Martina Kramers

Martina Kramers (1863-1934) was a Dutch suffragist who was a leader in the International Council of Women and the International Woman Suffrage Alliance as well as in the national feminist movement in the Netherlands. In her various roles, Kramers was an active speaker, writer, and conference organizer for the causes she supported.

Early life Martina Gezina Kramers was born in Veur on 6 June 1863. Her father was the head of a Protestant boarding school, and as a result of growing up in an educational environment Kramers learned several languages as a child. Kramers' mother died in 1874. At 15, Kramers began studying at a teacher training school in Arnhem. After completing the program, she returned to Rotterdam where she continued to live with her family.

Suffragist and social movement activity Kramers' involvement with the women's rights movement in the Netherlands began when she joined the Vereeniging voor Vrouwenkiesrecht in 1894.

In 1898, Kramers helped organize the large, public National Exhibition on Women's Labor held in The Hague. In the same year, Kramers successfully advocated for the creation of the Dutch National Council for Women, inspired by a lecture given by May Wright Sewall at the exhibition.

Kramers became a member of the Social Democratic Workers' Party in 1911. Several of her letters and articles were published in the Margaret Sanger-led Birth Control Review.

Later life In 1918, Kramers moved to Apeldoorn and shifted her focus to social democratic politics. In 1923, Kramers was elected to the Apeldoorn city council. Kramers, who in her life was also an Esperantist, gave lessons in the language to interested young people.

Kramers died in Apeldoorn on 15 October 1934.