CENTRO EDUCACIONAL MEU ESPAO

Educando com seriedade.

TEACHER: ALLISSON SOUZA CLASS: ____________________________
NAME: _____________________________________________________________
DATE: ______________________________________________________________

POWERFUL WOMEN

Dilma Rousseff was the 36th President of Brazil and the first woman to occupy the post. She is an
economist. She was the Minister of Energy and the Chief of Staff during Lulas governments. She helped
to found the PTB led by Brizola, but affiliated to the PT in 2001.
She was part of the armed resistance against the military dictatorship in the 60s and was imprisoned
and tortured during the 70s. Her lifelong partner is Carlos Arajo with whom she had a daughter, Paula
Rousseff. During her and Lulas governments, PT focused on economic development and investments in
the infrastructure of the country, while public services like education and health are neglected.
Impeachment proceedings against Rousseff were officially accepted by the Chamber of Deputies on 3
December 2015. On 12 May 2016, the Senate of Brazil temporarily suspended President Rousseff's pow-
ers and duties for up to six months or until the Senate decided whether to remove her from office if found guilty or to acquit
her of the crimes charged. On 31 August 2016, the Senate voted 6120 in favor of impeachment, finding Rousseff guilty of
breaking budgetary laws and removing her from office.

Marina Silva is a former member of Brazilian Socialist Party. She is from Rio Branco. Be-
sides her political activities, she is an environmentalist, a teacher and a historian. She was a sen-
ator for Acre for 16 years and the Minister of the Environment in Lulas first government.
Her mother did when Marina was only fourteen and several of her brothers and sisters died
owing to diseases caused by the lack of infrastructure and health care. For the same reasons, she
has suffered from malaria, hepatitis and mercury poisoning. Nevertheless, she has been married
twice and has four children.

Marie Curie (18671934) Polish/French scientist. Curie was the first woman to receive the Nobel Prize
and the first person to win the Nobel Prize for two separate categories. Her first award was for research
into radioactivity (Physics, 1903). Her second Nobel prize was for Chemistry in 1911. A few years later
she also helped develop the first X-ray machines.

Jane Austen (17751817) was one of the most famous female authors of all time. She wrote several
novels, which remain highly popular today. These include Pride and Prejudice, Emma and Northanger
Abbey. Jane Austen wrote at a time when female writers were not encouraged, helping pave the way for
future writers.

Michelle Bachelet is a doctor. She is married and has two children. Her father was a progressive
General who cooperated with President Allende. He was later tortured by the military after the coup
dtat in 1973 and died a year later. Michelle went into exile in 1975 and spent several years abroad
returning to Chile in 1979.
She is affiliated to the Chilean Socialist Party and was the President of Chile from March 2006 to
2010. She was the Minister of Health and the Minister of Defense before becoming President. As
President she introduced many positive health care policies like free medical care for people over 60
and social benefits for poor families. In 2013, she was voted President for a second time, becoming
the first President in her country to have two terms of government.

Malala Yousafzai (1997now) is a Pakistani schoolgirl who defied threats of the Taliban to cam-
paign for the right to education. She survived being shot in the head by the Taliban and has become a
global advocate for womens rights, especially the right to education.
 1) Speaking (pre-reading): Look at the photos. What are the impressions that they convey to you? What do
you know about these women? Why are they represented in these photos and text?

2) Pre-reading:

a) Who are these women? Why are they powerful?

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b) What do they have done of important?

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c) About Dilma, Marina and Michelle, what political posts have they already occupied?
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d) Do you think Dilma was a good President? And Michelle? Why?

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e) Do you think Marina would be a good President? Why?

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f) Do you know who was the first female president in the world? When? Where?
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g) How was this possible?

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We honor the greatness in you

Do your best and the best of you will appear!