Women's History Month: A celebration of Filipina women
Recognizing Filipina women in history who have paved the way for women and girls in the Philippines. From militant feminists to anti-imperialist fighters, here are their stories.
Yesterday marked an international celebration of the woman and of the girl. We’ve all heard Malala Yousafzai’s determination to progress girls’ education in Pakistan. Ruth Bader Ginsburg - a feminist icon who has battled sexism and gender discrimination. And we can’t forget the well-known “Mother of Feminism” Gloria Steinem, who led the women’s liberation movement in the ‘60s and ‘70s. We’ve all heard their famous stories and incredible achievements that paved the path for women and girls – but for this International Women’s Day, I’m sharing a list of Filipina women who have demonstrated resilience, strength, and who have disrupted barriers of access and opportunities for the Filipinas everywhere.
Concepción Felix Roque
In the U.S., the first women’s rights convention was organized in Seneca Falls, New York by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott. In England, Emily Davison became a famous equal rights martyr when she threw herself in front of the King’s horse during the Epson Derby in 1913. It ignited a significant turning point in the women’s suffrage movement in Great Britain. These women were amongst the early activists in the women’s suffrage movement in their respective countries. Like them, the Philippines led their own movement – the first women’s organization was Asociacion Feminista Filipina, established by Concepción Felix Roque.
Around the time the Philippines was established as an American “territory” in the early 20th century, the early suffragettes - mostly middle to upper class women - advocated for equal rights for girls and women across the country. Along with twelve other women, including Trinidad Rizal (sister of Jose Rizal, a Filipino nationalist and writer), Felix Roque organized the Asociacion Feminista Filipina. The organization started as a social purity movement that encouraged virtuous lives for Filipina women across the country, having advocated for things like education, health care, and labor rights. Although Felix Roque wasn’t aggressively campaigning for reform, it inspired the formation of many women’s organizations that disrupted society and gave women equal rights in the Philippines.
Clemencia López
Clemencia López came from a wealthy family who were part of the anti-imperialism movement - her brothers were involved in the Philippine revolution against Spain in 1898. López, in a struggling journey, contributed in the Filipinos’ fight for independence and freedom. When her brothers were arrested, because of their involvement in the revolution and their family’s anti-colonialism ideas, she travelled to the U.S. to plead her case. With the way she presented herself to Americans, with intelligence and luxurious fashion, she was able to make allies as well as disrupt the racist stereotype that Filipinos were “savage and uncivilized” and women were victims at the hands of male brutality.
On May 29, 1902, she made a public appearance to propose an alliance with the New England Woman Suffrage Association. In her speech, she addressed that gender equality in the Philippines was always innate.
I believe that we are both striving for much the same object — you for the right to take part in national life; we for the right to have a national life to take part in. . . . Mentally, socially, and in almost all the relations of life, our women are regarded as the equals of our men. . . . this equality of women in the Philippines is not a new thing. It was not introduced from Europe. . . Long prior to the Spanish occupation, the people were already civilized, and this respect for and equality of women existed. . . in the name of the Philippine women, I pray the Massachusetts Woman Suffrage Association do what it can to remedy all this misery and misfortune in my unhappy country. You can do much to bring about the cessation of these horrors and cruelties which are today taking place in the Philippines, and to insist upon a more human course. . . you ought to understand that we are only contending for the liberty of our country, just as you once fought for the same liberty for yours..
— An excerpt of López’s speech, May 29 1902. Extracted from City University New York’s American Social History Project.
Lorena Barros
Founder of the Malayang Kilusan ng Bagong Kababaihan (or Makibaka, in short), Lorena was a feminist, writer, and well-known activist in the anti-dictatorship movement. She pulled her activism and went underground when President Ferdinand Marcos declined habeas corpus (a legal action that allows detainees to seek relief from imprisonment; also known as the right to a trial) in 1971, after the Plaza Miranda bombings that killed nine people and injured ninety-five.
Known as the “gentle warrior”, Barros not only wrote poetry and essays, but she was active fighter against the Marcos administration and became a top political prisoner after martial law was implemented by President Marcos in 1972. It is said she often travelled to the countryside, where she spoke to communities to understand how the Marcos administration was affecting rural Philippines. When in hiding, she got married, started a family, and joined the New People’s Army. On March 24, 1976, Barros was tracked down by military and ended up getting wounded and injured in a gun fight encounter. She eventually passed away from her injuries, although it’s rumored she was shot in the nape by a soldier after she refused to cooperate.
“New Filipina is first and foremost, a militant.”
— The famous phrase uttered by Lorena Barros
These women symbolize all that represents Filipina women: strong, passionate, and independent. Their stories are stories of a struggle and fight for freedom, for equality, for their country. I hope these stories reverberate and inspire you, whether or not you are or identify as a woman; because their stories, amongst the many stories of successful women in history, signify what it means to be resilient.
Sources
https://www.philstar.com/the-freeman/opinion/2022/12/07/2229051/filipinas-and-right-vote
https://www.womensactivism.nyc/stories/9112
https://www.esquiremag.ph/long-reads/features/womens-suffrage-philippines-a2212-20210505-lfrm
https://bantayogngmgabayani.org/bayani/lorena-barros/
https://daily.jstor.org/clemencia-lopez-and-the-philippine-struggle-for-freedom/