The Brujas of Yesterday, their legacy Today, is a bilingual interactive digital space that showcases the relationship between the mythology of the witch in Latin America and the real-life treatment of women in that region. The piece chronicles the tales of the supernatural, wise, sometimes terrifying flying creature and the lives of the women that suffered the consequence of being of the same gender as this one. The project aims to demonstrate the intersection between myth and reality.

This project is personal. Femicide, particularly in Latin America, has been an ongoing issue in many parts of the world. According to the Gender Equality Observatory for Latin America and the Caribbean, in 2020, over one thousand women and girls were killed just in Brazil. In Mexico, over five hundred cases were classified as femicide. In 2007, as a 17-year-old senior at an all-girls catholic high school, I was struck when learning about the news of the mass killings in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico. Though I knew about femicide, misogynistic practices, and the sexism that has run our world for centuries, this report hit close to home as a multipart and extensive investigation hit the air on the Spanish Language news. Now, with more access to information and education, along with social media, the stories of women, both cisgender and transgender, killed for being women are going viral and creating actions such as the International Women’s Day manifestations. As a media scholar and educator, I also understand the power of narrative and storytelling, not just as an entertainment and record-keeping tool, but as one that can create misinformation spread violence and hatred. The reports and the recent protests made me think about the parallels between these headlining acts of gendercide and the witch hunts of the 14th and 15th centuries.

Explore the map where you will find tales of witches around the countries with the highest rate of femicide. Slide over to the timeline and check out how slowly but with a lot of vigor the women are fighting back and reclaiming their magic! The resource is dedicated to educators but the tools there are easy to use for those wanting to further explore witches and witchcraft, the power of storytelling, and the cruel reality of femicide. After reading through the stories tell me about you. Head on over to the contribute and collaborate section to add to our growing collection of powerful stories whether real or mythical.