Passion or Profession: Journalist, Author

Period: 1852–1909

Clorinda Matto de Turner was an influential feminist, the first woman in Latin America to head a major newspaper, and the editor of a major intellectual journal. Her 1889 book, Birds without a Nest, was a controversial exposé of small town officials and priests who oppressed the native peoples of Peru. Because of the book, she was excommunicated by the Catholic Church and burned in effigy, but her novel inspired many needed reforms in the country.