20 Eva Peron Quotes and Biography Resources

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Inside: A collection of Eva Perón quotes, along with resources for learning about her life and accomplishments.

First Lady of Argentina from 1946 to 1952, Evita Perón was extraordinarily beloved by her people. She was also complicated and controversial, throughout her short life and until now.

Revered by the working class, Eva Perón was known as the “spiritual leader of Argentina,” for her humanitarian work and fierce dedication to economic justice.

“Seven decades after Evita died from cancer in 1952, she still looms large—sometimes literally. When Peronists won the presidential election in October, they relit a monumental portrait of her that rivals had blacked out on Buenos Aires’ biggest avenue, returning her to the forefront of the national narrative. The truth is, she never left.
– Ciara Nugent, TIME Magazine, 100 Women of the Year

Perón is largely responsible for securing the right to vote for women in Argentina. As First Lady, she established a foundation to help the economically disadvantaged and ran both the the ministries of health and labor.

Peron’s fairytale rise– from humble beginnings, to actress, to first lady and champion of the poor– followed by an untimely death, has captured the imagination of millions across the world.

Her story is not without controversy, however, as her biography and own words reveal.

Here’s an index of what’s included in the post. You can click on any link to jump straight to that section:

1. Eva Perón Biography
2. List of Eva Peron Films
2. Eva Peron Quotes About Women
3. Eva Peron Quotes About Socioeconomic Justice
4. More Eva Peron Quotes
5. Resources for Students to Learn More
6. YouTube Biography Videos

Eva Perón Biography

Eva Perón was born with the name María Eva Duerte on May 7, 1919, in Argentina. She grew up in working class family with a single mother (though her parents had four children together, her father had another family already). When her father died in 1926, their economic situation only worsened.

Her older siblings were already working various jobs, and Perón moved to Buenos Aires at 15 years old to pursue acting. She worked in theater, radio, and acted in a film. Only five years later she had started her own radio entertainment business, the Company of the Theater of the Air.

In 1945, Eva Duarte married Juan Perón, changing her life course forever. At the time, Perón was a colonel and government official, and was soon elected the president of Argentina.

Perón was politically active and outspoken as First Lady. She was especially concerned with the poor, economic justice, and and women’s rights. She established a foundation to help the poor, in addition to being the de facto head of ministries of health and labor.

Though her work was not without controversy– Perón did not keep or publish detailed records of her financials, and contributions may not have been voluntary– her foundation was funneled direct aid to the poor. She was responsible for building thousands of schools, hospitals, nursing homes, orphanages, and more, all across Argentina.

She also established the Peronista Feminist Party in 1949, after helping to pass the women’s right to vote in 1947.

Juan Perón was reelected 1951. Sadly, Eva Perón was suffering from cervical cancer and she succumbed to it in 1952. She was only 33 years old. Her untimely death shook the nation, and she was given a lavish funeral.

Eva Peron’s influence only grew after her passing, as her followers united to advocate for working-class people and her political enemies sought to erase her memory. Her words “I will come again, and I will be millions,” almost sound like a prophecy since fulfilled.

When we consider another of her famous quotes– “My biggest fear in life is to be forgotten.”— we can see this fear was certainly not realized.

Even her physical remains were a source of conflict and weaponization: after her untimely death, her body was carefully embalmed. In 1955, when Juan Perón was ousted, it was stolen and hidden in Italy for 16 years. Her body was then given to Perón, eventually returned to Argentina, stolen once again, and finally laid to rest in her family’s crypt in Recoleta Cemetery, in Buenos Aires.

An entire movie was made just about this strange story of her remains, Eva Doesn’t Sleep. She has been the subject of plays, books, and musicals.

Eva Peron Films

Here are just some of the movies inspired by Eva Perón.

Evita Perón (1981)
Dramatized perspective on Peron’s life, winner of a Primetime Emmy.
Evita (1996)
Musical drama, starring Madonna and Antonio Banderas and produced by Andrew Lloyd Webber.
Eva Perón: The True Story (1996)
Dramatized retelling of Eva Peron´s life.
Evita (2008)
Documentary
Juan and Eva (2011)
Dramatized recounting of how Juan Perón and Eva Duarte met.
Eva Doesn’t Sleep (2015)
Eva No Duerme, starring Gael García Bernal.

Eva Peron Quotes

A perusal of Eva Peron quotes show her passionate vision of an ideal Argentina and political ideals.

Read the collection below to learn more about how she saw herself and the world around her her.

Quotes About Women

1. “I demanded more rights for women because I know what women had to put up with.”

– Eva Perón

2. “I know that like every woman of the people, I have more strength than I appear to have.”

– Eva Perón

3. “The nation’s government has just handed me the bill that grants us our civil rights. I am receiving it before you, certain that I am accepting this on behalf of all Argentinean women, and I can feel my hands tremble with joy as they grasp the laurel proclaiming victory.”

– Eva Perón

4. “You must want! You have the right to ask! You must desire.”

– Eva Perón

Eva Peron Quotes About Socioeconomic Justice

1. “Charity separates the rich from the poor; aid raises the needy and sets him on the same level with the rich.”

– Eva Perón

2. “When the rich think about the poor, they have poor ideas.”

– Eva Perón

3. “It is not philanthropy, nor is it charity… It is not even social welfare; to me, it is strict justice… I do nothing but return to the poor what the rest of us owe them, because we had taken it away from them unjustly.”

– Eva Perón

4. “Where there is a worker, there lies a nation.”

– Eva Perón

5. “To convince oneself that one has the right to live decently takes time.”

– Eva Perón

5. “Keeping books on social aid is capitalistic nonsense. I just use the money for the poor. I can’t stop to count it.”

– Eva Perón

6. “I was very sad for many days when I discovered that in the world there were poor people and rich people; and the strange thing is that the existence of the poor did not cause me as much pain as the knowledge that at the same time there were people who were rich.”

– Eva Perón

7. “Our President has declared that the only privileged person in our country are the children.”

– Eva Perón

8. “Almsgiving tends to perpetuate poverty; aid does away with it once and for all. Almsgiving leaves a man just where he was before. Aid restores him to society as an individual worthy of all respect and not as a man with a grievance. Almsgiving is the generosity of the rich; social aid levels up social inequalities.”

– Eva Perón

9. “There are some oligarchs that make me want to bite them just as one crunches into a carrot or a radish.”

– Eva Perón

10. “I had watched for many years and seen how a few rich families held much of Argentina’s wealth and power in their hands. So Peron and the government brought in an eight hour working day, sickness pay and fair wages to give poor workers a fair go.”

– Eva Perón

Eva Peron Quotes About Herself and her Life

1. “My biggest fear in life is to be forgotten.”

– Eva Perón

2. “I will come again, and I will be millions.”

– Eva Perón

3. “If I have to apply five turns to the screw each day for the happiness of Argentina, I will do it.”

– Eva Perón

4. “I have one thing that counts, and that is my heart; it burns in my soul, it aches in my flesh, and it ignites my nerves: that is my love for the people and Peron.”

– Eva Perón

5. “Time is my greatest enemy.”

– Eva Perón

6. “I want nothing for myself… My glory is and always will be… the banner of my people, and even if I leave shreds of my life on the wayside I know that you will gather them up in my name and carry them like a flag to victory.”

– Eva Perón

7. “One cannot accomplish anything without fanatacism.”

– Eva Perón

7. “I am only a simple woman who lives to serve Peron and my people.

– Eva Perón