I am content to receive this important award that supports and recognizes the work of women photographers. It also means that I can continue to work on my projects and have the opportunity to make known the situation along the southern Mexican border. In 2001 I started taking photos in Tapachula, Chiapas. I live in Mexico City and I try to make at least two trips a year to the border, each time staying for a minimum of a month. Up to now all my work has been in other parts of Mexico or in other countries. However, my work is very difficult in Mexico due to the lack o publications willing to give space to my photos and the poor level of pay, and it is vital that I travel alone and working extremely economically At the beginning of this report I financed my work with my own money, but in 2003 I received a grant from the Mexican government and in 2004 the Inge Morath award from Magnum Photos. I prefer to work with film during my projects, especially black and white film, but also use colour when I consider it appropriate to the place and subject m atter I am photographing. When I’m taking photos I try to feel that the only difference between me and those I am photographing is my camera. Ideally, if circumstances permit, I prefer not to use my camera until I have got to know my subject over a period of several days. When I am finally able to feel that I and my camera have become part of his/her every day life, I then begin taking photos.