Persistent Violence: Higher Education and a Life Free of Violence for Women

Abstract

Despite advances in women’s access to higher education in Latin America and Mexico, various forms of violence continue to affect their university experience. This article presents a comparative study of five countries in the region (Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, and Brazil), aiming to analyze how access to academic spaces does not imply the eradication of practices and structures that reproduce gender-based violence in the educational sphere. Using a qualitative approach, the article offers a documentary and interpretive analysis based on recent studies, institutional reports, and specialized literature. The intersectional perspective (Crenshaw, 1989, 1991) guides the identification of the multiple forms of violence faced by university women, considering not only their gender but also factors such as class, ethnicity, and territoriality. The findings reveal that despite increasing female participation, institutional, symbolic, and sexual violence persist, along with mechanisms of epistemic exclusion and discrimination. The article also highlights women’s agency through collective actions aimed at transforming these realities from within universities. It concludes that access alone does not guarantee the right to a life free of violence and calls for structural transformation of university spaces. Comprehensive policies, intersectional approaches, and effective mechanisms are needed to build safe, inclusive, and equitable academic environments.