Argentina Altobelli (2 July 1866 – 26 September 1942) was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

trade unionist, the first woman to lead a trade union in the country. Born in

Imola Imola (; rgn, Jômla or ) is a city and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Bologna, located on the river Santerno, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. The city is traditionally considered the western entrance to the historical re ...

as Argentina Bonetti, Altobelli joined a youth group while in

Parma Parma (; egl, Pärma, ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, Giuseppe Verdi, music, art, prosciutto (ham), Parmigiano-Reggiano, cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,292 ...

, led by Agostino Berenini, in support of the views of

Giuseppe Mazzini Giuseppe Mazzini (, , ; 22 June 1805 – 10 March 1872) was an Italian politician, journalist, and activist for the unification of Italy (Risorgimento) and spearhead of the Italian revolutionary movement. His efforts helped bring about the in ...

. She met

Andrea Costa Andrea is a given name which is common worldwide for both males and females, cognate to Andreas, Andrej and Andrew. Origin of the name The name derives from the Greek word ἀνήρ (''anēr''), genitive ἀνδρός (''andrós''), that ref ...

and was inspired to become a socialist. She moved to

Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nat ...

and married Abdon Altobelli, a fellow socialist. She organised a

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

for women workers, and was elected to the executive of the

trades council A labour council, trades council or industrial council is an association of labour unions or union branches in a given area. Most commonly, they represent unions in a given geographical area, whether at the district, city, region, or provincial or ...

. In 1901, Altobelli was a founder member of the National Federation of Agricultural Workers (Federterra), and in 1906, she was elected as its national secretary, the first woman to lead an Italian trade union representing both men and women. She attended the International Women's Congress in Amsterdam in 1904, as a delegate of the Italian Women's Alliance. She also joined the

Italian Socialist Party The Italian Socialist Party (, PSI) was a socialist and later social-democratic political party in Italy, whose history stretched for longer than a century, making it one of the longest-living parties of the country. Founded in Genoa in 1892, ...

(PSI), and in 1908 was elected to the party's executive. As leader of Federterra, Altobelli campaigned for land nationalisation, and set up employment offices and co-operatives for union members. From 1912, she served on the Superior Labor Council at the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce, and also became a director of the National Accident Fund. In 1920, she participated in the congress which founded the

International Landworkers' Federation The International Landworkers' Federation (ILF) was a global union federation bringing together trade unions representing agricultural and forestry workers. History The federation was established in 1920 at a conference in Amsterdam, and set up i ...

. Altobelli was on the reformist wing of the PSI, and in 1922 joined the Unitary Socialist Party split. Under pressure from fascists, she left Bologna and moved to Rome. In 1924,

Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...

offered her the position of under secretary of agriculture, hoping to bring reformist socialists onside, but she rejected the position. Federterra was banned in 1926, and Altobelli took jobs out of the public eye, campaigning for workers but facing increasing poverty. She died in 1942.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Altobelli, Argentina 1866 births 1942 deaths Italian trade unionists People from Imola