Ana Guevara has been dealing with body-shaming bullies all of her life. The Mexican Olympic medal-winning athlete is known for competing in track and field and after she retired from running, she took on a new role as senator. Recently she was beaten in an attack she describes as a gender hate crime.
The incident happened in December when she was riding her motorcycle and a car hit her. She was upset because she was knocked to the ground so she went after the driver that tried to get away but was stopped as 4 men came out of the car and began to beat her.
Guevera posted a photo of her swollen and bruised face on Twitter and the next day she held a press conference in front of the Senate in Mexico City, condemning the crime and asking her fellow senators to take action on the issue of gender violence.
“There have been all kinds of insults, from men and women who have expressed they agree with the fact that I was beaten,” she said in an interview with CNN. “Of course I have also received support and love from thousands of people.”
This isn’t the first time that she’s been bullied. Back when she was an athlete she was often body-shamed for being too masculine since she packed a six-pack and a muscular body.
Guevara has pledged to continue to speak openly about gender violence within the senate and help spread the word about this issue that affects many women, especially in the Latino community.