As Men Fall in Mexico's 'Drug War,' Women Step Up

With Mexico’s drug war claiming the lives of more and more men, the ranks of the country’s drug cartels are swelling with a growing number of women, a shift that…

Case Highlights Importance Of Colombia To Global Sex Trade

The recent arrest of a transnational sex trafficking network in Medellin, Colombia draws attention to the country's importance to the illicit global industry, which has been historically high and shows…

Drug Gangs Traffic Girls on Honduras-Nicaragua Border: UN

A UN official has warned that drug gangs are trafficking young girls from indigenous communities on the border between Honduras and Nicaragua -- a phenomenon that could be driven by…

In Nicaragua, Can Sex Work be Separated from Organized Crime?

A new NGO in Nicaragua aims to protect the rights of women who voluntarily work in the sex trade, raising the question of whether sex work should be seen as…

Do Mexican Cartels Control Sex Trafficking in Argentina?

While Mexican drug gangs, particularly the Zetas, are known to have expanded into human trafficking in Mexico, there is little substantive evidence to back recent claims that they are becoming…

Female Skeletons Found Near US-Mexico Border Are Reminder of Juarez Femicides

The skeletal remains of 12 people found earlier this year close to Mexico's Ciudad Juarez have been identified as female, bringing attention once more to the city's high rate of…

Mexico Gang Turns to Women to Hold Key City

In the midst of a years-long fight against the Zetas for control of prized sections of borderland territory, the Gulf Cartel is increasingly relying on a…

Guatemala to Tackle Femicide With New Task Force

Guatemalan President Otto Perez announced the creation of a new task force to combat the country’s high rate of murders of women.

Women in Mexico's Drug War: Victims and Villains

Media representations of women caught up Mexico’s drug conflict are often two-dimensional, resorting to the dichotomy of portraying women either as helpless victims or powerful “drug queens.”…

Women Targeted by Mexico Drug Violence

Many female migrants from Mexico to the U.S. have been displaced by violence, often linked to organized crime, with Mexican women targeted by sex traffickers, gender-based killings, and often recruited…

Mexico Investigates Disappearance of 525 Women, Girls

A Mexican task force for crimes against women is investigating the whereabouts of some 525 women and female adolescents in the country, many of whom are thought to be victims…

El Salvador Sees Epidemic of Violence Against Women

A rise in brutal killings of women, known as “femicides,” in El Salvador can be blamed on various factors, from gender inequality to organized crime to a society hollowed out…