Dead women, living numbers

It is advisable to look at the numbers closely, make them speak. In 2021, the Drug Addiction Aid Foundation released a survey: one in five Spanish men between 15 and 29 years old considered that sexist violence did not exist or was an “ideological invention.” The survey was repeated in 2023: now one in four (23%) considered the same and, in the case of women, the percentage was 13.2%. The numbers had increased greatly compared to 2019, when men who held this belief reached 12% and girls 5.7%. In Argentina, according to the Ombudsman's Office, femicides grew by 33% in 2023 compared to 2022. In Peru, according to the Ministry of Women, they went from 130 in 2022 to 165 in 2023. In Brazil, according to the Brazilian Forum of Public Security, in the first half of 2023 there were 2.6% more than in the same period of 2022. In Spain, in 2023, there were seven more femicides than in the previous year. The “ideological invention” grows, and more and more young people believe that the massacre is a story. In January 2024, a CIS survey revealed that 51.8% of Spanish men between 16 and 24 years old consider that equality policies mean that they are now the ones discriminated against. 32.5% of women believe the same. They are not alone in their conviction. As an example, Javier Milei, the far-right Argentine president, closed the Ministry of Women and during his campaign he said: “I have no reason to feel ashamed of being a white, blonde man with blue eyes. “I am not going to concede anything to cultural Marxism.” Does power validate the idea of ​​citizens, do citizens appropriate the idea of ​​power? Behind the numbers there are cobwebs that trap dangerous things – denials, desires for revenge – with which they feed on crouching creatures waiting to jump out and swallow us alive.