Martina Carrillo (born 1750, died after 1778) was a black

Ecuadorian Ecuadorians ( es, ecuatorianos) are people identified with the South American country of Ecuador. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Ecuadorians, several (or all) of these connections exist and are colle ...

activist who defended the rights of black people and fought against

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

. Together with six other slaves of

African descent Black is a racialized classification of people, usually a political and skin color-based category for specific populations with a mid to dark brown complexion. Not all people considered "black" have dark skin; in certain countries, often in ...

, in 1778 she went to Quito to present her case to the president of the Royal Audience who promised to help them. They were nevertheless punished by

whipping Flagellation (Latin , 'whip'), flogging or whipping is the act of beating the human body with special implements such as whips, rods, switches, the cat o' nine tails, the sjambok, the knout, etc. Typically, flogging has been imposed on ...

, Carrillo receiving 300 strokes. Today she is honored as a national heroine.

Biography

Born around 1750 in the valley of the River Chota in northern Ecuador, she became a slave in the ranch known as La Concepción. In 1778, at the end of January, together with six other

black slaves The Atlantic slave trade, transatlantic slave trade, or Euro-American slave trade involved the transportation by slave traders of enslaved African people, mainly to the Americas. The slave trade regularly used the triangular trade route and i ...

from La Concepción (Pedro Lucumi, Andrés Lucumi, Ambrosia Padilla, Antonio Chalá, Ignacia Quiteño and Irene Luardo), Carrillo went to Quito to present to José Diguja, president of the Royal Audience appointed by the Spanish, a number of complaints stemming from the mistreatment they suffered under the administrator Francesco Aurrecco Eche. These included insufficient food and clothing and the need for days off after working in the fields. Diguja promised there would be improvements and sent them back with a written request to Aurreco Echea that no punishment should be given. Aurreco Echea disregarded the request and punished them all by whipping. Carillo received 300 strokes. The next day a doctor had to be called to treat Carrillo whose chest had been severed. All the others were seriously injured too and none were able to return to work for at least two weeks. The following April, Andrés Fernández Salvador began to investigate the case, questioning the witnesses at La Concepción. On 12 April, Aurreco Echea was arrested and on 14 July fined 200 peso, 100 of which were shared among the victims. A monument now stands in the central park of La Concepción honoring the bravery of Martina Carrillo.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carrillo, Martina 1750 births People from Carchi Province African diaspora in Ecuador Ecuadorian slaves Ecuadorian activists Ecuadorian women activists