Ana Montenegro has passed away.
She is one of the 1000 women proposed for the Nobel Peace Price 2005.
Ana Montenegro (1915) has been a communist militant since her youth. She was part of the creation of many women organizations. With the military coup of 1964, she went into exile with her two small children. After 15 years, she came back to her country to continue her battle. As a lawyer, she helped, for free, women suffering with domestic violence. Journalist, writer and a poet, she was an unmistakable reference in the recent history of Brazilian social struggles.
She said: « Respecting the people is to see to their needs ».
.
.
.
Ana Montenegro – Brazil (1915 – 2006)
1945 was not just any year. It celebrated the end of the Second World War and of one more Brazilian dictatorship, of Getúlio Vargas government. It was an interesting year: against fascisms and massacres, in favor of freedom and human rights. It was also the year when Ana Montenegro affiliated herself to the Brazilian Communist Party.
Ana wrote for the party’s newspapers and magazines. She also wrote for the radio and for diaries of the great press, about health, salaries, education. She was part of the foundation and the daily life of women and social organizations. She was a lawyer convinced that the people are the great master. So much so that, (2005) at the age of 90, she advised young lawyers “to be sensitive to popular needs”.
In 1964, with the tanks on the streets and the military truculence on its way, Ana left for a long exile. But she did not stop. Ana walked around Mexico, Cuba, Chile, Palestine, Eastern Germany. The distance allowed her to improve her thoughts on Brazil. The fight against racism and for women became primary to her.
With the amnesty in 1979, Ana came back to do what she had always done: popular mobilization and agitation. She supported “invasions” of neighborhoods of the outskirts of the city of Salvador. She fought alongside underprivileged residents of the Historical Center of the Pelourinho, when the region was dominated to the real estate/tourist speculation.
On top of her practical work, Ana Montenegro had always continued writing articles, essays and poetry. So nobody can say that she did not speak of roses,
here are a few verses that she recited with love:
- “Flowers in the sky
- flowers in the earth.
- Flowers on your shoulders
- flowers on your face.
- Flowers everywhere
- flowers even in August.”
The participation of women in political parties had not been rightfully recognized. Along with Ana Montenegro, hundreds of women had occupied important positions in the parties.
They deserve larger visibility. (1000peacewomen).
Ana Montenegro, (Quixeramobim, 1915 — 30 de março de 2006) foi uma jornalista, poetisa brasileira, filiou-se ao Partido Comunista Brasileiro em 1945. Foi co-fundadora do periódico “Movimento Feminino”, editado durante dez anos, que servia de instrumento de divulgação das lutas e conquistas das mulheres brasileiras.
Ana Montenegro formada em Direito e Letras, residia em Salvador, é reconhecida por sua luta em defesa de sua gente e de sua terra. Com a ascensão do regime militar e da ditadura, foi a primeira mulher a ser exilada, tendo ficado fora do país por mais de quinze anos, afastada de seu lar e de sua família.
Trabalhou, durante o exílio, em organismos internacionais, como a ONU e a UNESCO, tendo participado de congressos, conferênciais, e seminários pelo mundo. Foi redatora da Revista “Mulheres do Mundo Inteiro”, órgão da FDIM – Federação Democrática Internacional de Mulheres. Militante do Partido Comunista Brasileiro (PCB) por mais de 50 anos, Ana lutou bravamente pelo restabelecimento da democracia no Brasil e, em conseqüência disso, teve a sua vida conturbada por perseguições políticas.
Aos 90 anos de idade, Ana Montenegro ainda afirmava em alto e bom som “que a sua luta continua, por pão, terra e trabalho, sendo que um país que tem isso tem liberdade.” Sempre afirmava que, “respeitar o povo é respeitar suas necessidades”. Além do ativismo em defesa da mulher, lutou também durante muitos anos contra o racismo, com um grande trabalho junto à população negra. Escreveu, além dos inúmeros artigos e ensaios, diversas obras, dentre as quais, cuidando da questão da mulher, “Ser ou não ser feminista” e “Mulheres – Participação nas lutas populares”. (portuguese wikipedia).
Link: Conheça as 52 brasileiras incluídas no projeto « Mil mulheres para o Prêmio Nobel da Paz 2005« .
There are more portuguese texts with this name, but it’s not certain that she is meant.