Susan Quimpo

Susan Ferrer Quimpo (February 6, 1961 – July 14, 2020) was a Filipino activist, author, theater artist, and art therapist best known for her advocacy work of educating the Filipino youth about the Philippines’ Martial Law era, and for co-writing the book “Subversive Lives: A Family Memoir of the Marcos Years.”

Early life Susan Quimpo was born the youngest among the ten children of Ishmael and Esperanza Quimpo, and was a child when Martial Law was declared in 1972.

Family activism during martial law The Quimpo siblings became a family of activists, with seven of her siblings joining the underground resistance against the Marcos dictatorship. One, Ishmael Jr., was murdered by the dictatorship, while another, Ronald Jan,was abducted at the age of 23 and is presumed dead. She was part of the theater group, Peryante.

Historian and former National Historical Commission chair Ambeth Ocampo, in a 2020 column written soon after Quimpo's death, noted: In “Subversive Lives,” the Quimpos are narrators coming to terms with the past and taking us along with them in their long and painful journey. Today, more than ever, we need more accounts of the martial law years, for without these we won’t have history.

Therapy for martial law survivors As a therapist, Quimpo was also known for offering art therapy to surviving victims of the Martial Law regime, encouraging them to heal by expressing their repressed memories through art. She offered similar services to survivors of natural disasters, and to those experienced political persecution.

Diagnosis and death Quimpo was diagnosed with systemic scleroderma, a painful autoimmune disease, in 2018, and died two years later, on July 14, 2020. Throughout that time, she continued to approach schools, asking them if she could speak to their students about the history of martial law in the Philippines.