Migrants travel by boat from Guatemala using a network of smugglers and routes to enter irregularly into Mexico. © Encarni Pindado
Migrants stop in a field on their way from Guatemala to Mexico. They are cleaning themselves while they waiting for the next transport to continue all the way to the northern border. © Encarni Pindado
According to humanitarian groups working in the region, rapists hang women's undergarments from trees and bushes along the way, as "trophies." © Encarni Pindado
A migrant women was kidnapped in Tijuana after being deported by the U.S into Tijuana late at night. She was held with her two-year-old toddler for three days. The kidnappers beat her up, and threatened to kill her if she did not pay the ransom money they demanded. © Encarni Pindado
A woman waits to make a report at a police station, after being kidnapped along with a group of 12 migrants. Migrants were kidnapped in the afternoon by two armed men, who identified themselves as being from one of the main cartels operating in the area. But one of the migrants managed to escape and alert the police who organized a rescue team. © Encarni Pindado
A Guatemalan woman rests in a shelter for migrants. She decided to take a contraception injection before traveling, in order to avoid being pregnant in case of being sexually assaulted. This is a common practice among women, as rape can be extremely high among the migrant population. © Encarni Pindado
Ixtepec, Oaxaca, Mexico. A group of migrants travel piled up on a van, from the southern border of Mexico to the central region. Migrants use all forms of transport to make their way to the US. If caught on the road by immigration police they are likely to be deported back to Central America. For this reason they use smaller and more dangerous roads that are less patrolled. © Encarni Pindado
In this southernmost Mexican town, an underage female migrant travels as a stowaway on top of a cargo train. This is the most commonly used form of transportation for undocumented migrants with little resources. It is a dangerous and difficult journey. Gangs of criminals operate throughout the route, demanding money, and kidnapping or killing travelers who refuse to cooperate. © Encarni Pindado
Huehuetoca, Estado de México, Mexico. Private security police walk along the rail tracks, pushing migrants out of the area. Migrants report that many of these police ask migrants for money in order to allow them into the trains. © Encarni Pindado
Maria puts on her prosthetic legs while getting ready for work. She emigrated to the U.S. riding freight trains. During her travel she fell off a train in Chiapas, Southern Mexico and lost both of her legs. Now she works selling sweets in the streets, with the help of her kids. © Encarni Pindado
A woman prays in the chapel of a shelter for migrants before continuing her journey up north to the U.S. © Encarni Pindado
Tapachula, Chiapas, Mexico. A stripper performing in one of the many clubs that can be found in this southern border city of Tapachula. Job opportunities on the border are limited for women, especially Central Americans. Many consider dancing a temporary gig, in order to collect enough money to head north to the U.S. Others are forced into prostitution by the gangs operating in the area. © Encarni Pindado
A Central American woman working in the red light district area of Tijuana, in front of a bar called "Failure Bar". Tijuana is full of migrants and deportees and many women are forced into prostitution. © Encarni Pindado
Eugenia take care of her granddaughters since their mother disappeared. She went missing while en route to the U.S. The last phone call Eugenia received from her daughter was from Guatemala, telling her that she had been abducted and taken to a brothel. Since then, Eugenia is part of a group of mothers who travel throughout Central America and Mexico looking for their missing relatives. © Encarni Pindado
The Mesoamerican Migrant Movement organizes every year a caravan with mothers from Central American who are looking for their missing relatives. In the last 10 years they have found over 250 people, only 15 women and most had been victims of the sex trade. © Encarni Pindado
