Feminicide - A Plague On Women in Latin America

There is something you guys don’t know, I treat this site like a legitimate news source from the aspect of having a plan and writing out articles, then going through an editing process and posting. I was in the process of writing an article about the male loneliness epidemic, and I was planning on going live with it on Thursday, but yesterday at 12:26AM something changed that. A young woman that lives in my complex died after falling from a 16th story window. I heard the crash, but thought it was a car crash on nearby Avenida Las Vegas. When I woke up yesterday, I was greeted by reality.

I actually knew this young woman, while we weren’t close friends, we had the same gym schedule and we talked and joked frequently. She was an incredibly sweet and jovial person. When I go to the gym, I’m not social at all. I’m there to get the workout in, and not waste my pre-workout’s time. The fact that her infectious smile broke through that says alot about her. She always wanted to practice English and I am always happy to do that with anyone who puts in the effort to try.

When I found out it was her, I was gutted. It felt like losing a friend, even though we were acquaintances at best. As the day went on, and more details emerged, the rabbit hole of sorrow just got deeper and deeper. She fell through a friend’s patio in the first floor of the courtyard, and there was broken steel support beams, broken wood and glass everywhere as a reminder of her life ending prematurely, but when I spoke to the Fiscalia (Think FBI or INTERPOL) on the scene, what they said broke my heart completely. Leading up to the fall, she was in a very loud, violent fight with her boyfriend, and then fell to her death. There is more than enough evidence that he pushed her off the balcony. He ran out of the building and got in a ride share car on the corner. So the cameras wouldn’t pick up the license plate of the car, and just like that, the life of the young Brazilian student with the big happy eyes and infectious smile was taken from the world.

What Is Feminicide and Why Was the Term Created?

Feminicide is not just a crime—it’s a systemic failure. The term was created to distinguish gender-based killings from other homicides, emphasizing that these deaths stem from deeply rooted “machista” beliefs, impunity, and institutional negligence. It forces governments to recognize patterns of violence specifically targeting women and enact some kind of legal frameworks to combat them. In many Latin American countries, including Colombia, feminicide is now a legally defined crime with harsher penalties than ordinary homicide.

This is just my opinion here, the more religious a country is, the more violence against women has historically been normalized. It’s a step forward to stopping this violence, but it’s not there yet. In the conversations I had with some local guys, they shrugged it off as a normal thing to happen with a “Que pena”, but that level of apathy is why there has to be a different level of sentencing for violent deaths against women. In my opinion if a man violently kills a woman, child or animal, especially in a domestic situation, he needs to buried under the prison or branded so prison justice can take place. But that’s just me.

The Alarming Reality in Colombia

In 2023, Colombia recorded 525 feminicides, with Antioquia leading the country with 95 cases. These numbers are not just statistics; they represent daughters, sisters, and friends whose lives were brutally cut short. Many of these crimes are committed by partners or ex-partners, reinforcing the reality that for many women, home is the most dangerous place. This is why many women put themselves in dangerous situations.

Despite legal recognition, justice still remains elusive. Weak law enforcement, victim-blaming, and social stigma discourage women from reporting abuse. So to those foreigners feeling like you’re blamed for getting robbed, “no dar papaya” happens for Colombians too. Even when cases make it to court, perpetrators often receive lenient sentences, or the violent offenders are set free after only serving a small portion of their sentence because of extreme jail overcrowding, sending a message that women’s lives are disposable. As someone who has a little Colombian girl in his life, and loves her very much, this is a scary thought.

The Psychological Toll: Why Many Colombian Women Distrust Men

This climate of fear shapes social dynamics in Colombia, particularly when it comes to relationships. Every woman I’ve talked to in the last few days about this topic knows of a friend or has heard stories of friends or relatives killed by jealous partners, reinforcing the idea that trust in men can be dangerous. This erosion of trust manifests in many ways, including a transactional approach to relationships. Essentially, they think that men are going to be violent and use them for sex, they might as well get as much money and resources from them as they can before he gets violent.

A common stereotype is that many young Colombian women see foreign men as “ATMs,” prioritizing financial security over emotional connection. While this narrative is often framed as manipulation, it’s important to ask: What happens when survival becomes a driving force in relationships? If violence and economic inequality create an environment where women feel vulnerable, is it any surprise that some adopt a “get them before they get me” mentality?

This isn’t to excuse or justify deception in relationships, I have made my stance clear on that one, but to highlight the social conditions that fuel these behaviors. Women in Colombia, particularly those from lower-income backgrounds, often grow up in a world where men hold economic and physical power over them. If trust has historically led to betrayal—or worse, death—some will prioritize self-preservation. Another hold over from the toxic narco era in Colombia and most specifically in Medellin is that there is less of a respect for life. Where I’m hurt over the death that happened close to home, her neighbor who was friends with her is much more blase about the death of her friend. For me “What a pity” just doesn’t cut it in this situation.

Get Active If You See Violence

Ending feminicide requires more than legal reforms; it demands cultural change. Violence will never end, and it will never end in a country where the economic disparity is so huge. Colombia needs stronger protections for victims, harsher penalties for perpetrators, and widespread education to notice the roots of violent behavior at a young age. Organizations like Corporación Casa de la Mujer (https://casmujer.com/) are pushing for these changes, but without greater societal support, the cycle of violence will continue. Protesting will only get you so far, the change has to come from within. If the violent assholes know there are actual penalties for violence against women, that may curb some of this behavior. But it also takes guys holding other guys responsible for their actions. In situations like yesterday, “Que pena” just doesn’t cut it. If a man has the audacity to be violent to a woman or child in public, that means he’s so comfortable doing it, that he doesn’t think there are repercussions to it.

It’s time we as men, extranjero or Colombiano stand up to violence against women. Because let’s face it, if you allow that behavior to continue, it’s only a matter of time until one of these weak, pathetic men is taking the life of a woman you know, and maybe even someone you care about.

Fucking Gringos

I was talking to someone who lives in the complex about the situation, trying to be as gentle as possible, and he kind of threw me for a loop with what he said after processing what had happened. He started off the conversation with “No offense meant” a tell tale sign that he was going to say something wildly offensive, and proceeded to say, “That’s some gringo behavior” When my look pushed back on this, he said, “Oh, no. I mean you’re one of the good ones…” which was a statement that hurt, not because I can feel any connection to that type of behavior, but because I liked and respected this man until that moment. Now I know nothing intelligent will come out of his mouth.

I have been one of the most vocal opponents of the debauchery that many mouth breathing morons bring to Medellin in search of escaping their pathetic lives back home for a weekend. I’ve already talked about the 51 deaths of US travellers that happened in 2024, and how the overwhelming majority of these deaths were direct results of horrible, arrogant decision making. Between not being ready for the purity of cocaine here and overdosing on it, or jumping out of the window from a 2CB party and even those that bought street drugs laced with fentanyl, they all chose their deaths. The guys who were killed in the commission of robberies also chose their fate, by not being on alert and believing that a 19 year old gorgeous girl wanted to come to his hotel with her friend before going out to eat.

My point is that we, especially as US citizens are too busy killing ourselves to even think of killing women. Though after getting scoped, I’m sure the thought crosses the minds of the victims, when they can think again. Not all of them can be there for their assaulter getting her hand cut off after all. Killing women in Colombia is not a gringo thing. No matter how you want to paint it. I defy anyone to tell me one other time that a foreigner came to Colombia and murdered a woman, other than John Paulos. There were easily 6 million tourists that entered Colombia since he killed her, and based on how El Colombiano likes to report the news, and local elected officials have never passed up an opportunity to paint tourists as rapists, child molestors and monsters, you’d definitely hear about it if that was the case.

Violence against women is a world wide blight, and yes it happens in the US as well. But this issue here in Colombia is something that society here has to look in the mirror, and fix. The subsection of people who think gringos are bringing all of the violence, rape and pedofillia in their checked bags need to truly look in the mirror at a society that was forced to create a legal differentiation for violent crimes against women. To be clear again, I think that should be a world wide thing. If someone hurts a woman, child, elderly person or animal, brand their face and let prison justice run it’s course. Chao marica.

Where Do We Go from Here?

I hope this nonsense ends globally. But if you see someone yelling at a woman, or physically abusing her, and do nothing, you’re part of the problem. Ignoring that makes you just as complicit. I’m not advocating violence against them, but abusers tend to try and justify their behavior and know it’s wrong. Don’t allow that. Call people like Casa de la Mujer. You’re not a snitch if you’re protecting someone who can’t protect themselves. We as men need to do better. We as the good men need to do WAY better in protecting those that can’t protect themselves from these scumbag men who think it’s ok to throw girls off of balconies, then run away like a coward. Also, to answer the question, it was a Colombian that did that yesterday.

I hate to end on a Jerry Springer note here, but truly, take care of yourselves and each other.