NI EN MORE

In the 1990s, the Mexican city of Ciudad Juárez gained a sad reputation as the city of 'women's murders'. Walking through the streets today, you can see pictures of forcibly disappeared women on the walls and posters of families searching for them. As a border city, Juárez is also marked by the fact that every year thousands of people try to cross the border to start a 'new life' in the United States. Those who do not make it often stay in the city, seeking work in the maquilas (low-wage factories) and making Juárez their home. There are more than 300 maquilas in Juarez, run by global companies, including European firms such as Bosch and Siemens. Working conditions in the factories are precarious, and women workers face various forms of violence on a daily basis.
NI EN MORE (Not One Woman Less) is an indigenous-mestizo design collective that combines ecological and feminist issues in their work. Using education, design and fashion to fight labour exploitation and violence in the maquilas and empowering women by offering professional training, alternative jobs and economic independence. In a year-long course, the women learn to develop a design, sew a prototype, produce the ecological inks, print with them and learn about financial planning and advertising. NI EN MORE uses only sustainable fabrics and plant-based dyes to make a statement against wasting the planet's resources. They encourage people around the world to consume in a politically and ethically responsible way in order to initiate change in the 'fast fashion' industry. In addition, NI EN MORE, together with other feminist organisations in Ciudad Juárez, contributes to raising awareness and attention to the political situation of feminicides and violence against women in Mexico and the world. The short film illustrates the situation of women in the maquiladoras and shows how the women of NI EN MORE creatively resist gender-based violence and labour exploitation and contribute to the creation of a more socially and ecologically just world.