People from Hispanic origins, including myself, believe that La Llorona, the weeping woman, is real. But there is also proof that can debunk the conspiracy theory of La Llorona. This story origins from Mexico and other Latin countries because that is where this incident occurred. There are many different versions of the weeping woman but I will stick to the Mexican version of her because that’s what I know personally.
Maria was a gorgeous girl and no others could compete with her because she overcame the beauty standards. She decided that she would marry a rich man that was to her standards of looks and one day, her ideal man came to town. She decided that she would marry him but her mother warned her that he would leave her because he seemed like a troublemaker but she didn’t listen because she thought he was perfect. She thought that if she played hard to get the rich man would chase her and eventually ask to marry her. Maria was correct and he started to play guitar for her and they eventually started talking and got married. Then they had 2 children that they both adored but not long afterward he started leaving town and barely coming home, the only time he was home was to visit his children and he gave them all his attention when he was home. Maria was overthinking and doubting herself because of why she wouldn’t get attention from him and how she was jealous of her children until one day he came back with a rich woman that he married. Maria was filled with resentment because again, he only came to visit the children so out of spite Mariadragged her two children along to the river banks in a forest and threw them forcefully into the river. She had not realized what she had done until after she couldn’t see them anymore because she was blinded with built up frustration. She went running in despair and guilt looking for them until she tripped, fell forward, and her head was bashed open by a rock that her head landed on. She soon died by the loss of blood and the town went looking for her the next day only to find her dead, on the ground.
You might be wondering, how does this story have anything to do with a conspiracy theory after I just wrote a summary of the story. People still say till this day that her spirit could not Rest In Peace knowing what she has done to her children. People have said that they still hear Maria at night sobbing and in despair asking “Dónde están mis hijos?” Which is translated to in english, “Where are my children?” If you are near a river at night alone, she will not be able to decipher the difference between you and her child so beware of the consequences that might occur if you see her. Supposedly Maria is dressed in a white elongated dress that gives an eerie feeling when seeing it. There have actually been “sightings” of La Llorona at night near rivers in forests by meddling kids who thought it was a joke and not to be taken seriously. One kid was touched by Maria and said “It felt like icicles were cutting into his flesh.” Thankfully, his mass bells rang and that brought up a memory of a prayer that was recited in his head and La Llorona disappeared like a gust of wind.
La Llorona overall can be debunked in dozens of ways. There is no valid proof to believe that this story can be believable and actually true. It has been a long time since this story was told so that explains why the stories are very distinct depending on where they started to evolve. There are many Latin countries that are dissimilar from the story I just wrote to you now which is why it can be proven wrong. Personally, I used to believe this story because I grew up hearing about it but now parts of the story itself seem unbelievable to me. For instance, how she died by tripping on a vine and hitting her head on a rock. I’m sure it could’ve caused damage but not enough damage to the extent where she passed away from it. Overall, the story is very interesting but it is not exactly that believable because of the lack of details that could’ve been added.
Leah Reynoso – Fenwick High School – DMSF Class of 2026
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