The women of 1952

Throughout history, women have been written out or else largely ignored—even in revolutions. Ask any child about the language heroes, and they will most likely be able to recite the names of Salam, Rafique, Jabbar, Barkat, men who undoubtedly gave the biggest of sacrifices for the liberation of our mother tongue. But the fight for Bangla was led by women too.

During the Language Movement of 1952, women were first to hit the streets defying curfew. It was a woman who broke through a barricade at a protest where everyone else was passing under it, and a woman who demanded legal justice for the victims of February 21 at a legislative assembly. The Bhasha Andolon saw female students making posters, assembling activists across schools, contributing meals, chanting slogans in the face of police violence, and persisting even through jailtime. Women from all over the country rallied for their right to speak in the language they wanted to. This Ekushey February, we revisit some of these heroines of history.