Running an ultra-marathon to banish violence

By Norma Bastidas, Vancouver Sun
July 28, 2012

I recently finished an 80-day ultra-marathon spanning 2,600 miles from Vancouver, my home for the past three years, to Mazatlan, my birth-place and home base. My cause was to run against violence. Having experienced abuse as a young woman, having seen it firsthand as a child, it is a cause very close to my heart, and its presence impacts all of us.

Even as a young girl, violence was a dark shadow over my home. I can't say that I ever saw my dad drinking, but I always knew that things were not nor-mal. He was always out late at night, and when he came back he would wake us up to keep him company or watch television at two o'clock in the morning. His mood always turned quickly. One moment we would be singing along and playing - and the next minute someone was being punished.

Being the youngest, I was spared the worst physical punishments. I was the one whom mom sent to calm my dad when he became enraged. But I would hear him punish my siblings, even after he quit drinking; "disciplining them," as he called it, never really went away.

I am a grown woman now with children of my own, and I decided it was time for me to face the violence of my upbringing and begin to share my own experiences, to face my personal struggles. It was time to overcome my past and time to be proud, because I am much more than the injustices I have suffered.

While enormously under-reported, current estimates of violence against women suggest that up to 50 per cent of women in North America will face physical or sexual abuse in their life-times. These injustices affect us all - they are a societal ill that we must all work together to overcome.

When I began my journey to Mazatlan, I found that many people assumed that I was running against violence in Mexico - a place that for them has become a symbol of violence. Being Mexican and still very close to my heritage and country, I am saddened by the violence Mexico is facing, but I am also saddened that this violence defines my country to many people. Mexico, too, is much more than the injustices it has suffered.

What's important to remember is that despite the safety and security issues in some parts of Mexico, violence is a global epidemic. It does not belong to or affect just one gender, one race or one country. Violence does not discriminate.

Let me introduce you to my Mexico. I began my journey from Vancouver to Mazatlan on my own, self-sup-ported, with a long road ahead of me and many obstacles ahead. But along the way, it became a community effort as I found generous support and love every step of the way. I ran many miles accompanied by others who are joining me in this fight. After the solitude one can feel as a victim of violence, the solidarity I found through my run was overwhelming.

With this support, I was able to run towards my challenges and confront them head on. I know that we can do the same in our fight against violence. Just like my friends who supported me and ran by my side, mile after mile, we must all support one another in the long journey we face to end violence. The road is long - but we are all in this together.


Norma Bastidas is a Mazatlan-born, Vancouver-based ultra-marathon runner, activist, and mother to two sons. She is currently writing a book about her personal campaign against violence, which she hopes will encourage others to stand up against violence everywhere.