GenderrelationsattheAliançaFactory

At Aliança - one of the most important textile factories in the federal capital between the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th - the workforce was heterogeneous, as in most factories in Rio de Janeiro. In 1882, for example, out of about 174 employees, 35 were adult women and 41 were children.

Image description: This is a historic black-and-white photograph of a city. On the left side, we see a building with classical architecture, possibly a palace or a public building, with a central tower and a clock. In front of it, there is a staircase leading to the main entrance. In the background, there is a hill covered with dense vegetation. On the right, we see a factory with a tall chimney in full operation, emitting smoke. Between the two buildings, there are several houses and smaller structures, forming the center of the city.

Many workers lived in the workers' village that was located near the factory, on Cardoso Júnior street. This fact contributed to the emergence of relationships of solidarity between neighbors and coworkers. This could be observed even among the women, who suffered from the sexist environment of the factory world and from the discrediting of their productivity. In addition, women needed to fight to remain in the village, since employers often adopted arbitrary eviction measures.

Tense situations broke out, mainly between women and children - who received lower wages - and sector administrators, foremen and overseers. In 1903, workers at Aliança joined the movement that would become a general strike, along with workers from other textile mills and other manufacturing sectors. The triggering cause for joining was the summary dismissal of the worker Ludovica by the loom foreman Ferreira da Silva, who had allegedly harassed the woman and gotten her pregnant. Upon learning of the pregnancy, the foreman fired Ludovica, causing an uproar among the entire body of workers, who threatened to stop work if the employee was not reinstated.

This situation, which mobilized the men at the factory, is linked to the idea of defending women's morality and honor, typical of the male mindset of the time. Doubly exploited — due to their condition as workers and as women — the female workers relied on protective ties with men so that their demands could be met.

Image description: The image is a black-and-white photograph of a large group of people gathered in an indoor setting, possibly a conference room or auditorium. The spatial layout is vertical, with people seated in rows, filling the space from the foreground to the background. On the left, there is a standing figure wearing a classic suit, while the rest of the group is seated, some on chairs and others on benches. Everyone appears to be focused on something outside the frame, possibly a presentation or a lecture.

The workers' press -- a tool so important to the workers' struggle -- did not amplify women workers' voices and, often, was responsible for spreading the devaluation of women's and children's labor.