Filipino suffragist Rosa Sevilla honored in Google Doodle

Google paid tribute to women’s activist Rosa Sevilla on her 142nd birthday today with a doodle on its Philippine homepage.

The doodle shows an illustration of Sevilla in a Maria Clara dress while she places a ballot inside a box, a recognition of her role in getting Filipino women the right to vote in 1937. She was born on March 4, 1879, in Tondo, Manila.

Image: Google

A profile on the Google Doodle page looked back on her journey as an empowered woman who lifted other Filipino women along with her.

“Today’s Doodle celebrates the 142nd birthday of journalist, educator, and activist Rosa Sevilla de Alvero, who is widely considered one of the most influential suffragists in Filipino history,” it said.

Sevilla’s mind as a revolutionary was shaped in childhood: she lived with her aunt, an educator whose home was visited by Filipino patriots and intellectuals.

When she was 21, Sevilla founded the Instituto de Mujeres, one of the first schools for women in the country. It is now known as the Rosa Sevilla Memorial School.

“The institute became a hotbed for progress under Sevilla’s leadership—educating women on topics such as suffrage, vocation and Tagalog,” her description on Google reads.

Sevilla would eventually travel the country to campaign for suffrage. She founded the Liga Nacional de Damas Filipinas (National League of Filipino Women).

Another role she had in Philippine history was being one of two women staffers of La Independencia, the newspaper of the Philippine revolution published by Gen. Antonio Luna. She was married to artist Emilio Alvero.  /ra

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