Mothers Demand Justice While Mexico Prepares for the World Cup

In Mexico City, a large group of mothers marched on Sunday, not to celebrate football but to draw national attention to the dark issue of missing people.

Every year on Mother’s Day, these mothers walk the same route down Paseo de la Reforma. This time they invited soccer fans to join them, carrying signs that displayed photos of the missing and printed “no celebration, only justice.”

The march began at a roundabout that is perpetually covered with photos of disappeared persons. The mothers shouted, “Mexico, champion in disappearances.” They also highlighted that the country’s fight against drug cartels began in 2006.

Graciela Pérez Rodríguez shared her story:

“My daughter and four relatives vanished in 2012 while traveling on a highway after visiting the U.S. No one has taken responsibility for their disappearance.”

Mexico currently records over 130,000 missing people, many cases involving police or government officials. When families seek their loved ones, they sometimes become targets of criminal groups.

In March, officials announced that over 40,000 people listed as missing might still be alive, discovered by cross-referencing the national registry with other government records. A research group, Mexico Evalua, found that disappearances have doubled in the last decade—a rise linked to stronger organized crime groups.

Rodríguez worries that her case has lost priority after almost 14 years. She feels a deep emptiness in the system that should protect families.