Alicia Moreau's socialist feminism on war: transcending western narratives?

This article examines the international thought of Alicia Moreau de Justo, a prominent early twentieth-century Argentinian socialist feminist, highlighting her significant yet overlooked contributions to understanding and addressing war. Moreau’s perspective blends socialism, feminism, pacifism, democracy, and education to explain war’s causes—capitalism, authoritarianism, and public indifference—and proposes remedies centered on democratic socialism, women’s political participation, and pacifist education. While her views reflect Eurocentric and racial biases common to her era, her emphasis on individual security, the role of women as educators, and the importance of democracy offers a distinctive moderate alternative to dominant Western narratives in International Relations. The article argues that recovering Moreau’s thought enriches the inclusivity of international thought histories and provides valuable insights for contemporary policy-makers seeking peaceful and egalitarian global societies.