Bertha Lutz, Scientist

Brazilian scientist, zoologist, and feminist Bertha Lutz was born on August 2, 1894. An ardent supporter of equal rights for women, she founded the the Federação Brasileira pelo Progresso Feminino (Brazilian Federation for Feminine Progress, FBPF), which fought for womens suffrage. When they succeeded, she became one of the first women elected to Congress. As a congresswoman, she pushed through a feminist agenda, successfully advocating for married women’s civil rights & gender equality before the law. In addition, she rose through the ranks in her scientific career, becoming an internationally respected herpatologist in the 1930s, when prominent scientific careers were rare. She was heavily involved in the pan-American and transnational womens rights movement. As one of four women to sign the UN charter, she advocated that the document include equals rights for men and women and pushed for the UN to include a committee to study women. Throughout the rest of her life she continue to fight for women’s rights, at home and abroad, even in her 80s. In fact, for the UN’s first international women’s year in 1975, she was the representative of Brazil.