Eva Duarte And Her Influence On The Female Vote

Eva Duarte and her influence on the female vote

SOURCE IDENTIFICATION AND EVALUATION

The present work aims to analyze the sources. It is intended to answer the following question: How important Eva Duarte de Perón was in obtaining the female vote in Argentina in 1947?

Two secondary sources will be analyzed. Source 1 is a documentary entitled “Suffragists. Pioneers of feminist struggles ”of the meeting channel. Source 2 is a study called “Peronism and female suffrage: the electoral law of 1947”, whose author is Susana Bianchi.

Both sources talk about the fight of women’s rights in Argentina (between the nineteenth and mid -twentieth century), emphasizing the female vote. The two sources highlight Eva Perón.

• Source 1: “Suffragists. Pioneers of feminist struggles ". Encuentro Channel. 2017

It is a secondary source, published in 2017 by Canal Encuentro, an open Argentine television channel of a federal nature. Its content is cultural, transmitting documentaries, debate programs, history series, art, among others. This documentary aims to exalt the fight of women in favor of their rights. To do this, he toured the situation of women in Argentina from the end of the 19th century until the mid -twentieth century. In addition to showing the life and contribution of different Argentine women in their recognition of rights and for women’s suffrage, including Eva Duarte de Perón.

The value of this source lies in which it shows to obtain female suffrage as a conquest product of various women and movements.

Its limitations are found in what being a source whose purpose is to enhance the role of various women, it can fall into the error of not being objective with these historical characters. It is of importance in this work because it allows us to observe female suffrage as a collective conquest.

• Source 2: Peronism and female suffrage: the electoral law of 1947. Susana Bianchi. 1986.

It is a secondary source that is part of the 1986 investigation, women’s organizations in Latin America: the case of the women’s Peronist Party in Argentina. Its author is Susana Bianchi, a professor of General Social History and Researcher at the National University of the Center (Argentina). He has published various articles and books related to Peronism, therefore, an authority can be considered in this subject. The source aims to carry out a study of the relationship between Peronism and female suffrage, and tries to show an objective vision of Eva Perón in relation to the conquest of the female vote.

The value of this source is in the demystification made by both Peronism and Eva Duarte de Perón, unlike most popular sources that show them as the only precursors of female suffrage in Argentina. Its limitations are in that being a secondary source can be conditioned by the author’s perspective;be not totally objective. His relevance for this work is that he tries to demystify the image of Eva Perón and Peronism, giving an objective view of them, something very important in the study of history.

RESEARCH

The women’s supply law in Argentina was sanctioned on September 9, 1947. In this way, one of the most important demands of the women’s movement initiated at the end of the 19th century. When this law is mentioned, it is practically impossible not to have Eva Duarte de Perón in mind, because she and Peronism have eclipsed the rest of predecessor movements that fought for women’s rights. First, it is possible to make a brief review of these movements. Feminist claims originate from economic analysis. Different organizations are founded such as: the "Women’s Union", the "Argentine University Center", the "feminist center", among others. In 1911 Julieta Lanteri becomes the first woman to vote in Argentina and South America (she was not used as jurisprudence). In 1926 women’s civil rights were promulgated. In 1927 the Argentine province of San Juan allows, within its jurisdiction, the woman vote (the law would last until 1930). However, in the 40s, efforts focused on the anti -fascist struggle, leaving aside the suffrage. Eva Duarte was born on May 7, 1919 in Los Toldos. She is illegitimate daughter of Juan Duarte, suffering prejudices for it. At 16 he moves to Buenos Aires, for economic problems and to follow his dream of being an actress. In 1943 he was already a relatively known actress, and he began to focus more and more on the radio. In 1945 he married Juan Domingo Perón, thus, Eva leaving his career as an actress to get fully involved in politics. 

Juan Domingo Perón, to expand its political base, created in 1944 the division of labor and assistance of women and in 1945 the female pro-protection commission formed, as the source 2 affirms. In this way, the female vote ceases to be a private issue, of certain elites and for the first time it has government support. However, it is only in January 1947 that a campaign to obtain this political right begins. The protagonist of this was the first lady: Eva Duarte de Perón. It begins with a series of speeches transmitted by the radio of the State and the Argentine broadcasting network, being the female suffrage a relevant point in them: “’ Women must affirm their action, the woman must vote ". Through them he is responsible for justifying the female vote, referring to the increasingly active participation of women at the public level, as for their historical contribution, in the birth of Peronism. Eva Perón also performs press conferences and is dedicated to “convincing legislators about this issue.".

Unlike the previous movements of women, which were mostly made up of the middle and high class, and that set aside the worker;Eva belonged to her for her humble origins. With her, workers’ women were identified, contrary to what had happened with the previous feminist and suffragists. Eva not only used her origin, but she was going to visit the women workers in her work, their homes, where necessary, to show them the female vote as a way of doing ‘social justice’;getting these women to be interested in politics. Due to this factor, Eva becomes an intermediary. In a ‘bridge’ between Perón and women, or as the source 2 “Peronist women” affirms, but also transforms into their representative, one with which they really identified.

Eva’s campaign for the female vote was presented from the beginning as a fight, against enemies, against ‘oligarchy’, an adversary who had in common with Peronism. However, little significant were those who, then, were against this right. For that moment, the most conservative positions were getting worse view. Even the Church supported female suffrage. This is because Eva’s campaign was based on the "religiosity of the Argentine woman". This scarce or even lack of opposition is reflected in the debate of this law in the Chamber of Deputies, since it is approved unanimously. 

The deputies were rather interested in filling the female gender, their new political clientele with praise. Another fact that is reproached for the ‘Evita’ campaign is to have shown it as a personal struggle. It is affirmed that he used the female vote to “the construction of his still incipient leadership’. The relationship between female suffrage in Argentina and Eva Perón is indisputable, recognition is given by both their supporters and detractors, so much is the connection between these factors that at the time to Law 13.010 (Law of Women’s Suffrage) was known as "Evita Law". It has also been affirmed that Eva’s struggle did not really occur in favor of women, but by Juan Domingo Perón. Well, something that cannot be denied is that in the 1951 Perón elections it was proportionally more female votes, specifically 63.98%.

However, the aforementioned statements do not modify the importance of Eva Perón in the sanction of Law 13.010. Until 1947, 22 legislative projects had been presented to obtain this right, but it is not even the ‘Evita’ campaign that is able to accept. Well, she used methods other than those of her predecessors. His charisma and informality gave him the power to move the masses. On August 30, he called on women to meet in the Plaza del Congress, with the aim of exerting pressure on legislators. Such was his level of call, which days before the sanction of this law, the square was full of thousands of women. Who pressed the deputies still undecided. Thus, finally, on September 23, 1947 this law is promulgated and is given symbolicly to Eva. However, you can not fall into the mistake of seeing this as a personal battle. It is possible to take into account other women who fought for equality between men and women, source 1 results in: Julieta Lanteri, saving Medina Onrubia, Alfonsina Storni, Carolina Muzzilli, among many others. Although it should be noted that many feminist groups were against the Eva campaign, so much so that in 1951 they abstained their vote;Thus, "marginalizing themselves. Anyway, "obtaining the female vote was a collective conquest channeled by Eva Perón".

In conclusion, the importance of Eva Duarte de Perón in relation to female suffrage lies in its origins, its charisma, its level of call and its speeches for the dissemination and justification of the vote of women. Due to their origins and charisma, working women manage to identify with it. With this fact, generating that they are interested in politics for politics and support their campaign. For his speeches in favor of the vote, his radio conferences and his conviction on this issue to legislators, manages to keep the current female suffrage, which is not forgotten. With his level of call, he manages to put pressure on the still undecided deputies. However, it should not be considered to obtain this political right as a unique struggle of ‘Evita’ and Peronism. But as one that had been brewing in the movements of women initiated at the end of the 19th century. Eva Duarte de Perón meaning the final link of all these predecessor movements.

REFLECTION

The methods used in source 1 are the analysis, argumentation and description, source 2 used analysis and evaluation. The method I used in my research is the analysis. The most complicated part to be done was to obtain an objective vision of this topic. Because my work was based on such a mythified and transfigured character after his death, as is Eva Duarte de Perón. So, it is difficult to obtain an objective vision of it. This fact allowed me to see the limitations with which historians have to deal with, having different points of view, sometimes really opposite, and not knowing exactly what a source is the one that is showing reality. Therefore, it is important in the study of history to take into account various sources, with different perspectives, to have a global and most objective vision as possible of the historical fact or character. I consider that the greatest challenge of historians is to base their study on sources that are limited by the paradigms, biases or perspectives of different people, as well as there may be no records of a certain fact or the point of view of a collective or collectiveperson facing a specific situation.

Once I finished my research I can observe Eva Duarte de Perón as a woman who did contribute to this fight, however, it was not the only. Its charism and origins were of importance to make workers women be interested in politics and exert pressure on legislators, to obtain female vote in Argentina.

In short, history serves us to know why things, situations, ideals, cultures, societies, among others, are in the way they are, that is, to know where we come from. In order to understand our reality and form a new one from the mistakes and successes of the past.

Bibliography

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