Maria Matilde Carvalho

Pioneering Brazilian abolitionist and journalist who exposed slavery's atrocities.

Maria Matilde Carvalho (1830–1898) was a Brazilian abolitionist and journalist who used her pen to combat slavery through "O Jornal da Abolição", a newspaper she co-founded in 1868. Born in Rio de Janeiro to a family of modest means, she became one of Brazil's first female journalists while advocating for enslaved Africans' rights. Her investigative reports revealed the horrors of "Valongo Wharf" slave trade operations, pressuring Emperor Dom Pedro II to accelerate abolition. She also established the "Escola de Mulheres Livres", a school for emancipated women to learn trades and literacy. Despite threats, she continued publishing until slavery was abolished in 1888.

Carvalho's writings are preserved in the Brasiliana Digital Collection, and her home in Rio became a cultural center. Modern scholars credit her with bridging abolitionism and early feminist movements in Latin America. Her portrait now appears on Brazil's 100-real banknote纪念钞纪念钞.