Through the excerpts of Grieving, Cristina Rivera voices the tiredness of simply existing in a state whose interests lie in the profit of your suffering (pg. 22). As Mexican citizens, our dignity, and sovereignty are robbed through violent means to enrich a few. Our path is laid out before even being born, our body will not belong to us but to the Mexican Narco-State. We do not get to dictate our safety and define our bodily autonomy. Instead, violence infiltrates both public and private spheres. There is no corner of Mexico where one can isolate from corruption and its exercise of violence. Equally, there is no corner where justice can be found (pg. 21). Furthermore, we do not hold ownership over our labour, and we are constantly robbed of self-sufficiency (pg 4-5). Thus, the State simultaneously deprives us of justice while not allowing us to access alternatives outside State structures (pg. 4). Our integrity and bodily autonomy are non-existent, and despite the different cycles of historical and political contexts, the outcome is the same: our bodies do not belong to us. The body is the most personal and only ‘guaranteed’ form of ownership that follows us until death. Yet, the Mexican Narco-State and corrupted allies have found ways in which to infringe our last resort of dignity.  

Additionally, intersecting gender identities further creates the helplessness that Rivera speaks about. The State embodies patriarchal and capitalist notions of power, which trickle down to everyday violence, with women and gender non-conforming identities being primary targets. We are defenceless to the State’s “Why Should I Care?” attitude (pg. 5). While providing the example of Señorita Signatory, Rivera says, “her organs were a question of the state” (pg. 20). Although the example is from 1939, 80 years later, the conditions in which Mexican society finds itself are the same. Our bodies and the autonomy associated with simply ‘being’ are continually violated to accommodate State interests while leaving the rest of us in an agonizing state of survival.