Las Patronas

Available for over a year

We visit the Las Patronas women 30 years on from when the young Romero Vazquez sisters first threw a loaf of bread onto the infamously dangerous La Bestia train. A train meant only for cargo, but which by brutal necessity has become an extraordinarily dangerous mode of transport for more than 400,000 migrants every year. It begins from near the border of Guatemala, and along its 2000 mile journey migrants from Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Mexico itself cling to its roof, heading north to America. Norma Romero Vazquez guides us through the last 30 years since her and her sister first made the decision to help the passing migrants. Four generations of women work to cook implausible amounts of food in the kitchen of Las Patronas every day, and amid the sound of cooking and layers of female voices we unpack what this endeavour means to them. We share the stories of those who are receiving the help. The migrants attempting to make the dangerous journey right now and find out what this oasis of calm and kindness in the midst of what can be a traumatic journey, truly means to them. Producer: Mansi Vithlani and Becky Green Executive producer: Ailsa Rochester Sound designer: Craig Edmondson An Audio Always production for BBC World Service (Photo: The leader of Las Patronas, Norma Romero Vázquez, poses for a picture in Las Patronas town, Veracruz State, Mexico, 9 August, 2018. Credit: Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP/Getty Images)