Chapter 7, The New Argentina Summary and Analysis

Peron was regarded as a dictator by the time he was removed from office in 1955, and indeed, he was. His regime did not begin that way in 1946, since he had been popularly elected. However, he soon came to control his party, restrict the media and turned Congress into a rubber-stamp factory for his proposed legislation. During his first term, women were given the right to vote but he also removed term limits on the presidency. Evita in the meanwhile organized a female constituency of Peronists and spoke about the injustices of working women. She inspired total loyalty to Peron. Evita's organization grew to have half a million members by 1952. While Evita was not interested in the more theoretical questions concerning women's rights, she did much to advance the condition of women.

Evita and Peron became...