Born: 11 July 1901, Belize
Died: 9 June 1975
Country most active: Belize
Also known as: Madam Liz
Gwendolyn Margaret Lizarraga, MBE was a Belizean businesswoman, women’s rights activist and politician who was the first woman elected to the British Honduras Legislative Assembly (now the Belize House of Representatives) and the first woman to serve as a government minister in British Honduras (now Belize).
Lizarraga operated a successful chicle and mahogany farm and, ignoring convention by driving a land rover, wearing pants, carrying a gun and smoking cigarettes. She was outspoken and authoritative, and would not be intimidated in her dealings with big companies such as Wrigley’s, Castillo and Thurton. She was also known as a compassionate employer, who supported equal pay for equal work regardless of gender. In 1943, when the British Honduran Trade Union (BHTU) was forming, Lizarraga was invited to speak at an April meeting. She urged inclusion of protections for women laborers and equal wages and although the male participants reportedly agreed with her at her speech, women were excluded when they voted on their minimum wage standards that June.
In 1953, Lizarraga was hired by the Social Development Department as a female parole officer. In 1954, she began organizing women politically across the country, starting in her home area of Maskall Village and expanding to Orange Walk Town, Sand Hill, Benque Viejo and Punta Gorda. In 1959, she started the United Women’s Group (UWG) with 900 women from all over the country to empower women culturally, economically, and politically. She also co-founded the United Women’s Credit Union, encouraging women save, “even if they could only afford $0.25 per week”. Because only landowners could vote in British Honduras at the time, she also helped women acquire property. When she took women from the UWG to the Lands Department to get land grants, they were was told there was no land available, so Lizarraga marched into the swamps, surveyed and created a map of parcels for the women, and took it back to the Lands Department for recording. When children were denied access to education because there was no money to prepare the site and construct a school in their poor and working-class neighborhood, Lizarraga and the women began clearing the mangroves from the swamps with two-person handsaws. Workers from the Public Works Department later joined the women and two new schools—Belize Junior Secondary Schools N° 1 and N° 2—were completed. They were later renamed Edward P. Yorke School and Gwen Lizarraga High School.
In 1961, the first year women were allowed to run in the country’s national elections, Lizarraga became the first woman elected to the National Assembly, winning her division with 69% of the votes. She was appointed as Minister of Education, Housing and Social Services, making her the first female Minister in the country, as well and was was reelected in 1965 and 1969, and was being reappointed as Minister of Education, Housing and Social Services both times. In 1969, she led a project to build low-cost housing in the neighborhoods of King’s Park, Lake Independence and Queen’s Square. Lizarraga did not run for reelection in 1974, leaving office shortly before her final illness.
An avid chess player, Lizarraga also helped organize the country’s first chess club. She also collected folklore and was a choreographer, instrumental in the revival of the Mestizada dances.