Maria Clara Correia Alves (18691948) was a Portuguese feminist. She was one of the founders of the National Council of Portuguese Women in 1914 and both the Secretary-General of the Council and the editor of its newsletter from 1914 to 1920.

Early life and activism

Maria Clara Correia Alves was born in

Montemor-o-Novo Montemor-o-Novo () is a municipality in the District of Évora in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 17,437, in an area of 1232.97 km2. The city itself had a population of 8,928 in 2001. The present Mayor is Olímpio Manuel Vidigal Galvão, ...

in the Evora District of

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

in 1869. She became a feminist, a

Freethinker Freethought (sometimes spelled free thought) is an epistemological viewpoint which holds that beliefs should not be formed on the basis of authority, tradition, revelation, or dogma, and that beliefs should instead be reached by other metho ...

, and a Freemason. Combining

feminism 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 ...

and

freethinking Freethought (sometimes spelled free thought) is an epistemological viewpoint which holds that beliefs should not be formed on the basis of authority, tradition, revelation, or dogma, and that beliefs should instead be reached by other methods ...

, she made a presentation at the 17th International Free Thought Congress on the subject of ''La Libre Pensée et L´Emancipacion de la Femme'' (Free thought and the Emancipation of Women).

Anti-clerical Anti-clericalism is opposition to religious authority, typically in social or political matters. Historical anti-clericalism has mainly been opposed to the influence of Roman Catholicism. Anti-clericalism is related to secularism, which seeks to ...

, with a strong interest in education, she was an early proponent of the secularisation of education in Portugal. She also campaigned in favour of divorce.

National Council of Portuguese Women

Alves joined the Republican League of Portuguese Women, which both sought the end of the

Portuguese monarchy This is a list of Portuguese monarchs who ruled from the establishment of the Kingdom of Portugal, in 1139, to the deposition of the Portuguese monarchy and creation of the Portuguese Republic with the 5 October 1910 revolution. Through the nea ...

and advocated for

women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...

. She was a founding member of the feminist ''

Conselho Nacional das Mulheres Portuguesas The ''Conselho Nacional das Mulheres Portuguesas'' (National Council of Portuguese Women) was a feminist organization founded in 1914. Early developments The first attempt to found a Women’s Council in Portugal was at the beginning of the 20th ...

'' (National Council of Portuguese Women - CNMP) in 1914, and was largely responsible for establishing linkages with prominent figures of the international feminist movement. In 1914 there was intense correspondence between Alves and the

National Council of French Women National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

(CNFF) and the

International Council of Women The International Council of Women (ICW) is a women's rights organization working across national boundaries for the common cause of advocating human rights for women. In March and April 1888, women leaders came together in Washington, D.C., wit ...

(ICW) general secretaries,

Avril de Sainte-Croix Ghénia Avril de Sainte-Croix ( pen name, Savioz; pseudonym, de Sainte-Croix; 1855 – 21 March 1939) was a French author, journalist, feminist and pacifist. For many years she led the French branch of the International Abolitionist Federation, wh ...

and

Alice Salomon Alice Salomon (19 April 1872, in Berlin – 30 August 1948, in New York City) was a German social reformer and pioneer of social work as an academic discipline. Her role was so important to German social work that the ''Deutsche Bundespost'' (G ...

, as well as with other feminists such as Lady Aberdeen and

Carrie Chapman Catt Carrie Chapman Catt (; January 9, 1859 Fowler, p. 3 – March 9, 1947) was an American women's suffrage leader who campaigned for the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which gave U.S. women the right to vote in 1920. Catt ...

. Alves became the Council's first Secretary-General from 1914 to 1919 and then proposed that the task should be split into two in subsequent years. She then served one year as Secretary-General (Exterior). Alves was the first managing editor of the Council's monthly Official Bulletin, from 1914 to 1916, and of the newsletter or magazine ''

Alma feminina ''Alma feminina'' was the official bulletin of Portugal’s ''Conselho Nacional das Mulheres Portuguesas'' (CNMP) (Portuguese Women’s National Council) from January 1917 to 1946. The Portuguese Women’s National Council was formed in 1914. It ...

'' (Feminine soul) which superseded it in 1917, which she edited until 1920. The use of the word feminine rather than feminism in the title of the newsletter was because the leaders of the association were aware that for many people in Portugal "feminism" was pejorative. They wanted to show that the feminism they advocated was moderate. In 1917, she stated that the main objective of the bulletin was so that "the Portuguese woman can get out of apathetic indifference that she has remained in for centuries, which has contributed so much to stifle her most just aspirations and to delay her emancipation". In 1921, the Council's activists considered it "the only spokesperson for Portuguese women because it is the only magazine that defends the feminist cause". However, publication of ''Alma feminina'' caused financial problems for the Council and both Alves and the President of the Board,

Adelaide Cabete Adelaide Cabete Adelaide Cabete (25 January 1867, Elvas – 14 September 1935), was a Portuguese feminist and republican. In 1909, with Ana de Castro Osorio she created the Republican League of Portuguese Women. She was the founder of the Portug ...

, offered to cover the shortfall in 1919, so that the newsletter could continue to be published. Alves resigned as editor in mid-1920, but served as vice-president of the CNMP in 1921.

Later life

In the 1930s, Alves collaborated with ''Pensamento'' magazine, writing several articles on feminism. She also served as the Director of a Municipal Library in Lisbon. Maria Clara Correia Alves died in 1948.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Correia Alves, Maria Clara 1869 births People from Montemor-o-Novo 1948 deaths Portuguese republicans Portuguese suffragists Portuguese feminists