Maria Eugenia Echenique (1851–1878) was an Argentine feminist author. Although she died young, likely of cancer, she was a significant voice for women’s emancipation in Latin America during a period of immense social, political, and economic transition. The countries of Latin America changed enormously during the nineteenth century, transforming` from colonial outposts of Spain and Portugal into independent industrializing nations with rapidly growing populations and urban centers. In this climate of ferment, small groups of women, often well-educated and from the nascent middle class, attempted to change the patriarchal gender norms dominant in their societies. These groups did not represent a large political movement, but they nonetheless agitated forcefully for the rights of women and stressed that women needed to be included in national economies and political deliberations.