Petronila "Nilita" Vientós Gastón (June 5, 1903 – July 10, 1989) was a Puerto Rican educator, writer and journalist, and the first female lawyer to work for the

Puerto Rico Department of Justice The Puerto Rico Department of Justice (PR DOJ) () is the Executive Department of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico responsible for the enforcement of the local law in the commonwealth and the administration of justice. The Department is equival ...

Early years

Vientós Gastón was born in

San Sebastián San Sebastián, officially known by the bilingual name Donostia / San Sebastián (, ), is a city and municipality located in the Basque Autonomous Community, Spain. It lies on the coast of the Bay of Biscay, from the France–Spain border ...

, Puerto Rico, a town located on the western region of Puerto Rico. Her parents moved to

Havana, Cuba Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

for various years, they moved to New York City, where she received her secondary education. In 1923, Vientós Gastón returned to Puerto Rico.El Nuevo Día
El Nuevo Día

Academic education

She entered the

University of Puerto Rico School of Law The University of Puerto Rico School of Law is the law school of the University of Puerto Rico at Río Piedras, the only law school in the University of Puerto Rico System and the only public law school in Puerto Rico. It was founded in 1913 at ...

where she studied law and earned her degree. In 1945, while she was a student, she founded and directed the magazine ''Asomante''. She was granted a scholarship from the Rockefeller Foundation and studied literature at

Kenyon College Kenyon College ( ) is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Gambier, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1824 by Episcopal Bishop Philander Chase. It is the oldest private instituti ...

Gambier, Ohio Gambier ( ) is a village in Knox County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,213 at the 2020 census. Gambier is the home of Kenyon College. History Gambier was laid out in 1824. The village was named after one of Kenyon College's early ...

Professional career

When Vientós Gastón returned to Puerto Rico, she was hired by her alma mater to teach literature. She was also hired by the

, becoming the first woman hold this position.Nilita Vientós Gastón
/ref> She worked as an auxiliary prosecutor general for three decades. Vientós Gastón defended the use of the Spanish language in the courts of Puerto Rico, before the Supreme Court, and won. Vientós Gastón was a founding member of the Puerto Rican Academy of the Spanish Language. In 1946, Vientós Gastón became the first woman president of the Puerto Rican Athenaeum, a position which she held until 1961. She was also the first president of the PEN Club of Puerto Rico.

Author

Vientós Gastón had a column in the newspaper "El Mundo". In 1956, she published ''Introducción a Henry James''" (Introduction to

Henry James Henry James ( – ) was an American-British author. He is regarded as a key transitional figure between literary realism and literary modernism, and is considered by many to be among the greatest novelists in the English language. He was the ...

) and in 1957 ''Impresiones de un Viaje'' (Impressions of a trip). For many years she was editor of the literary journal "Asomante". In 1970, she founded the journal ''Sin Nombre'' (Without a Name). She was also the author of ''Apuntes Sobre Teatro''.

Later years

In 1996, the Association of Graduates of the University of Puerto Rico, dedicated the 50th anniversary issue of ''Asomante'' to Vientós Gastón and to the memory of Margot Arce de Vázquez. Vientós Gastón died on July 10, 1989, in Santurce, Puerto Rico. She was buried at

Santa María Magdalena de Pazzis Cemetery __NOTOC__ The Santa María Magdalena de Pazzis Cemetery () is a colonial-era Catholic cemetery located in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico. It is the final resting place of many of Puerto Rico's most prominent natives and residents. Construction began in ...

San Juan, Puerto Rico San Juan ( , ; Spanish for "Saint John the Baptist, John") is the capital city and most populous Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality in the Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the ...

Legacy

The Nilita Vientós Gastón Foundation was founded in 1995 and Vientós Gastón's house was converted into a museum-library. The Foundation together with the Puerto Rican Institute of Culture manages her publications and documents. The Puerto Rican Bar Association annually present the Nilita Vientós Gastón Medal to the person whose principles exemplifies that of Vientós Gastón's. The Bar Association also honored her memory by naming a Hall after her.Nilita Vientós Gastón Foundation
/ref> Giannina Braschi dedicated

United States of Banana ''United States of Banana'' (2011) is a postmodern allegorical novel by the Puerto Rican author Giannina Braschi. It is a cross-genre work that blends experimental theatre, prose poetry, short story, and political philosophy with a manifesto on ...

to Nilita Vientós Gastón.

References

External links

Fundación Nilita Vientós GastónEl Nuevo Día
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vientos Gaston, Nilita 1903 births 1989 deaths Burials at Santa María Magdalena de Pazzis Cemetery People from San Sebastián, Puerto Rico Puerto Rican educators Puerto Rican women educators Puerto Rican journalists Puerto Rican people of French descent Kenyon College alumni Rockefeller Fellows 20th-century Puerto Rican educators 20th-century American educators 20th-century journalists American women journalists American women educators