María Elena Moyano
Photo: Archivo C.M.P. Flora Tristán
Country: Peru, Barranco, Lima
Location: Latin America
About
María Elena Moyano (November 29, 1958-February 15, 1992) was an Afro-Peruvian feminist grassroots organizer, community leader, and political activist. Moyano was born in the pueblos jóvenes or shanty towns of the Barranco area of Lima, which is predominantly occupied by thousands of impoverished Peruvians. As a women's rights activist, she began her activism at an early age and at 25 years old, she was elected as the sub-secretary general of the Federación Popular de Mujeres de Villa El Salvador (Popular Federation of Women of Villa El Salvador (FEPOMUVES), a community-based organization founded in 1983 . Their mission was to train and enhance women's political participation and leadership in efforts to change improve their quality of life outcomes; to advance gender equity and guarantee their political, civil, and socio-economic rights; and overcome violence against women in Villa El Salvador. The organization's "mandate included "reappraising the role of women, training, promoting and valuing ourselves" (Immigration and Refugee Board Canada: 1998).
Moyano was later elected president of FEPOMUVES twice. Under Moyano's leadership, the women of FEPOMUVES challenged stark socio-economic and political inequities and was able to garner a sizeable constituency. Because of their activism, in 1987, FEPOMUVES began managing the Vaso de Leche program (Glass of Milk Program) in the Villa district. The Glass of Milk program was created by Alfonso Barrantes, the former mayor Peru, in 1983 to provide children with a glass a milk a day. Moreover, she was involved in other social projects such as soup kitchens and a collective for mothers. In 1990, Moyano stepped down from her position at FEPOMUVES and was later elected as deputy mayor of her district. However, she remained a consultant with FEPOMUVES even until the time of her untimely death, which was a result of assassination. She was an outspoken critic of the Partido Comunista del Perú - Sendero Luminoso (the Communist Party of Peru -- Shining Path), a guerilla group who intended to "...sweep aside independent organizations, leaving the population with no choice besides the army or the Shining Path" (Immigration and Refugee Board Canada: 1998). Moyano and other women leaders became targets of the Shining Path, enacting violence on them to quell their political organizing. On February 14, 1992, the Shining Path decided to call an armed strike. In response to the armed strike, Moyano initiated a "Peace March." The next day, on February 15th, during a fundraising event, she was shot and killed by members of the Shining Path, who later dynamited her lifeless body. Her revolutionary activism represents the power of Afro-Peruvian women in their fight for equity.