Who were Las Mariposas, and why were they murdered? - Lisa Krause
From 1930 to 1961, thousands of people
were imprisoned, tortured, and murdered
under Rafael Trujillo’s dictatorship
in the Dominican Republic.
Three sisters would go on to lead
an underground revolution.
But while their courage inspired many,
it threatened the man in power,
and their lives would come
to a tragic early end.
Trujillo rose through the military ranks
during the United States’ occupation
of the Dominican Republic.
He assumed power in 1930 through a coup
and rigged election
and created a system that enriched
himself and his allies.
Trujillo’s family alone
controlled three-fifths
of the country’s gross domestic product,
including monopolies
over salt, beef, and newspapers.
He renamed the country's
capital after himself
and expected his portrait to be
displayed in every household.
And he committed atrocities, including
the massacre of thousands of Haitians.
All the while, a secret police force
maintained his power
by targeting opponents at home and abroad.
The Mirabal sisters grew up in a middle
class family in the countryside.
Their parents sent the four sisters—
Patria, Dedé, Minerva, and María Teresa—
to one of the country’s
best boarding schools.
There, Minerva met a classmate whose
relative was killed on Trujillo's orders.
She began seeking out strong
voices of opposition
and discussing issues of oppression
and justice with her sisters.
While Dedé stayed out of politics,
Minerva, Patria, and María Teresa became
invested in changing their country.
However, the Mirabal family’s
safe standing soon collapsed.
In 1949, they were invited
to one of Trujillo’s parties,
which served as his personal hunting
grounds for young women.
Declining the invitation
was not an option.
Despite Minerva’s attempts
to avoid him at the reception,
she eventually danced with Trujillo
but rejected his advances.
The Mirabal family left the party early,
which was seldom done and considered
disrespectful to the dictator.
Their father, Enrique, was imprisoned
and family property was confiscated.
Minerva graduated with highest honors
as one of the first women in the country
to receive a law degree.
But she was denied state authorization
to practice—
a process Trujillo oversaw.
While studying, Minerva met
Manolo Tavárez Justo.
He shared her political convictions
and the two married in 1955.
They watched as armed revolutions launched
throughout Latin America.
After Trujillo crushed an attempt
to overthrow him in 1959,
they began to prepare a revolution
of their own.
The Mirabal sisters and their husbands
formed the June 14th movement
along with many others
from the middle class.
Codenamed Las Mariposas,
or the Butterflies,
the three sisters organized
and attended clandestine meetings
and distributed pamphlets detailing
Trujillo’s violations.
In January of 1960,
they called representatives together
from all over the country
to establish the movement’s structure
and prepare an uprising.
But it was not to be.
Trujillo had spies everywhere.
Soon, many revolutionaries, including
Minerva and María Teresa, were arrested.
During this time, Patria found creative
ways of transmitting information
to and from imprisoned rebels.
Fearful of losing the support
of the U.S. and the Church,
which had recently begun to criticize him,
Trujillo released the sisters while
leaving their husbands imprisoned.
But they continued to threaten
his regime’s stability— and his ego.
On November 25th,
as the three sisters were returning from
visiting two of their imprisoned husbands,
Trujillo’s men stopped their car.
The sisters, along with their driver,
Rufino de la Cruz,
were asphyxiated and beaten to death.
The men rolled the Jeep off a hill
to frame the murder as a car accident.
Patria was 36, Minerva was 33,
and María Teresa was 25.
But Trujillo's plan to silence
the Mirabal sisters
and stabilize his regime
backfired.
Much of the public wasn’t fooled
by the flimsy coverup.
The international community condemned
the assassination.
And the U.S. closed its Dominican embassy
and secretly invested
in the anti-Trujillo movement.
Months later, former members
of the Dominican military
killed the dictator, bringing his violent,
31-year reign to an end.
Thanks to their family, especially
their surviving sister, Dedé,
the legacy of the Mirabal sisters would
surpass the clutches of Trujillo’s tyranny
even long after their deaths.
Today, the Mirabal sisters
are national heroes
with monuments and honors
commemorating their struggle.
In 1999, the United Nations
declared November 25th,
the anniversary of their deaths,
the International Day for the Elimination
of Violence Against Women.
Their courageous fight for justice
has inspired generations.
