33 Facts About Paulina Luisi

Paulina Luisi Janicki was a leader of the feminist movement in Uruguay.

Paulina Luisi was born in Colon, Argentina, on 22 September 1875 into a family of educators.

Paulina Luisi was born in Colon, Argentina, on 22 September 1875.

Paulina Luisi's mother, Maria Teresa Josefina Janicki, was a women's suffrage activist of Polish descent, and her father, Angel Luisi, was a socialist and educator of Italian ancestry.

Paulina Luisi earned a teaching degree in 1890 and, in 1899, became the first woman in Uruguay to earn a bachelor's degree.

At the time Paulina Luisi was starting her medical career, there were only four female doctors in Uruguay, compared to 305 male doctors.

Paulina Luisi benefited from her specialization in the treatment of women, as many women preferred being treated by other women due to prevailing social prejudices held by male doctors.

In 1915, Paulina Luisi helped to found the Pan-American Women's Auxiliary, which met at the same time as the Second Pan-American Scientific Congress in Washington, DC The Auxiliary, headed by the wives of high-ranking US officials, advocated for the "social and economic betterment" of women and children.

Paulina Luisi gave the keynote address before the First Pan-American Child Congress in 1916, emphasizing the importance of democracy and women's rights, including the right to vote, in the Americas.

Paulina Luisi resigned from CONAMU in 1921, citing the group's "unethical and conspiratorial behavior".

Pinto de Vidal became the new head of the organization in her stead, but Paulina Luisi returned to the organization soon after her resignation to work in other capacities.

Paulina Luisi came into conflict with the IWSA, the parent organization of the Alianza, during the 1920s.

Paulina Luisi specifically opposed the leadership of Carrie Chapman Catt and Bertha Lutz, whose attitudes toward Latin American feminists she viewed as being condescending and imperialistic.

The conflict reached a crisis point in 1923 at the IWSA conference in Rome, with Paulina Luisi opposing a motion supported by Lutz to reintegrate the IWSA with the International Council of Women, which she viewed as being more conservative.

Paulina Luisi opposed the merger on the grounds that it would privilege European recognition over inter-American solidarity.

Paulina Luisi clashed with CONAMU leadership in 1923, expressing anger over CONAMU's alleged rewriting of her work, publicly criticizing them for their conservative views in the newspaper.

In 1919, Paulina Luisi delivered a well-known lecture at the University of Buenos Aires titled "The White Slave Trade and the Problem of Reglamentation".

Paulina Luisi worked extensively with the League of Nations' Committee on the Traffic of Women and Children, serving as the Uruguayan delegate and helping to ratify the League of Nations Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Women and Children in Uruguay in 1921.

Paulina Luisi attended the League of Nations' International Labour Conference in 1922 as a representative from Uruguay.

Paulina Luisi helped to pass the Children's Code in 1934 in collaboration with the Uruguayan National Council of Women.

Paulina Luisi adopted the nickname "Abuela" while hosting, giving her a sense of authenticity and authority that resonated with women in Uruguay.

Paulina Luisi became an advocate for disarmament and developed an intolerance for fascism during the 1930s and 1940s.

Paulina Luisi opposed the Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931 and Adolf Hitler's rise to power in 1933.

Paulina Luisi opposed the Uruguayan "Revolution of March" led by Gabriel Terra in 1933, briefly fleeing to Europe but returning to Uruguay shortly after.

Paulina Luisi collaborated with various communist-aligned groups, viewing the rise of fascism as a means for capitalists to maintain control over the working class.

In 1935, Paulina Luisi gave a speech before the Uruguayan parliament opposing the Second Italo-Ethiopian War.

Paulina Luisi helped support Terra's ouster in 1938, though she expressed concern that Uruguay still "suffer[ed] from a de facto government which leans toward fascism".

Paulina Luisi's suggestions earned her the label of "anarchist" and "revolutionary" from some.

Paulina Luisi died in Montevideo three years later on 16 July 1950.

Paulina Luisi is remembered by historian Estela Ibarburu as "a person who marked a milestone in the process of women's empowerment".

Paulina Luisi is strongly associated with the feminist movement in Latin America.

Paulina Luisi traveled to the United States hoping to develop Pan-American feminism alongside American feminists, but she emerged disappointed in American women's unwillingness to work alongside Latin American women as equal partners.

Paulina Luisi was a self-identified socialist, calling for individual social responsibility and a "collective social consciousness".