Francisca Senhorinha da Motta Diniz
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Francisca Senhorinha da Motta Diniz (São João del Rey, Minas Gerais) was a Brazilian teacher who played an important role in feminism. She founded a newspaper entitled O Sexo feminino.
The weekly newspaper aimed to propagate the need of education for women and alert them that their enemy was the ignorance forced by a male's cultural imposition. She defended that Brazilian problems would be solved with a greater and more effective participation of women in society. The most violented and heavy activities should be left for men and the lighter and more intellectual ones for women.
The newspaper was the first to advocate and support the female suffrage. With the proclamation of the Republic and the end of the Monarchy, only literate men were allowed to vote. In protest against women segregation, the journal changed its name to O Quinze de Novembro do Sexo Feminino, bringing a broader discussion about an effective suffrage, and no longer a limited one.
