Twelve men around a large table. Behind them, the screens display the message that brought together these political leaders and representatives of civil society organizations at the headquarters of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI): “Going for Mexico.” That is, the name of the opposition coalition that has decided to reaffirm its alliance against Morena by flaunting ideological and programmatic pluralism. But there the diversity ends. In the photograph, widely disseminated on social networks by several of the protagonists, there is no woman. The critics did not take in putting in evidence the absolute absurdity. What the image contains speaks of machismo in politics, but it also illustrates what politicians believe that society sees and what they themselves do not see.
Behind that snapshot, which was not improvised but has a promotional purpose, there is not just a meeting in which no woman participates. This, of course, is the most relevant. However, it is also significant the normality with which twelve men meet, talk about a project that aims to represent broad sectors of the Mexican population, take a photo and spread it. They do not perceive noise. This normalization is even more scandalous when both the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate have, on paper, an equal composition in which, however, women come up against a structural exclusion from the front line.
The snapshot shows the leaders of the PRI, the PAN, the PRD, their parliamentary coordinators and public figures such as Claudio X. González and Gustavo de Hoyos. They decided to meet to discuss the legislative agenda with a view to the 2024 presidential elections. Those elections are the horizon that will determine the political debate in the coming years. Speculation about candidacies has already been unleashed and, for now, among the names that sound the most there is only one woman, the head of Government of Mexico City, Claudia Sheinbaum, the leader with the most power in Mexico and a possible candidate for Morena.
Machismo or “misogyny”, as Olga Sánchez Cordero stated in an interview with EL PAÍS, encompasses the entire ideological spectrum. According to the former Secretary of the Interior and current president of the Senate, they also exist in the Cabinet of Andrés Manuel López Obrador. The president received an avalanche of criticism for his reaction to the March 8 demonstrations. He came to accuse the feminist movement of trying to weaken him with spurious interests. Then, several representatives of the opposition revolted against the Government waving the flag of equality. But now it is the opposition that has portrayed itself, or at least its leaders have done so. Three formations practically dismantled since 2018 and without leadership with projection. Twelve men in the photo. That is part of your political problem.
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