Eva Peron: Spiritual Leader of the Nation

Eva Peron: Spiritual Leader of the Nation

Eyris Segers

BBM 400

Current Topics in Business Leadership

Professor Kujawa

Wilmington University

Eva Peron: Spiritual Leader of the Nation

Some people may not recognize the name Eva Peron, but she has made her mark on the world, particularly for the people in Argentina. Her passion to make Argentina a better place to live was what kept her fighting on, even during her battle with cervical cancer. Many people saw her as a saint to overcome poverty and injustice. On the other hand, she had just as much admirers as was a controversial figure at the heart of Argentinean politics, feared by many because of her influences and connections she had with civilians and the upper echelon (biographyonline.net). She was the first lady to Juan Peron which gave her more leverage to fight for women's rights and improving the lives of the poor.

Maria Eva Duarte, also known as Evita, was born May 7th, 1919 in Los Toldos, Argentina to a poor village landowner. Her father was killed in a car accident and her family was exiled because the community felt as though the children were illegitimate. When she was 15, she decided to go into acting which was not hard for her with her striking beauty. While pursuing her acting career, Eva began campaigning for women to be given the right to vote and alleviate the growing poverty epidemic in Argentina (biographyonline.net). Attending a studio party, she caught the eye of Juan Peron, who was at the time the Under-Secretary of the War Ministry and a rising figure of the political scene (nytimes.com) and they got married in 1945. When married, Eva pushed her husband into taking the seat as the next president when subconsciously; she knew that when he did, she could use her position as Argentina's first lady to her advantage. She used her wealth and influences to become active in the Argentinean community by founding the Eva Peron Foundation which sought to eradicate poverty and social inequalities in Argentina (Murch, 2012). From this foundation she created other projects, such as The Amanda Allen Children's City, Student City, Evita's Nurses, and Homes for Senior Citizens which also granted pensions to individuals over 60 who were without resources (evaperon.com). She was given the title of Spiritual Chief of the Nation in 1952, six months before she passed away.

I believe Eva is a leader because she truly loved and cared about the people of Argentina. Like most leaders, she overcame hardship in her younger days and knew in her heart that she wanted to make a difference for those who were poor because she could relate