Some Reflections on the Mexican Suffragist Movement: a Case Study of Senior Women’s Leadership
Alejandra Montes-de-Oca-O’Reilly, Anahí Chavarría

Abstract
One of the main achievements of the Mexican suffragist movement was the official recognition of women’s citizenship. This is a qualitative study of eight women in the State of Morelos, Mexico, who belong to the first generations of women that were allowed to officially exercise their political rights. As seniors, these women continue to develop their leadership skills. Although most literature on senior women considers them as a vulnerable group, this paper is focused on senior women who do not consider themselves as vulnerable people. The present analysis of in-depth interviews found that in spite of cultural and gender stereotypes, these senior women actively participate to improve the living conditions in their communities. Moreover, they use the same type of arguments that the suffragists used to enter the public arena in an earlier era: that as women, they need to clean up the public sphere.

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