Jovita Idar facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jovita Idar
|
|
|---|---|
Idar c. 1905
|
|
| Born |
Jovita Idar Vivero
September 7, 1885 Laredo, Texas, U.S.
|
| Died | June 15, 1946 (aged 60) San Antonio, Texas, U.S.
|
| Occupation | Civil rights activist, journalist |
| Organization |
|
| Parent(s) |
|
Jovita Idar Vivero (born September 7, 1885 – died June 15, 1946) was an important American journalist, teacher, and activist. She worked hard to support Mexican Americans and Mexican immigrants. She lived during the Mexican Revolution (1910-1920). During this time, she wrote for many newspapers. Her goal was to bring about real and helpful changes for her community. She started her journalism career at La Crónica, a newspaper owned by her father in her hometown of Laredo, Texas.
While working as a journalist, Jovita Idar became the president of a new group called the League of Mexican Women (La Liga Femenil Mexicanista). This group started in October 1911. Its main goal was to offer free education to Mexican children in Laredo. She was also active in the Primer Congreso Mexicanista. This group brought Mexican Americans together. They talked about important issues like not having enough good schools or money.
Jovita Idar will be honored on an American Women quarter in 2023.
Contents
Jovita Idar's Early Life
Jovita Idar was born in Laredo, Texas, in 1885. She was one of eight children in her family. Her parents, Jovita and Nicasio Idar, worked to improve the rights of Mexican Americans. The Idar family was part of the gente decente. This means they had better access to good education and chances than many other Mexican-Texan families.
All eight Idar children grew up in a home where rights and responsibilities were often discussed. They also talked about the difficult situations faced by the Chicano community. A book called Marching to a Different Drummer describes Jovita as "an imaginative, spirited girl." She was a keen student who won awards for her poetry. She also enjoyed reading her poems to an audience.
Education and Teaching Career
Jovita Idar received her teaching certificate in 1903. She earned it from the Holding Institute in Laredo. After that, she taught at a school in Los Ojuelos, Texas, which was about 40 miles from Laredo.
Her first years of teaching were very challenging. There were often not enough textbooks for her students. There also wasn't enough paper, pens, or pencils. If all her students came to class, there weren't enough chairs or desks for everyone. The schools for Chicano students were not good enough. Chicanos paid taxes to support schools. Yet, their children were often not allowed into better schools. Idar soon realized that her efforts as a teacher were not making a big difference. This was because the segregated schools were poorly equipped.
Fighting for Social Change
Because of the Mexican Revolution (1910-1920), Idar decided to stop teaching. She turned to journalism instead. She saw it as a way to make a real and lasting change. She went back to Laredo, Texas. There, she started working with her two brothers, Eduardo and Clemente Idar. They worked at her father's newspaper, La Crónica (which means "The Chronicle").
Her father, Nicasio Idar, was a strong and proud man. He fought for civil rights and fairness for Mexican Americans. He was the editor and publisher of La Crónica. This newspaper became a very important voice for Mexican and Tejano rights. Jovita wrote articles using a different name. In her articles, she showed the poor living conditions of Mexican-American workers. She also supported the Mexican Revolution.
In 1910, La Crónica published many types of articles. These included news, current events, and stories about Mexican American history. It also had poems and comments on important topics. The newspaper focused on the serious unfairness in society and money matters that Mexican Americans faced. This was especially true in Texas and the U.S. in general. It shared "stories about unfairness in education and society against Mexican Americans." It also covered poor money situations, the decreasing use of the Spanish language, and the loss of Mexican culture. The newspaper even reported on the lynching of Hispanic people.
In 1911, La Crónica started a group called the Orden Caballeros de Honor. This group met to "discuss the troubling social issues at the time." They also held the First Mexican Congress (Primer Congreso Mexicano). This event was dedicated to fighting inequality and racism. It aimed to bring Mexicans together on issues that affected them. These issues included not having enough good education and money.
While working at La Crónica, Idar also became the first president of the League of Mexican Women (La Liga Femenil Mexicanista). This group was an offshoot of the Congress. It was founded in October 1911 in Laredo. Its main goal was to offer free education to Mexican children. Other goals of the group were to "unite the Mexican thinkers of Texas." They wanted to work on protecting civil rights, offering education in two languages, stopping the lynching of Mexicans, organizing workers, and helping women.
The women in this league worked to turn these unfair situations into action. They focused on solving social problems by making changes in their communities. Women who were part of this group were very influential. "Some league members were trained teachers and professionals." The education of young people remained the group's main focus. It grew into a social, political, and charity organization for women. It also provided food and clothes to people in need.
Both the League of Mexican Women and the First Mexican Congress worked to help their members grow. They did this "by holding studying and learning sessions, sessions where culture is acquired and talent is developed."
In March 1913, the city of Nuevo Laredo in Mexico was attacked. Jovita Idar and other women from Laredo crossed the Rio Grande River. They volunteered to help the wounded people. While at the border, Idar joined La Cruz Blanca (the White Cross). This group provided help similar to the Red Cross. It was started and paid for by Leonor Villegas de Magnón, who was also from Laredo.
In 1914, after returning from her volunteer nursing work, she started writing for El Progreso. An article published in El Progreso criticized President Woodrow Wilson's order. He had sent U.S. military troops to the Mexico–United States border. This article upset the U.S. Army and the Texas Rangers. The Rangers tried to close El Progreso. But Idar stood in front of the newspaper's office, blocking the entrance. One day, when she was not there, the Rangers came back. They searched the office and destroyed the printing presses. This effectively shut down the newspaper.
After her father passed away in 1914, she became the editor and writer at La Crónica. She continued to write about the difficult lives of Mexican Americans and Mexican immigrants.
In November 1916, Idar started a weekly newspaper called Evolución. It continued to operate until 1920.
Idar moved to San Antonio in 1921. There, she started a free kindergarten. She also volunteered at a hospital as an interpreter.
In 1940, she helped edit a journal called El Heraldo Cristiano.
Personal Life
In May 1917, Jovita Idar married Bartolo Juárez. He worked as a plumber and tinsmith. They lived together in San Antonio until her death on June 15, 1946.
Legacy and Recognition
In 2018, Gabriela González published her book Redeeming La Raza. This book was based on her PhD work. It explained the history, politics, and social conditions of the Mexican American community during Jovita Idar's life. It also described in detail the important role Idar's family played over many generations.
Jovita Idar has been featured in many places. These include the National Women's History Museum and the Women in Texas History series. She was also included in the 2005 edition of The Oxford Encyclopedia of Latinos and Latinas in the United States. Her story was part of the Texas Originals series.
In a chapter called "Jovita Idar: The Ideological Origins of a Transnational Advocate" from the 2015 book Texas Women: Their Histories, Their Lives, the authors wrote about Idar's beliefs. Idar believed that education helped women grow. She thought this would also help men and solve social problems. She had ideas about feminism that were new for her time. She challenged old ideas and broke barriers in the male-dominated society she lived in.
The New York Times included Idar in a series of obituaries called Overlooked. This series highlights people whose achievements deserved to be recognized when they died but were not. In August 2020, the series focused on the 100th anniversary of the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. This amendment, adopted in 1920, gave women the right to vote.
As part of Hispanic Heritage Month, the Google Doodle on September 21, 2020, honored Idar. It showed her famous act of blocking the Texas Rangers from entering the El Progreso office. A small box that appeared when you hovered over the image celebrated her 135th birthday (which was two weeks after her actual birthday).
Jovita Idar will be honored on an American Women quarter in 2023.
See also
In Spanish: Jovita Idár para niños
