Shortly before her death, Eva "Evita" Peron was given the title of "Spiritual Leader of the Nation" by the Argentine Congress, largely thanks to her advocacy for labor rights and women's suffrage in Argentina.
By Howard Axelrod, 30-time traveler from Ashland, MA
Eva, on this cold rainy morning as I stand by your grave at Recoleta Cemetery in Buenos Aires, I DO cry for you! You were someone special to me, and the entire world, and deserve more than my tears. I have read about you, studied your accomplishments, and like so many others, loved and admired you. You left us at the tender age of 33, having packed so much into your short life. You were a "mover and shaker" Eva, having risen from a childhood of poverty, to electrify an entire nation. You genuinely cared for and empathized with those less fortunate, having grown up in destitution yourself.
As Argentina’s First Lady you were an irrepressible pioneer for women’s rights, worker’s rights, healthcare, labor, homelessness, helping the poor, and so much more. You paved the way for many women across the globe who followed in your footsteps. You became a legendary figure in Argentinian politics but remained true to your beliefs, using your position and influence to create change, not to accumulate wealth or power.
"Expectamus Dominum" is Latin for "We expect the Lord."
In 2007 Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, Argentina’s first elected President, spoke of you, indicating that she and other women of her generation looked up to you as "an example of what is possible." It was true then and is even more so today. Your poise, compassion, and articulate speeches captured hearts and minds, and set the tone for a long list of notable women in all fields across the globe who have embraced the unprecedented example that you set.
At a rally in Buenos Aires in 1951 over two million of your supporters were present, cheering wildly for you to place your name on the ballot for Vice President. At no time in history had any public figure drawn a crowd of that magnitude. The chant of "Evita—Vice-Presidente!" "Evita—Vice-Presidente!" would not stop. You clearly understood that in both Argentina and on the world stage you had become a more charismatic figure than your then President husband, and it would be through his position as President that you could best serve your cause and nation. As such, you ultimately chose to not run.
You remain a loved and iconic hero in Argentina today Eva, 71 years after your death. You were so much more than Evita, the wildly popular musical about your life that debuted more than 25 years after you departed. A story about a girl growing up in poverty and rising to become a prominent political power, will always capture the world’s attention. In your case the story a was reality.
Evita passed away from uterine cancer at the young age of 33 on July 26, 1952, in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
When you left this earth, you were given a funeral equal to those previously reserved only for heads of state. The love and support of the Argentinian people was unwavering. Today, more than seven decades after you left us, you remain a national hero in the hearts of every Argentinian from school children to senior citizens, and in mine as well.
On this cold rainy morning in Buenos Aires, I went in search of you in Recoleta Cemetery. There are some 6,500 graves and mausoleums here, many of which are both enormous and spectacularly adorned. I incorrectly assumed that at one of these towering marble giants I would find you. I went from one to the next examining the largest and most magnificent first, searching for you. After over an hour in the rain with no success, I realized that I was on the wrong trail and sought assistance from the caretaker who kindly walked me to your final resting place.
Eva, I was surprised by the small and modest family tomb where you now rest. It is ordinary and unassuming, practically indistinguishable from those around it. It is neither large nor impressive in any way. You are there with the Duarte family, your family, as you were once Eva Duarte.
Your journey back to Recoleta where you rest today has been a long and difficult one. Immediately following your death in 1952 your body was moved from one clandestine place in Argentina to another. In 1955, a full three years later, in the wake of the military coup that ousted your husband, your embalmed corpse was shipped by the Argentinian military to Italy where you were buried in a small graveyard outside of Rome. You remained there for 17 years with a false name on the headstone. The new regime knew the powerful symbolic value that you represented to the Argentinian population, and even in death you posed a serious threat to them. "A new broom sweeps clean," and you were part of the old regime, and as such intentionally "swept" aside.
Evita is buried 22 feet below the surface in a sealed coffin to which only one key was ever made.
When a subsequent military coup in 1971 overthrew the Argentinian government, in exchange for your husband Juan Peron's support of the new leadership, the government agreed to relocate your body to the Peron estate in Spain. In 1974 free elections brought your husband back into power. You, however, did not return to Argentina until after his death when his then current wife Isabella became the de-facto President. The political situation at that time was volatile and unstable, and to appease the public, Isabella returned your body to where you lie today. It is my understanding that you are buried 22 feet below the surface in a sealed coffin to which only one key was ever made, all in order to prevent any tampering with your remains and to finally keep you safe and at peace.
As I stand alone in front of your family mausoleum on this cold rainy morning my heart aches as I ponder your long and difficult journey in returning to the land of your birth, and to the people whom you loved and loved you. It is certainly here where you belong.
You were returned home at last Eva, 26 years after your passing, and hopefully for eternity. As my tears mixed with the cold morning rain, I pondered the long journey and difficult circumstances that brought you to where I stand at this moment. In the hearts and minds of people across the globe your example lives on and your spirit is everlasting.
Indulge me Evita as I may never visit you again and DO let me cry for you.
Perhaps you’ll spend a few moments with Evita in Buenos Aires during The Wilderness Beyond: Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego & the Chilean Fjords.
