1949 – Eva Perón and the Female Peronist Party
Eva Perón delivering a speech in Casa Rosada.
Eva Perón delivering a speech in Casa Rosada.
Throughout Argentine history, there has been unanimous acknowledgement of the fact that Evita made of the recognition of equal civil and political rights between men and women a critical cause. Her charisma and leadership introduced Argentine women to the public sphere in a way that was unheard of before her.
After obtaining the female vote in 1947, Evita understood that the law on its own would not ensure the presence of women among the candidates in the following elections. For that reason, in 1949, together with a group of politically active women, Evita found the Partido Peronista Femenino (Female Peronist Party, or PPF). According to its general regulations, the PPF was intimately linked to the Peronist movement, but was autonomous from the original Peronist party formed by men.
Even though Evita did not match the political profile of the groundbreaking feminists of the time, her figure symbolised the achievement of the rights for which they had been fighting for decades. Women finally made their first appearance in the public sphere. However, the Peronist dogma also guarded the secular ideal of maternal and homely women, unable to dismantle the patriarchal stereotype that essentially divided the housewives from the political activists.