Mulheres e associativismo em Portugal, 1914-1974

This research project analyzed women’s associativism in Portugal through a diachronic perspective, from the beginning of the First World War, in 1914, to the end of the Portuguese dictatorship, in 1974. It remarkedly contributed to the political history of Portugal during the 20th Century by including life stories and biographical notes from women who unveiled details on important and sensitive topics at the time, such as: the relationship between civilians, the political elites and the several regimes in power during those six decades; the country’s participation in the two World Wars; the Portuguese policy towards the colonies; how citizens supported or resisted to the dictatorship; the place of women and of issues associated to women in the democratic aspirations and on the opposition to Estado Novo as well. Those details were crucial, considering that, in a country such as Portugal, political rights were achieved by women much later than in other Western societies. Associativism was fundamental in women’s politization, allowing them not only to participate in public life, but also to have conscious of themselves, of their skills and abilities. The outcomes of these project were published in a book with the same title: Mulheres e Associativismo em Portugal, 1914-1974 (ICS, 2022), co-authored by CECC’s collaborating researcher Ana Costa Lopes together with Anne Cova, Vanda Gorjão, Isabel Freire e Natividade Monteiro.