that started with all the pintas [...] it's like the drawings, some things like on the walls, on the windows, for protesting specific events.
Q: And then during these events, would you yourself be painting? Would you have a crowbar or anything else?
No, I'm usually painting. Two years before I was with the drums, because we have drums, but I'm really bad at drums [laughter]. So I said, okay, let me go back.
And I'm not part of the girls that put on fire the [buildings],that’s usually what they do at the end. Like when all the families are gone, the office of the mayor is where we finish the march and they put on fire the door of the office. Usually I'm there, but I'm not one of the ones.
Q: How do you prepare yourself when you are going to one of these protests or marches? What do you wear? What do you bring?
Okay. First, you need to be in black. Not everyone is covering their faces. Many of us, I do cover my face. I have a friend [...] she covers her face, but she has big blue eyes. I think, “everyone knows it’s you” [laughter]. But the thing is that, yes, I cover myself.
I have an ID band with my name and the cell phone of my sister and my blood type. I have several allergies and stuff. I do that. If anything happens, if I get killed or, I don't know, if anything happens or there's an emergency, they know who to call. My sister knows that I'm there.
Q: How did you join? Did you know someone that tipped you off? What did those initial moments look like?
I remember at the beginning, I said I always wanted to join. It was like a dream to join. But I wasn't sure because of security. And you know, it was a difficult time in Mexico because of the war with the Narcos. You don't want to die and stuff. But one day I remember, I saw this pinta that said, “yes, it is your wall, but it was my girl.” So that made a complete change in me [...] I really want them to realize the anger of every single woman that is in Mexico.
And then after this, I met the girlfriend of one of my friends. We were at a party talking [...] I don't know why we start talking about violence and feminism. Maybe because it was an all girl's party.
I can't remember why. And she told me, “oh, I'm in the Bloque Negro in Mexico City.” I was like, “wow, you're in the Bloque Negro in Mexico City? Do you know someone?” Because I really want to join [...] and she gave me the cell phone of Kathy. Kathy has a lot of years in the Bloque Negro. I just know her name. It's Kathy.
I joined and it was the best day because for the first time I felt like I was doing something with legitimación.
Q: How many of those members would you know who they are outside of the organization?
One, two, three, like five. Yes. Because yes, four of them are from my professional sphere. And the other one is this contact.
Q: And if your employer found out that you're in this group, what would happen?
My boss [...] she knows I'm there, and she's fine with this. But because we're friends, she's one of the ones that knows, because we're really close friends, and she told me, just, like, take care.
But, if there's news, like, “okay, this person that joined the Bloque Negro just got arrested by the police,” and they put my face, I would probably get fired.
Q: Out of all of your experiences, what was the most memorable experience during any of these protests for you? What's something that stands out?
When there was a girl, like a 10-year-old girl, joining the Bloque Negro [...] all covered in black. I think she was with someone, I don't know if it was the mom or sister, but someone was taking care of the girl. It was a moment because a lot of people wouldn’t agreed with you having a young girl with this violent group [...] but I think it's something I would have totally done. The first time I experienced sexual violence, I was eight years old. So I think in that moment, if someone told me, “You want to join a protest like this?”, I would totally say yes.
Being aware of this violence so early in your life changed how you picture everything. And having the opportunity of actually getting mad, even though you're eight years old, it's a unique opportunity. Because usually you're a kid, you cannot say anything [...] you cannot even go to the police because you need an adult to do stuff.
Q: Do you think in your lifetime, the police and government's brutality against protesters has increased? And if so, what are you doing to prepare yourself for that?
Depends on the state. Depends on who is in power. Sure. Depends on who is in power.
I remember it was in 2022, I think it was a really violent time for repression from the state, in Mexico City, and in Monterrey too. They took—we call between each other compas, like friends—they took like five of the compas here in Monterrey. And in Mexico City we had a lot of people, like they got hit by the police and the state.
Q: And what sort of protocol would your organization have in that situation?
In this case, if anyone knows who they take, now there's several organizations, like [La Collectiva] Morras Feministas, for example. They actually go and look where these women were taken. And usually it's not like a crime, So they stay for maybe one, two nights and then they release them.
Q: You've been doing this since 2017. Do you wish to get more violent as the protests go on, or are you happy with painting, or would it be best?
I don't know. I'm not sure.
I think eventually I will. For example, it all depends on the context, and it all depends on the moment, and the moment of life of the person [...] and this will go super personal. In 2022, it was the year that I was more violent. I was like putting things on fire. I was pushing people. I was like super angry, because that year, I was, In November of the year before, I was raped, so the anger I had in that moment of wanting to kill everyone, it was different.
You know, but like the moments can change, right? Like this year, I had a niece, so I was more peaceful, like, okay, I want a better world for my niece.
Q: Would you like to select a name for the article? If there's any culturally relevant name that you think of. Think about these Irish students who might not know anything about Mexico.
Well, one I do admire a lot, a lot, a lot, is the Comandante Ramona. Yeah, in general, the Ejercito Zapatista is one of the groups I admire the most because of their resistance against everything and because of the way women participate with this group and the respect they have for women inside the Zapatista movement [...] they're not fighting for irrational things. They're fighting for their rights because everything has been taken from them [...] they were here before anyone else. So I will go with Ramona, of course, because she's an amazing woman.
Yeah, she was one of the leading ladies in the uprising of the Ejército Zapatista, and she fought with, like, guns against the government. So, yes, it's amazing, I wish I could [laughter].
Closing Words
At the end of our hour of conversation, we discussed with Ramona about what the BNF meant for her. She offered the following:
“I don't have like a close family. I have my sister and my niece, my mom, but like [...] it will just take me. There's no consequence of any other type, so I will totally join. I join with fear. Yes, because I fear the state. Yes, I do fear the state. I have seen what they have done to people, so I do fear the state. But still, I think my anger, it's bigger than this fear.”