IWF-NM Historic Women Marker Initiative: She Who Shaped New Mexico

Maria Adelina Emilia Otero Warren, NM, 1925. Courtesy/Palace of the Governors (NMHM/DCA), 030263

Maria Adelina Emilia (Nina) Otero. Courtesy/Palace of the Governors 

New Mexico Historic Women Marker Initiative:

Nina Otero-Warren is one of the honorees in the American Women Quarters Program.

She will be featured along with other historically significant women throughout American history including iconic poet Maya Angelou and the Cherokee Nation’s first female principal chief, Wilma Mankiller.

Otero-Warren also is part of the New Mexico Historic Women Marker Initiative (NMHWMI) with a marker in Los Lunas.

The International Women’s Forum – New Mexico (IWF-NM) Historic Women Marker Committee is helping to spread awareness of Otero-Warren’s life, her many outstanding achievements and the recognition of her contributions via the American Women Quarters Program.

Otero-Warren was a committed suffragette and brought a bilingual approach to the Women’s Suffrage Movement. She was the first Hispanic woman to run for Congress. In New Mexico she served as the first female superintendent of Santa Fe Public Schools where she worked to improve education conditions in rural Hispano communities and among Native American populations. Otero-Warren is an essential part of US history.

The coin for Nina Otero-Warren. Courtesy/NMHWMI

The US Mint plans to release five new quarter designs each year from 2022 to 2025 to honor the success of women throughout history. The coin for Nina Otero-Warren will include her alongside three blooms of a yucca, the state flower of New Mexico. The center of the coin has the phrase “Voto Para La Mujer”, the Spanish language equivalent of support for the “Vote for Women”.

This represents her story of fighting for equity and justice within her Southwestern community. As the quarters are distributed around the country, future generations will be reminded of the important roles women have played in the development of US history through the diversity of stories etched into each coin. Distribution of the coin is scheduled for summer of 2022.

Editor’s note. Los Alamos Daily Post Publisher Carol A. Clark is a member of the International Women’s Forum – New Mexico.

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