Nathercia da Cunha Silveira
Nathercia da Cunha Silveira | |
|---|---|
 Nathércia da Cunha Silveira in 1927 | |
| Born | 14 March 1905 Itaqui, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil |
| Died | December 7, 1993 (aged 88) Brazil |
| Alma mater | Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul |
| Occupation(s) | suffragist, trade unionist and lawyer |
| Employer(s) | National Labor Council, National Department of Labor, Labor Court |
| Organization(s) | Brazilian Federation for Women's Progress, Women's University Union |
| Spouse | Paulo Arthur Pinto da Rocha (m. 1933, died 1972) |
| Children | 1 |
| Awards | Order of Labor Merit with Special Merit |
Nathércia da Cunha Silveira (14 March 1905 – 7 December 1993) was a Brazilian suffragist, trade unionist and lawyer. She was first woman to earn a law degree in Rio Grande do Sul, worked as Assistant Attorney General of the National Labor Council and was the first female general director of the National Department of Labor.
Early life
[edit]Silveira was born on 14 March 1905 in Itaqui, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.[1] Her father was Manoel da Cunha Silveira, a public prosecutor in Itaqui and a member of the Partido Libertador (Liberator Party), her mother was Maria da Conceição do Valle Cunha, and she was one of six children.[2]
Career
[edit]Law
[edit]Silveira was the first woman to earn a law degree from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul in Porto Alegre.[3] After graduating, she practiced as a defence lawyer. In 1926, she moved to Rio de Janeiro to continue practicing law there. She was interviewed shortly after her arrival by the publication O Paiz and spoke about feminism, voting rights and education.[2]
Women's University Union
[edit]In 1929, Silveira was one of the founders of the União Universitária Feminina (Women's University Union) in Rio de Janeiro, alongside fellow professional women Orminda Ribeiro Bastos (lawyer), Herminia de Assis (doctor), Myrthes de Campos (lawyer), Maria Alexandrina Ferreira Chaves (lawyer), Juana Lopes (doctor), Bertha Lutz (zoologist), Heloisa Marinho (professor), Carmen Portinho (civil engineer), Maria Ramalho (lawyer), Amélia Sapienza (civil engineer) and Emilia Snethlage (naturalist and ornithologist).[2]
Women's suffrage
[edit]As a suffragist and member of the Federação Brasileira pelo Progresso Feminino (Brazilian Federation for Women's Progress),[2] Silveira advocated for equal voting conditions for men and women in Brazil.[4] In January 1931, Silveira and fellow lawyer and suffragist Elvira Komel met with politicians, including Oswaldo Aranha (Minister of Justice and Internal Affairs), Adolpho Bergamini (Mayor of Rio de Janeiro) and José Maria Whitaker [pt] (Minister of the Interior) as well as Cardinal Sebastião da Silveira Cintra, to ask for their support for the cause of women's suffrage.[2]
In 1932, when women over 21 with their own income and authorisation to vote from their husbands were granted the right to vote in Brazil, Silveira and Bertha Lutz were the only women appointed to the Commission to draft the preliminary of the new Constitution.[5][6] After political disagreements with Lutz, Silveira founded the Aliança Nacional das Mulheres (National Women's Alliance).[7] The Alliance's activities included monitoring women's working conditions, providing legal assistance, and organising a fund to support homeless women.[2]
Later in the 1930s, Silveira worked as Assistant Attorney General of the National Labor Council.[8]
Marriage
[edit]In 1933, Silveira married Paulo Arthur Pinto da Rocha, a doctor and member of the Brazilian Academy of Medicine, and they had a daughter together. He died in 1972.[2]
Later career
[edit]In 1964, Silveira became the first woman to hold the position of general director of the National Department of Labor (DNT). She met with President Humberto de Alencar Castelo Branco in 1965 to discuss the crisis in the sugar industry and growing unemployment in the northeast of Brazil. Later that year, President Branco appointed her to receive the Ordem do Mérito do Trabalho Getúlio Vargas Mérito Especial (Order of Labor Merit with Special Merit).[2]
In 1966, she took office as Attorney General of the Labor Court.[2] Silveira retired in 1971, receiving the Commendation of the Public Prosecutor's Office on her retirement.[2]
Death
[edit]Silveira died in 1993.[9]
References
[edit]- ^ Filho, Luiz Berto (13 November 2022). "AS BRASILEIRAS: Natércia Silveira". JORNAL DA BESTA FUBANA (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 8 March 2025.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Wanderley, Andrea (20 August 2020). "Série "Feministas, graças a Deus!" II – Natércia da Cunha Silveira (1905 – 1993), o jequitibá da floresta". Brasiliana Fotográfica (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 24 March 2025.
- ^ "Feminista, Graças a Deus!". Mulheres de Luta (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 8 March 2025.
- ^ Ritter, Fabio. Revista Visagismo #5: Maio/2021 (in Brazilian Portuguese). p. 17.
- ^ Mariottoni, Marilene (16 April 2024). "O voto feminino no Brasil: um difícil caminho a percorrer". CLP | Centro de Liderança Pública (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 11 March 2025.
- ^ "A mulher no Parlamento brasileiro". www.al.sp.gov.br (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 24 March 2025.
- ^ Castro, Bia (18 October 2024). Um Olhar Feminista na Interpretação Constitucional: abordagem analítica sobre a influência do feminismo na construção da igualdade de gênero (in Brazilian Portuguese). Editora Dialética. ISBN 978-65-270-2989-2.
- ^ Castellucci, Aldrin Armstrong Silva (25 November 2024). Entre o socialismo e o corporativismo: trajetórias de quatro líderes do movimento operário no Brasil (1871-1963) (in Brazilian Portuguese). Editora FGV. p. 1939. ISBN 978-65-5652-323-1.
- ^ Araujo, Gabriela Shizue Soares de (29 June 2022). MULHERES NA POLÍTICA BRASILEIRA: Desafios rumo à democracia paritária participativa (in Brazilian Portuguese). Arraes Editores. ISBN 978-65-5929-156-4.