Thalia Fernández Bustamante is an activist and human rights defender from the indigenous Otomí community of San Francisco Xochicuatla in Lerma, Mexico. Her work is committed to creating public awareness for her community’s resistance towards the state government’s plan to build a highway through the forest. As the Communications Coordinator of the Otomi Ñatho Xochicuatla Supreme Council A.C., she leads the documentation of the whole conflict through photography, video and art. Through these artistic processes, Thalia shows the participation of women and children in defense of their territory, highlighting the experiences through emotions and the ancestral knowledge of the community. Moreover, she is helping her community to build a ‘memory castle’--a space to undertake new forms of resistance and to help other communities who require support to document their own efforts. 

(Courtesy of the Artist)