A Nation of Women: An Early Feminist Speaks Out

Appearing for the first time in English, this 1911 treatise by a remarkable Puerto Rican labor leader, activist, feminist, socialist, and anarchist weaves together letters, essays, pamphlets, articles, speeches, and memoirs in an impassioned testament of one woman’s fight for liberty. No mere suffragist, Capetillo (1897–1922) sought the nonviolent overthrow of all religious and political systems devised to oppress workers and women alike. In her view this battle is lost or won at home, through economic and educational equality for women and the replacement of the “vile and infamous comedy” of marriage with free love, albeit strictly heterosexual. Women can lead the way not only as thinkers and leaders but through their pervasive influence as mothers, literally weaning a better world into existence. A detailed introduction offers helpful background on the author’s life and work as a subversive cigar factory lector, dedicated labor organizer, and infamous wearer of trousers.