The Paradox of Paternalism: Women and the Politics of Authoritarianism in the Dominican Republic

Latin American Studies Association Haiti-Dominican Republic Section Isis Duarte Book Prize From the rise of dictator Rafael Trujillo in the early 1930s through the twelve-year rule of his successor Joaquín Balaguer in the 1960s and 1970s, women are frequently absent or erased from public political narratives in the Dominican Republic. The Paradox of Paternalism shows how women proved themselves as skilled, networked, and non-threatening agents, becoming indispensable to a carefully orchestrated national and international reputation. They garnered concrete political gains like suffrage and paved the way for their continued engagement with the politics of the Dominican state through intense periods of authoritarianism and transition. In this volume, Elizabeth Manley explains how women activists from across the political spectrum engaged with the state by working within both authoritarian regimes and inter-American networks, founding modern Dominican feminism, and contributing to the rise of twentieth-century women's liberation movements in the Global South.  Publication of the paperback edition made possible by a Sustaining the Humanities through the American Rescue Plan grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.

About the Author :
Elizabeth Manley is associate professor of history at Xavier University of Louisiana.

Review :
"This worthy addition to gender relations literature allows Manley to elaborate on her premise of the utility of female participatory experiences in authoritarian regimes as a vehicle for feminist progress. . . . Highly recommended."--Choice "Fills in the yawning lacunae concerning women's roles during the reigns of the two infamous Dominican caudillos of the twentieth century. . . . Deserves an audience beyond specialists in the Dominican Republic, to reach anyone interested in women and dictatorship."--American Historical Review "An in-depth and balanced view of Dominican feminism."--The Americas "Unique both in its chronological scope and in its attention to women across the political spectrum."--Social History "Amply demonstrates the extent, limits, and iterations of maternalism, including Trujillista women's promotion of state welfare for poor women and children, opposition women's defense of their homes, families ripped apart by regime violence, and female governors' community welfare activism under Balaguer."--Hispanic American Historical Review "Successfully challenges the patriarchal paradigm that is Latin Caribbean history by effectively demonstrating how Dominican women actively participated in the politics of this era."--Gender & History "Makes a significant contribution to the understanding of women's political participation in the Dominican Republic during a long stretch of the twentieth century, focusing on women of both the right and the left, both progovernment and antigovernment. The analysis is solid and methodical; the reading is engaging."--New West Indian Guide