Trillo said that while none of the women would readily admit their true age or felt free to explain that they did not mean to settle in Juarez, it was clear to her that none of them intended to end up at the brothels. The majority of the women at the brothels were not from Juarez originally, many coming from States further south or from other areas of Latin America all together. From the photos, it is clear many of them were very young and some admitted during interviews to coming to Juarez as unaccompanied minors. They do this to protect themselves, as they could be legally held accountable should the owner of a brothel say the workers lied about their age. All the women in the photographs would tell Trillo they were 27 because of these age restrictions. Sex work by those over the age of 18 is generally accepted, sex with a minor under the age of 18 is expressly illegal throughout all States in Mexico. The areas where prostitution is decriminalized are commonly referred to as "zonas de tolerancia". “The cops are everywhere in the zone,” she said of what she witnessed while taking photographs “they are outside of brothels just kicking it.” While laws vary from State to State, of the 31 States in Mexico 13 have laws regulating prostitution and, according to the United States State Department, only 22 of those States have laws against sex trafficking, but they are rarely enforced.
Starting in early 2015, she went to visit the girls. Trillo spent three to four months at a time over 3 three years with the women of Juarez brothels. When you see art, you have to feel something, if you see it and you feel nothing then it does not touch you.” “I am not an activist,” Trillo said, “I am an artist, and art for me, it is very important that it gives you a feeling. In this way, she realized would not be recasting their stories through her own perspective, but that through the images, could tell their own stories through her lens. Trillo wanted to do something to help them, and thought that what she could offer was helping these women find their voice through her art. She wanted to portray their dignity while also showing the truth of their harsh conditions. They’re trapped they don’t have their own money and mostly they are suffering.”Īfter meeting the women for the first time, it became important to Trillo that they tell their stories. It’s women that are completely exploited, their addiction to heroin is such that it becomes their lives.
“I thought it was going to be just a bunch of young cute girls with glitter miniskirts but it wasn’t like that, it was the contrary. “It is a very dangerous zone, so you need to go with somebody and I wasn’t too aware of that.” Trillo said while at her studio surrounded by many of the photos she took.
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