Mexican poet and translator Coral Bracho (bottom) received the $US150,000 FIL Prize for Literature in Romance Languages at the opening ceremony of the 37th edition of the Guadalajara International Book Fair (FIL).
In a wide-ranging acceptance speech, Bracho expressed her amazement that after centuries of civilization, a plethora of social ills still besets the human race. “How is it possible that human beings continue to be attacked and demeaned because of their race, customs and their situation of poverty?” Bracho asked. “How can it be that abysmal economic inequality and violence against women and diverse racial and sexual identities persist? Why do governments that threaten the freedom and lives of those they govern continue to be imposed and accepted? How is it possible that violence has become a daily expression in countries such as ours?”
Later, Xóchitl Gálvez (top), the candidate for the Mexican presidency for the opposition Frente Amplio por Mexico coalition, followed up on those comments, stressing during a forum titled “Challenges facing the eradication of poverty in Mexico,” that social inequality is the most urgent need this country must tackle.