Isabel Allende Foundation

Isabel Allende was born on August 2, 1942, in Lima, Perú, the daughter of a Chilean diplomat. Abandoned by her father at a young age, Allende returned to her native Chile with her mother and two siblings. Growing up, she observed her mother’s struggles against the prejudices of a misogynist society – experiences that helped shape her views on gender equality. 

Allende describes the roots of her feminism in her 2021 memoir, The Soul of a Woman. “My anger against machismo started in those childhood years of seeing my mother and the housemaids as victims,” she writes early in the book. “I became obsessed with justice and developed a visceral reaction to male chauvinism.”

Following her mother’s remarriage to a career diplomat, Allende lived in Bolivia and Lebanon, before returning to Chile to complete high school. She married Miguel Frías in 1962 and gave birth to her daughter a year later. In 1967, Allende joined the editorial board of the feminist journal Paula, where she published many of her early writings, including a regular column titled “Los impertinentes,” a series of scathing satirical critiques of Chile’s patriarchal society. 

In 1982 Allende published her debut novel, La Casa de los Espíritus (The House of the Spirits), to international acclaim. Other notable works soon followed, including De Amor y de Sombra (1984; Of Love and Shadows) and Eva Luna (1985). In her fiction, Allende has consistently focused on the struggle of women to achieve autonomy and self-determination in a male-dominated culture, a theme that provided the impetus for her philanthropic work. 

Allende initially financed her foundation with proceeds from her memoir Paula (1994), a wrenching meditation on her daughter’s illness and death. In the ensuing years, the author has continued to channel a substantial portion of her book earnings into the organization. 

The foundation funds two programs. The Esperanza Grant supports nonprofits that finance travel for women seeking abortions, fight to end forced marriages, help women refugees gain employment and protect women from violence. Awarded annually, the Espíritu Award recognizes one organization that best exemplifies the foundation’s core mission. In 2022, the Isabel Allende Foundation disbursed nearly USD 2.3 million in grants. 

In interviews, Allende expresses optimism about the future of the feminist movement. “Little by little, women are chipping away the patriarchy,” she told Armando Arrieta in 2021. Through her foundation, the celebrated author continues her commitment to furthering the cause.

Contributor: Stephen Meyer