Matilde Montoya (March 14, 1859 – January 26, 1939) was (likely) the first female physician in Mexico. To celebrate, today's reading is her entry in Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls.
She was a very bright kid who learned to read by the age of four, and entered high school at the age of 11! She trained to be a midwife at the age of 16, but she really wanted to become a doctor.
She applied to the National School of Medicine, and fulfilled all the requisite courses in chemistry, physics, and other sciences. The school allowed her to enroll, but after only a year she was expelled. Some doctors ran a campaign against her, trying to smear her with accusations of being a Protestant (a dangerous accusation in the predominantly-Catholic country), and it wasn't until she wrote to the President of Mexico asking for his help that the school changed its mind and allowed her to continue.
Then, when it came time to graduate, they tried to bar her from taking her final examination. She wrote the President again, and this time, fed up with these shenanigans, he passes a law allowing all women to study medicine. And then, to make his point, he came to the university to watch her take her exam.
Also, I just love the look on her face in this image. So badass. She knew what she wanted and was clearly not going to take any shit from anyone.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BgUuH1sjs0R/
