Jónína Jónatansdóttir

Jónína Jónatansdóttir
Member of the Reykjavík City Council
In office
1920–1922
Personal details
Born22 May 1869
Died1 December 1946
Political partySocial Democratic Party

Jónína Jónatansdóttir (22 May 1869 – 1 December 1946) was a labor leader and local representative in Reykjavík from 1922 to 1924.

Life and career

Jónína was born 22 May 1869 in Gullbringusýsla County in what is now Garðabær.[1][2] She later moved to Reykjavík where she became a vocal proponent for Women's rights.[1] There, she soon joined the Icelandic Women's Rights Association in 1910.[2]

Her political activities began in 1912,[1] when she started organizing a labor union for women.[1][2] On 21 April 1913, at a meeting of the Women's Rights Association, she spoke out to say the group needed to do something to improve women's working conditions.[3] Two years later on 25 October 1914,[1][4][5] she founded Working Women's Society Progress ("Progress"), the first union for women in the history of Iceland.[1][3][4][5] Jónína Jónatansdóttir was selected as the union's first chair,[1] a position she would remain in for the next twenty years.[2][3]

The same year she founded Progress, Jónína was placed second on the women's list of municipal candidates for the Reykjavík City Council.[2]

With Progress, Jónína also helped to found the Icelandic Confederation of Labour (ASI) as well as its political arm; the Social Democratic Party (SDP).[2] While serving on its board in 1920, she became the first woman elected to the Reykjavík City Council under the SDP's banner for a term to end in 1922.[2] By 26 May 1931, she was listed fourth among the party's candidates for the Althing (the Icelandic parliament) under Jón Baldvinsson.[1]

On 1 December 1946, Jónína died.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "Frú Jónína Jónatansdóttir". Vikuútgáfa Alþýðublaðsins (in Icelandic). Vol. 5, no. 23. Alþýðuflokkurinn. 26 March 1931. ISSN 2251-4252. Gegnir: 000434512. Retrieved 29 July 2019 – via timarit.is.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h "Jónína Jónatansdóttir". mbl.is (in Icelandic). Árvakur hf. 22 March 2012. Retrieved 30 July 2019.
  3. ^ a b c "Verkakvennafélagið aldarfjórðungsgamalt". Alþýðublaðið (in Icelandic). Vol. 20, no. 263. 10 November 1939. ISSN 1021-8203. Gegnir: 000434510. Retrieved 30 July 2019 – via timarit.is.
  4. ^ a b Vilhjálmur S. Vilhjálmsson (5 November 1964). "50 ára afmæli Verkakvennafélagsins Framsóknar". Alþýðublaðið (in Icelandic). Vol. 5, no. 23. pp. 8–10. ISSN 1021-8203. Gegnir: 000434510. Retrieved 30 July 2019 – via timarit.is.
  5. ^ a b "Verkakvennafélagið Framsókn". Konur og stjórnmál (in Icelandic). Retrieved 30 July 2019.

Further reading