One year after more than 40 girls died in a fire at a state-run shelter on the outskirts of Guatemala City, the wounds remain fresh.
Feb. 8, 2018 | Guatemala City | Activists and family members of victims perform a Mayan ceremony at the Plaza de la Constitución for the estimated 41 girls that were killed in a fire at a state-run youth shelter last year.
The tragedy occurred on March 8, 2017, when, according to a report in the Washington Post, boys and girls were locked inside separate rooms at the "Virgen de la Asunción," or Virgin of the Assumption, orphanage near Guatemala's capital city as punishment for organizing a protest and trying to escape cramped conditions and abuse by staff. A mattress in the room where girls were locked was somehow set on fire. Survivors say they pleaded to be released from the burning room, but were ignored. (LIANNE MILTON/PANOS PICTURES/INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S MEDIA FOUNDATION)
The tragedy occurred on March 8, 2017, when, according to a report in the Washington Post, boys and girls were locked inside separate rooms at the "Virgen de la Asunción," or Virgin of the Assumption, orphanage near Guatemala's capital city as punishment for organizing a protest and trying to escape cramped conditions and abuse by staff. A mattress in the room where girls were locked was somehow set on fire. Survivors say they pleaded to be released from the burning room, but were ignored. (LIANNE MILTON/PANOS PICTURES/INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S MEDIA FOUNDATION)