This article may be a rough translation from Spanish. It may have been generated, in whole or in part, by a computer or by a translator without dual proficiency. (April 2023) |
The Mirabal sisters (Spanish: hermanas Mirabal [eɾˈmanas miɾaˈβal]) were four sisters from the Dominican Republic, three of whom (Patria, Minerva and María Teresa) opposed the dictatorship of Rafael Trujillo (el Jefe) and were involved in clandestine activities against his regime.[1] The three sisters were assassinated on 25 November 1960. The last sister, Adela, who was not involved in political activities at the time, died of natural causes on 1 February 2014.[2]
Of the sisters, Minerva was the one who had the most active role in politics, being the founder of the June 14 Revolutionary Movement together with her husband Manolo Tavárez Justo . Maria Teresa also became involved in the Movement. The oldest sister, Patria, did not have the same level of political activity as her other sisters, but supported them. She lent her house to store weapons and tools from the insurgents. They are considered national heroines of the Dominican Republic. Their remains rest in a mausoleum that was declared an extension of the National Pantheon, located in the Hermanas Mirabal House-Museum, the last residence of the sisters.
The assassinations turned the Mirabal sisters into "symbols of both popular and feminist resistance".[3] In 1999, in their honor, the United Nations General Assembly designated 25 November as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women.[1]