Remembering a great Revolutionary and Mother: Idania Fernandez

I am currently writing a paper on Feminist Liberation Theology and I stumbled upon this letter in the book, “With Passion and Compassion- Third World Women Doing Theology” (Edited by Virginia Fabella, M.M. and Mercy Amba Oduyoye).

A Letter from Idania Fernandez, a young Nicaraguan woman to her daughter on Women’s Day 1979. A few weeks after she wrote this she was killed in the struggle for liberation. RIP.

This letter brought me to tears. It is full of some strong messages:

My dearest little daughter,

Right now we are living through moments that are extremely important for humankind: today in Nicaragua, soon throughout Latin America, and some day it will take place on every continent around the world.

The revolution demands our all from each one of us, and our own level of consciousness impels us to make demands on ourselves as individuals, and to put every possible effort into being useful to the revolutionary process.

My greatest desire is that the day will soon come when you will be able to live in a free society where you will be able to fulfill yourself as a true human being, where people will be brothers and sisters rather than enemies.

I would like to walk arm in arm with you through the streets, and see happy smiles on all the children, and see the parks and rivers. I would like to smile for joy, see our people growing like happy children, see them become the new person, honest and conscious of their responsibilities to all humankind

You will have to learn to appreciate this whole paradise of peace and freedom you are going to be able to enjoy. I say that because our most wonderful people have spilt their precious blood for this cause, and they have done so with love, out of love for the people, for freedom, and for peace, for the sake of future generations, for children like you, so you will not have to experience the repression, humiliation, hunger, and misery in which so many men, women, and children have lived in our beautiful Nicaragua.

I am telling you all this in case it happens that they don’t tell you, or I don’t make it to tell you. That is possible because we are well aware of where we are going and who is the enemy, and we feel at ease if we know that we die as true revolutionaries in the full sense of the word. For we have known how to take our place in our historic context, and we have known how to take on our responsibility and our duty. That is our greatest satisfaction as revolutionaries, as human beings, and as mothers.

“Mother” does not mean being the woman who gives birth to and cares for a child; to be a mother is to feel in your own flesh the suffering of all the children, all the men, and all the young people who die, as though they had come from your own womb.

My greatest wish is that one day you become a true woman with pure feelings and a great love for humanity. And that you know how to defend justice whenever it is being violated and that you defend it against whomever and whatever.

To do that, to know what it is to be a true human being, get to know, read about, and assimilate the great figures of our revolution and of all revolutions in other countries. Take the best of each one as an example and put it into practice so that you will be better each day. I know you can do it, and are going to do it. This gives me a great sense of peace.

I don’t want to leave you words, promises, or moral platitudes. What I give you is an attitude toward life…..

When I recall your beautiful face
Beautiful like flowers and like freedom,
I work even harder in the struggle,
Joining your smile to our situation
I remember you every day.
I always picture you as you are.
Always love our people and humankind.

With all the love that is in your mother, Idania.
Ever on to Victory! Free Country or Death!

For more on Idania visit her Wikipedia page…