I was traveling with two surfboards, a duffel bag, three cameras, five lenses, and a laptop — over 200 pounds of gear. It was now dusk, and there was no place to go and no bus in sight.Was I foolish for traveling alone? Should I have just stayed home?No, I told myself, I belong here.Last month, the bodies of two Argentine backpackers, Marina Menegazzo, 21, and María José Coni, 22 , were found stuffed in plastic bags and dumped on the beach in Montañita, on Ecuador’s Pacific coast. According to media reports, the two women were raped and killed by two men, who reportedly said they were going to help the women with accommodation.The news was heartbreaking. These women were seeing the world, and I’m certain, learning about themselves in the process. But the aftermath of their deaths was arguably even more tragic.The response that emerged on social media was upsetting, yet all too familiar: Menegazzo and Coni were blamed for their own murders. Many online commenters suggested that by traveling “alone” — without the company of men — the women had invited trouble.Paraguayan student Guadalupe Acosta responded to the victim-blaming by penning a Facebook post from the imagined perspective of Menegazzo and Coni as they were being raped and murdered. "But worse than death was the humiliation which came after," the post reads. As of March 23, it has been shared more than 730,000 times.Ricocheting through social media platforms, women worldwide have responded to the criticism and victim-shaming with #viajosola , or “I travel alone.” They have posted pictures, explaining why it’s necessary for them to see the world, and defending their right to explore without harassment or discrimination.