Iris Morales facts for kids
Iris Morales (born in 1948) is an American activist, filmmaker, author, and lawyer from New York. She is well-known for her work with the Young Lords, a group of young Puerto Rican activists in the United States. She also played a big part in feminist movements within that group. Iris Morales continues to help people of color share their stories and voices, especially those who identify as LatinX. She is a strong supporter of people who are often not heard.
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Early Life and Education
Iris Morales was born in New York in 1948. Her parents were from Puerto Rico. Her father worked as a hotel elevator operator, and her mother was a sewing machine operator.
Iris was the oldest of four children. Her aunts and cousins expected her to learn how to take care of the house. But her mother knew Iris could do more. She supported Iris's education.
Iris went to Julia Richman High School. There, she joined meetings for groups like the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and the NAACP. In high school, she was inspired by leaders like Malcolm X and Don Pedro Albizu Campos. She felt that not enough was known about Puerto Rican history. Social movements, like the Black Panther Party, also motivated her.
As a teenager, she became an organizer for people's rights in her East Harlem neighborhood. She also protested the Vietnam War. She studied political science at City College. She was part of a special program for students from less privileged backgrounds and minority groups. At the college, Morales joined a Black student organization. She also helped start Puerto Ricans Involved in Student Action (PRISA). This was the first Puerto Rican student group at the school.
The Young Lords
The Young Lords were a group of young Puerto Rican activists. They were inspired by the Black Panthers. The group started in Chicago and opened a branch in New York in 1969. Iris Morales joined them that same year. She met the Young Lords' founder, José Cha Cha Jiménez, at a conference.
Iris was a leader in the Young Lords for five years, from the late 1960s to the mid-1970s. She was the deputy minister of education. She also helped start the group's Women's Caucus. For a time, she was the minister of information.
Morales left the Young Lords in 1975. The group was facing many challenges, including disagreements among members. The FBI was also targeting them through a program called COINTELPRO. The Young Lords officially ended the next year.
Iris Morales's work in the Young Lords showed her strong belief in fairness for all people. She wanted to highlight Puerto Rican history.
Women's Rights in the Young Lords
Iris Morales worked to bring about a "second revolution" within the Young Lords Party. She fought against unfair treatment of women, which was common at the time.
She and other women in the Young Lords challenged the ideas that favored men. These ideas were in the "13-point program" written by the male members. The women pointed out that these ideas went against the Young Lords' own goals.
Morales worked on teaching people about politics and helping them learn to read. She also tried to change the male-dominated culture of the group. She pushed for women to be included in leadership roles. She helped create the Women's Union and its newspaper, La Luchadora. Her efforts for women's representation helped lead to the group's first caucus for lesbian and gay members.
La Luchadora
La Luchadora was a 12-point program and a newspaper. Iris Morales helped write and create it. The paper aimed to share the history of women and their rights within the Young Lords Party. At that time, women were rarely recognized. The Women's Caucus used this platform to move beyond traditional roles for women. They wanted to take on active leadership positions. However, the Young Lords' leaders stopped the program soon after it started in May 1971.
Featured in The New York Times
On November 11, 1970, Iris Morales, along with Denise Oliver, Nydia Mercado, and Lulu Carreras, were featured in The New York Times. The article was in the "Food, Family, and Fashion" section. This was very important for the women's rights movement within the Young Lords. It was the first time women's involvement was recognized in a major newspaper. The article talked about how women were equal to men in the group. It also highlighted the achievements of the women's caucus. This article later inspired Morales to write her book, Through The Eyes Of Rebel Women.
Later Education and Career
After leaving the Young Lords, Morales continued to help her community. She worked as a teacher and an advocate for young people.
She also went back to school and earned a law degree (Juris Doctor) from New York University School of Law. At NYU, she became the first Puerto Rican to receive the Root-Tilden-Kern Scholarship. This is a very competitive scholarship that pays full tuition for students who want to work in public service.
As a lawyer, she worked as an attorney and director of education at the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund. She also helped start and was the executive director of the New Educational Opportunities Network. This was a media nonprofit that helped young people of color. Later, she worked with the Manhattan Neighborhood Network's community media center in Spanish Harlem. She also directed the Union Square Awards, a city project that recognized local activists.
Morales returned to school again and earned a master's degree in Integrated Media Arts from Hunter College.
Continued Work
Writing Books
Iris Morales was inspired by the stories of all LatinX community members. She made it her goal to continue her activism through writing. Morales hopes to inspire future activists with historical stories and collections of writings about today's social issues. She has published several books and helped edit works by other LatinX community members. Iris Morales founded the Red Sugarcane Press. This publishing house focuses on publishing works related to the LatinX community.
Through The Eyes of Rebel Women, The Young Lords: 1969-1976
The New York Times article about the women of the Young Lords inspired Morales to write Through The Eyes Of Rebel Women, The Young Lords: 1969-1976. This book focuses on the experiences of women in the Young Lords. It was published in 2012 by Red Sugarcane Press, Morales's own small publishing house. In the book, Morales includes original media from the movement and interviews with women. Some of the women featured are Denise Oliver-Velez, Martha Arguello, and Minerva Solla. The book explains the women's rights movement within the Young Lords Party. This project allowed Morales to think about her own experiences in the party, both good and bad. Morales hopes her book will teach people about the history of the Young Lords women. She also hopes it will offer lessons that are still useful for today's activist movements.
Latinas: Struggles & Protests in 21st Century
Morales helped put together and edit the book Latinas: Struggles & Protests in 21st Century, published in 2018. This book is a collection of different types of writing. It shares the views of Latina women on topics like gender, equality, race, and politics in modern society. The book aims to give a voice to women who are often not heard.
Voices From Puerto Rico: Post-Hurricane Maria/ Voces desde Puerto Rico
Published and edited in 2019, Morales wrote the bilingual book Voices From Puerto Rico: Post-Hurricane Maria/ Voces desde Puerto Rico. This book shares the perspectives of activists, community organizers, and artists. They reflect on what happened after Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico. The book aimed to show the many problems Puerto Rico already had, which Hurricane Maria made worse.
Vicki and A Summer of Change! ¡Vicki y un verano de cambio!
Published on November 30, 2020, Vicki and A Summer of Change! ¡Vicki y un verano de cambio! was the first children's book published by Red Sugarcane Press. Iris Morales co-authored it with Raquel M. Ortiz. They created a story that tells the Young Lords' journey in a way that children can understand. The story is about a main character named Vicki. She wants to make a difference in her community by joining the Young Lords Party and helping others. A few months later, on December 5, 2020, a coloring book version of the story was also published.
Filmmaking Career
After law school, Morales practiced law related to labor and television. She also joined groups that worked to bring women of color into the film industry. This is how she got into filmmaking.
Palante Siempre Palante!
The idea for this film came around the 20th anniversary of The Young Lords. Some people were planning to create books and other media to remember that time. Iris Morales volunteered to direct a film. She made Palante Siempre Palante! for younger generations. She wanted the history of the Young Lords Party to continue. From the music to the visuals, Iris Morales made sure to show Puerto Rican representation from that time. The film aimed to teach Puerto Ricans about the Young Lords and bring back the LatinX history story. Making the film was hard because there wasn't much old media in archives. This made Morales want to keep documenting history. She also made sure to include young people, fitting her goal of inspiring the next generation. The film was shown on PBS in 1996. It was made with Third World News Reel. The film aimed to spread the message about Puerto Rico's independence and educate young people.
NEON - New Educational Opportunities Network
While working with young people (ages 18 to 26), Iris Morales heard many complaints about the lack of African-American and LatinX history. Because of this, Morales decided to create a training program for these young people. This idea was supported and funded in the 1990s. The program helped young LatinX people find ways to preserve their communities' history. However, the training program lost its funding about five years after it started.
Media Features
Morales appeared in the 2021 New York Times documentary Takeover: How We Occupied a Hospital and Changed Public Health Care. This film is about the 1970 takeover of Lincoln Hospital. During this event, the Young Lords demanded better funding and facilities to help with health care needs, a local tuberculosis problem, and other issues.
Morales continues to write about the Young Lords Party. She writes introductions or adds to existing works. For example, she wrote the foreword for The Young Lords: A Reader.
Other Contributions
Morales has contributed to recent studies about the history of the Young Lords. She wrote forewords for The Young Lords: A Reader in 2010 and Palante: Young Lords Party in 2011.
Special Recognition and Awards
In 2019, Iris Morales was named one of North Star Fund's "40 for 40."
In 2020, she was honored as a Latina Trailblazer by LatinoJustice PRLDEF.
See also
- Women of the Young Lords
