The Greek League for Women's Rights () is a Greek feminist organization which was founded in 1920 in

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

to promote women's political rights including

suffrage Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to v ...

. Affiliated to the

International Alliance of Women The International Alliance of Women (IAW; , AIF) is an international non-governmental organization that works to promote women's rights and gender equality. It was historically the main international organization that campaigned for women's suff ...

, the organization continues to be active today.

Background

A number of initiatives in support of women had been taken since Greece had obtained independence in 1828, especially in the sphere of education. In 1872, Kalliopi Kehajia (1839-1905) founded the Society for Promoting Women's Education. Kalliroi Parren (1861-1940) founded the Union for the Emancipation of Women in 1894 and the Union of Greek Women in 1896, although both avoided calls for the controversial cause of women's suffrage. The National Council of Greek Women, an umbrella organization for some fifty charity associations for women and children, was founded in 1911. Progress on the educational front was achieved with the admission of women to the

University of Athens The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA; , ''Ethnikó kai Kapodistriakó Panepistímio Athinón''), usually referred to simply as the University of Athens (UoA), is a public university in Athens, Greece, with various campuses alo ...

and in 1911, the establishment of the Lyceum of Greek Women (Lykeion ton Ellinidon), an association striving to revive Greece's glorious past. It was only in 1920 that

Avra Theodoropoulou Avra Theodoropoulou (; 3 November 1880 – 20 January 1963) was a Greek music teacher, pianist, suffragist and women's rights activist. She founded the Greek League for Women's Rights, League for Women's Rights in 1920 and served as its chairperso ...

founded the Greek League for Women's Rights, specifically demanding progress on political rights and suffrage.

History

The League was particularly active in the 1920s, 1930s and 1950s, succeeding in having discriminating laws repealed and achieving progress in family law. The feminist journal ''Women's Struggle'' has been published by the organization since 1923, the year when it became affiliated with the International Alliance of Women. In 1982, it established the Centre for Documentation and Study of Women's Problems.

References

{{reflist

External links

The League's website
(in Greek) Feminist organizations in Greece Organizations established in 1920 Voter rights and suffrage organizations Women's suffrage in Greece