Carmelita, a resident of Casa Xochiquetzal, enjoys smoking her daily cigarette at the shelter in Mexico City, Mexico on April 25, 2012. One day, Carmelita's son abandoned her on the subway because his wife didn’t want to take care of her and didn’t want to live under the same roof with a sex worker. Asked to choose between his wife and his mother, Carmelita’s son deserted his mother. Casa Xochiquetzal is a shelter for elderly sex workers in Mexico City. It gives the women refuge, food, health services, a space to learn about their human rights and courses to help them rediscover their self-confidence and deal with traumatic aspects of their lives. Casa Xochiquetzal provides a space to age with dignity for a group of vulnerable women who are often invisible to society at large. It is the only such shelter existing in Latin America. Photo by Bénédicte Desrus