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FEATURES
and fiber plantation. Together,
they would fight Costa Rica’s huge
socioeconomic disparities. In the
1940s, women were not allowed to
vote; the country’s minorities lacked
access to social benefits and public
education.
A year after their marriage in 1941,
the couple was forced into exile due
to Figueres’ public criticism of the
government. They traveled through
Central America, ultimately finding
refuge in Mexico City, where she
worked to create a home for their
two children—and her husband
planned a revolution.
They returned to Costa Rica in
1944, and in 1948, Figueres led the
National Liberation Army in a
coup
d’etat
against the government of
President Teodoro Picado and the
Costa Rican army. The revolution
lasted 44 days with sporadic fighting;
as many as 2,000 people were killed.
MacGuire described the revolution
as “bloody” and remembers how
terrifying it was to be under gunfire
as she and her children, Muni and
José Marti, fled the country through
the mountains with the help of a
brother-in-law.
After the war, Figueres took
over the government for 18
months and MacGuire stepped
into the role of first lady. Among
the country’s reforms, women
were given the right to vote; the
Costa Rican army was abolished
and money instead poured into
education, social benefits, and
environmental preservation; banks
were nationalized and credit made
available to farmers and those who
wanted small businesses; and the
system of government was reformed
so that power was not based on
family relationships. Figueres
relinquished power in 1949, turning
the government over to the country’s
first democratically elected president.
MacGuire said she pushed
especially hard for legislation to give
women the right to vote. She also
helped establish an English-language
school, where academic courses were
geared toward American colleges
and universities; at the time, Costa
Ricans were having a hard time
gaining acceptance to U.S. schools.
Figueres was elected to two more
terms as president of Costa Rica:
1953-58 and 1970-74. His son, José
Maria (her stepson), also served
as president from 1994-98 and is
considering running for president
again in the country’s next election.
But MacGuire’s marriage did not
survive the years that followed
Figueres’ rise to power.
Returning home
Kalin, the filmmaker, said
MacGuire’s ability to take her
children and leave a man that
powerful is a testament to her
remarkable inner strength.
“That she could be in a foreign
MacGuire with Figueres