Nicaragua has been greatly affected by sociopolitical turmoil for more than half a century. The Somoza family held Nicaragua under dictatorial rule from 1936-1979. During this period, a small Nicaraguan elite along with outside business interests enriched themselves at the country’s expense while deepening social and economic inequalities. This burden fell heavily on the backs of Nicaraguan women. With the overthrow of Somoza by the Sandinista popular revolutionary movement, 25% of whose military forces were comprised of women, a significant step forward was taken for women. Landmark laws were established that protected women from physical as well as psychological abuse. However, the US-supported counter-revolution and subsequent economic embargo created a war-weary electorate in the 1990s that voted the Sandinistas out and favored a US-backed UNO coalition that promised to end the war and trade embargo. However, with the UNO government, Nicaragua has experienced a resurgence of inequity in the distribution of resources, once again burdening women disproportionately and diminishing their political power.

The Movimiento de Mujeres Lucrecia Lindo de Chinandega was established in 1992 in response to this return to right wing conservatism. There are 1800 women members from thirteen municipal areas of Chinandega whose main objective is to promote the rights of women. The organization aims to reclaim the rights and protections for women promised by the Sandinista government. More specifically, their objective is to eliminate family violence and sexual abuse, and to create a climate supportive of emotional reconstitution, necessitated by these abuses. With the help of the Martín-Baró Fund grant, the group plans to train community facilitators in techniques that facilitate emotional recovery, emphasizing women’s and community perspectives. Those women who receive help from the project will, in turn, provide services to members of their respective communities, filling a critical void in mental health services that are sustainable and designed to help empower whole communities.