"Everything that we did was for our children so that they could learn to read, so they could have a better life, then we, with this idea, participated in the Revolution. With the idea that they were going to learn to read, that they were going to learn many things that they didn't know, with this we integrated in the process of the Revolution," Ser madre en Nicaragua (Being a Mother in Nicaragua) 22.

What accounted for the unprecedented numbers of women political activists and revolutionary soldiers in Nicaragua in the late 1970s to 1980s?

During the 1970s and 80s, Nicaragua suffered a severe economic crisis due to government overspending, a blossoming foreign debt, and a worldwide hike in interest rates. International lending institutions intervened, pressuring the Nicaraguan government to cut social programs in education and health care and subsidies to such basic services as water and electricity. In addition, hyperinflation, rising food prices, and a devalued currency made it increasingly difficult for women to provide for their families and perform their domestic duties. Therefore, many housewives and mothers entered the political arena, lobbying the government to meet basic needs, combat inflation, and provide social services.

Many women bore the double burden of mother and breadwinner as their male partners migrated in search of work. By 1984, an estimated 50% of Nicaraguan households were female-headed. To meet their family and community needs, women mobilized, building their own self-help and community service organizations such as soup kitchens, child care and health centers, and services for distributing potable water, electricity and transportation. The Association of Women Confronting the National Problem (AMPRONAC) was formed to help women meet traditional gender needs, which has elicited severe criticism, particularly among feminist organizations. AMPRONAC, however, has offered women professional development and educational training, has created day care centers for working mothers, and has led hunger strikes and demonstrations, demanding an end to gender discrimination and unequal pay for female workers.

Furthermore, many Nicaraguan women supported the Sandinista Revolution because of their role as mothers. Following the uprising against Nicaraguan dictator, Anastasio Somoza - orchestrated by the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) - many mothers frequented the public jails and penitentiary offices, demanding that their children, Sandinista prisoners, be released. As a result of this movement, Mothers of Heroes and Martyrs, the Nicaraguan mothers were politicized and in 1988, formed a political organization, Mothers of the Kidnapped. Peter Rosset and John Vandermeer argue that: "the political activities of these women now are completely bound up with their identity as mothers" (161).

Many Nicaraguan mothers also joined the Sandinista army because of their children. Some wished to protect or defend an immediate family member. Others desired to give their lives to the revolution after losing a child in battle. One such mother declared, "the death of a beloved child fits the true revolutionary context: giving your life for the absolute freedom of your people. In this way, mothers also feel inclined to participate in revolutionary activities" (Ser madre 86). And many feel a maternal instinct to care for all Nicaragua's children: "in conditions of war and in the situation that our country lives, I as a mother cannot watch over one child, there are millions of children in the country.. the interests of the entire people should come first" (ibid., 86).

Finally, as more and more Nicaraguan women entered the public domain - joining the formal workforce or mobilizing for social change - many developed a feminist conscience and fought in the revolution for women's emancipation. One such example is Gloria Carrión, a domestic worker, mother of nine children, and a Sandinista soldier. She asserts, "women weren't aware of anything: they only washed, ironed, cooked, had children and that was it. But now, I tell you, we're awakened... participation brought a sense of self-respect to many women" (Flynn 418).