This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at UC London chapter.

This article aims to provide visibility on the work of “Las Patronas” (loosely translated to patron, supporter, protector in English). The collective of approximately 15 women operate in the town of Guadalupe in the municipality of Amatlán de los Reyes Veracruz, Mexico. Ever since the creation of the operations in 1994, the group has dedicated itself to assist and defend human rights in migrant communities.

Their goal is to deliver food in the form of bags filled with beans, bread, water and other essentials. The women line up to assist migrants going north of the country by train through Velacruz. They throw bags directly into the train for the people inside to receive.

This train, also known as ‘La Bestia’ (The Beast), ‘El Tren de la Muerte’ (The Train of Death), and even ‘El Tren de los Desconocidos’ (The Train of the Unknowns) is estimated to transport 400,000 to 500,000 migrants every year. This freight train starts its journey in southern Mexico, next to the border with Guatemala, and ends at various destinations on the US border transporting different types of goods such as cement, minerals, and coal.

The majority of migrants boarding this train come from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras and are doing so in hopes of eschewing Mexico’s immigration checkpoints and detention centers. The journey is extremely dangerous leaving the migrants with life threatening injuries and mutilations.

An article from the English version of El País recounts the story of Santiago who lost a limb trying to get on the train and explores how migrants like Santiago are trying to recreate their bodies through prosthetics: “Risking everything, they climbed aboard the infamous freight train that ferries the undocumented through Mexico to the US — a journey that cost them their limbs and their hopes. Now, with the help of prosthetics, they are working to rebuild their lives.”

This is why the work carried out by these ‘patron saint’ women is crucial: they help these migrants stay alive. Because of their continuous dedication to this cause, the association has earned numerous awards including the National Human Rights Award in 2013.

The idea started with Norma Romero Vazquez who now holds the position of coordinator within the association. She remembers starting by giving out bread and milk. As she was stepping out to get breakfast for her family one morning she heard some people on the train asking for food and gave it to them. From that point on, Vazquez and her mother have prepared survival kits for migrants passing through the region. The work that they do today has also evolved as a portion of the women also help migrants that are in hospitals, that need help for visa procedures, or that simply need contacts.

Their work is motivated by the thought that these Central American men will fulfill the American Dream along the treacherous journey.

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