Elvia Carrillo Puerto (6 December 1878 – 15 April 1968) was a

Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

politician and

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

activist. Carillo had been married at the age of 13 and widowed by 21. She founded Mexico's first feminist leagues in 1912, including the League of Rita Cetina Gutierrez ( es, Liga Rita Cetina Gutierrez) in 1919. In 1923, Carillo became Mexico's first woman state deputy, and elected to the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourbon R ...

Due to Carillo's contributions to Mexican government and history, she was officially decorated as a "Veteran of the Revolution." Carillo's tireless dedication to the revolution and women's movement earned her the nickname "The Red Nun" ( es, La Monja Roja).

Feminist leagues

1912–1922

Elvia Carrillo Puerto is credited with starting numerous feminist leagues in Mexico, the most prominent being the

Rita Cetina Gutiérrez Rita Cetina Gutiérrez (22 May 1846 – 11 October 1908) was a Mexican teacher, poet and feminist who promoted secular education in the nineteenth century in Mérida, Yucatán, Mérida, Yucatán. She was one of the first feminists and influenced ...

League, named after one of Yucatán's most prominent educators. The feminist leagues focused on many tasks to promote women's rights, beginning in Mérida, where the first were founded in 1912, and eventually spreading through Southeastern Mexico, into Central Mexico in later years. The organization led a campaign against

prostitution Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in Sex work, sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, n ...

, the use of

drugs A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalat ...

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol (drug), alcohol that results in significant Mental health, mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognize ...

superstition A superstition is any belief or practice considered by non-practitioners to be irrational or supernatural, attributed to fate or magic, perceived supernatural influence, or fear of that which is unknown. It is commonly applied to beliefs and ...

and

fanaticism Fanaticism (from the Latin adverb ''fānāticē'' ren-''fānāticus''; enthusiastic, ecstatic; raging, fanatical, furious is a belief or behavior involving uncritical zeal or an obsessive enthusiasm. Definitions Philosopher George Santayana ...

. In attempts to uplift women, the Liga Rita Cetina Gutierrez, founded in 1919, often gave talks on

child care Child care, otherwise known as day care, is the care and supervision of a child or multiple children at a time, whose ages range from two weeks of age to 18 years. Although most parents spend a significant amount of time caring for their child(r ...

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...

and on

hygiene Hygiene is a series of practices performed to preserve health. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), "Hygiene refers to conditions and practices that help to maintain health and prevent the spread of diseases." Personal hygiene refer ...

for poor women. The league inspected schools and hospitals, and helped to establish a state

orphanage An orphanage is a Residential education, residential institution, total institution or group home, devoted to the Childcare, care of orphans and children who, for various reasons, cannot be cared for by their biological families. The parent ...

. Through the feminist leagues which Carillo founded,

family planning Family planning is the consideration of the number of children a person wishes to have, including the choice to have no children, and the age at which they wish to have them. Things that may play a role on family planning decisions include marita ...

programs were instituted with legalized birth control, the first in the Western Hemisphere. Elvia believed large families were a barrier to a better life for the poor and distributed literature by

Margaret Sanger Margaret Higgins Sanger (born Margaret Louise Higgins; September 14, 1879September 6, 1966), also known as Margaret Sanger Slee, was an American birth control activist, sex educator, writer, and nurse. Sanger popularized the term "birth control ...

, who would later go on to found the

American Birth Control League The American Birth Control League (ABCL) was founded by Margaret Sanger in 1921 at the First American Birth Control Conference in New York City. The organization promoted the founding of birth control clinics and encouraged women to control their ...

, later known as

Planned Parenthood The Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. (PPFA), or simply Planned Parenthood, is a nonprofit organization that provides reproductive health care in the United States and globally. It is a tax-exempt corporation under Internal Reve ...

, material Sanger could not distribute in the United States for legal reasons. The leagues also set up prenatal and postnatal care for women. She participated in

the First Feminist Congress of Yucatán ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

in 1916.

1923–1925

Carillo is noted as having devoted herself full-time to touring Southeastern Mexico with the goal of organizing

Mayan Mayan most commonly refers to: * Maya peoples, various indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica and northern Central America * Maya civilization, pre-Columbian culture of Mesoamerica and northern Central America * Mayan languages, language family spoken ...

women into leagues and preparing them for civic responsibility. The leagues would identify women of special aptitude and train them to fill elective posts in the city and state government. Carillo, after her brother and governor Felipe permitted women the right to vote and hold office, was elected in 1923 to the Yucatán legislature, Mexico's first female member of state legislature. Carillo won the election by an overwhelming 5,115 votes. While a member of government, Carillo promoted the issue of

land reform Land reform is a form of agrarian reform involving the changing of laws, regulations, or customs regarding land ownership. Land reform may consist of a government-initiated or government-backed property redistribution, generally of agricultural ...

, proposing plans that would provide '' campesinos'' with farms capable of sustaining their families. In doing so Carillo organized local chapters of women into Gualbertista Central Agrarian Communities for Females, named after her brother Gualberto, a senator and land reform activist. In 1924 as women's rights were advancing, Felipe was assassinated. Felipe's death signaled a change in the local government, as well as in women's rights. While permitting women's rights in Yucatán, he had not been able to have those rights reflected in the

constitution of Mexico The Constitution of Mexico, formally the Political Constitution of the United Mexican States ( es, Constitución Política de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos), is the current constitution of Mexico. It was drafted in Santiago de Querétaro, in th ...

; after his death those rights were revoked by the incoming leadership of Juan Ricardez Broca. With a new government in power, women were removed from positions in municipal and state government offices, women's suffrage was revoked, and social programs through women's leagues were no longer supported. Carillo moved to

San Luis Potosí San Luis Potosí (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of San Luis Potosí ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de San Luis Potosí), is one of the 32 states which compose the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 58 municipalities and i ...

, the new center of the women's rights movement, following Felipe's death. In 1925, Carillo was elected to the national

as a representative of San Luis Potosí; she was however denied the seat due to suffrage and office-holding being restricted to males. While local governments had permitted such roles, they were still not recognized nationally.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carrillo Puerto, Elvia 1878 births 1967 deaths Birth control activists Members of the Chamber of Deputies (Mexico) Mexican feminists Mexican feminist writers Mexican people of Maya descent Mexican socialists People of the Mexican Revolution Politicians from Yucatán (state) Mexican women's rights activists Women members of the Chamber of Deputies (Mexico) 20th-century Mexican women politicians