Film Review: The Fight for Women's Reproductive Rights in El Salvador.
“In a world where women’s rights are criminalized, three women’s stories ignite a movement for change.”
By Rachel Robles
The Film.
The Film Review.
En Deuda con Todas (Indebted to All Women), is an insight into a woman’s worst nightmare. The possibility of being arrested while unconscious or not having access to reproductive health care. While it might sound outrageous, this is the reality for the women in El Salvador. In the documentary En Deuda con Todas, the audience gets a glimpse into the feminist movement and the struggle for women’s reproductive rights in El Salvador. Directors Roi Guitian and Maria Lobo, share the stories of how three women fell victim to the anti-abortion laws in their home country. Sara Rogel, Jacqueline Castillo, and Teodora Vasquez are the victims who expressed the need for change in El Salvador. While these women’s stories are different, they face the consequences of a government that is unforgiving towards women’s reproductive rights. Sara and Jacqueline are both facing charges of attempted homicide toward their children who were stillborn. The women go into grave detail about the night their lives changed.
In the eyes of the law in El Salvador, from the moment of conception, a fetus is considered a human being and is immediately protected. This rigid legal interpretation impacts women’s reproductive rights deeply. In both Sara’s and Jacqueline’s cases, they experienced an accident. Sara fell, and Jaqueline experienced complications during her pregnancy. Sara spoke about how she fell unconscious and she wasn’t sure if she was even going to be able to live. She awoke to being arrested and heading to prison. All while also finding out that her child did not survive her accident. Sara shares how traumatic it was to be told that this was done on purpose. The police interrogated her for hours and did not treat her wounds from the accident. The same can be said for Jaqueline. She was facing complications and fell unconscious as well. She too awoke to being arrested. Both of these women were seen as criminals rather than victims.
Sara and Jacqueline are both facing charges of attempted homicide toward their children who were stillborn. The women go into grave detail about the night their lives changed. In the eyes of the law in El Salvador, the moment a child is conceived it is immediately protected under the law. The fetus is considered a human being. In both of these victims’ cases, they experienced an accident. Sara fell, and Jaqueline experienced complications during her pregnancy. Sara spoke about how she fell unconscious and she wasn’t sure if she was even going to be able to live. She awoke to being arrested and heading to prison. All while also finding out that her child did not survive her accident. Sara shares how traumatic it was to be told that this was done on purpose. The police interrogated her for hours and did not treat her wounds from the accident. The same can be said for Jaqueline. She was facing complications and fell unconscious as well. She too awoke to being arrested. Both of these women were seen as criminals rather than victims.
This situation leads to the bigger question in the documentary: how women’s reproductive rights are disregarded, and women are mistreated and seen as mere objects.. Women in the documentary all expressed the same level of frustration towards the bigger situation at hand. The government cannot provide safety for women’s reproductive needs. Once the problem was faced, we saw Salvadoran feminists rise to cause a change in actions. With marches, podcasts, and even music, confronting the issues is what needed to be done. This was expressed strongly within the documentary. This film is a beautiful example of community. Imagery of women having serious conversations about issues personally affecting them. Moments of vulnerability expressing where they could go to find sanity in a place where reality is harsh.
En Deuda con Todas is a beautiful film about trying to find your voice in adversity. Although the issue of women’s reproductive rights isn’t solved, the pursuit of change continues to inspire hope for future generations. The film presents the bigger picture of trying to find yourself in a world where all odds are against your favor. It leaves the audience with a sense of hope, knowing that even amidst the struggles, progress is being made in the fight for justice and equality.
Watch this beautiful documentary. Alongside other documentaries from our film collection.
Meet The Filmmakers.
María Lobo and Roi Guitián are media professionals with 17 years’ experience in documentary filmmaking and social advocacy projects, including Yindabad, Within the Circle, and Indebted to All Women.
Meet The Author.
Rachel Robles is a Latinx communications major at CSUF and WVN Film Collection intern through the LA County internship program. She has directed films like Para Siempre to amplify marginalized voices and is dedicated to crafting impactful narratives.
“Women belong in all places where decisions are being made. It shouldn’t be that women are the exception.”
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