LOCALIn Memory of Cristina Martinez (1937-2017) Cristina Martinez, of Cambridge, Massachusetts, passed away at age 79, last March 24, 2017, in Davis, California. Cristina was born in El Socorro, Santander, Colombia, on September 18, 1937. She obtained her Bachelor in Sociology from the Universidad Nacional in Bogotá, Colombia, in 1968. That same year, in December, she came to the United States to study Sociology at the New School for Social Research in New York City. Cristina went on to graduate in 1973 with a Master of Arts from the University of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania, concluding her formal academic studies with a PhD in Political Sociology from Boston University.
Between 1976 and 1982, Cristina taught Sociology in Puerto Rico, including the Universidad de Puerto Rico en Río Piedras. Afterwards, she held different positions in teaching and research at different universities in Boston and Cambridge.
Cristina was an avid reader and writer. Her theoretical writings complimented her social activism for peace, justice, and social change. Notwithstanding her love for her native country, Colombia, Cristina aligned herself alongside all social struggles for justice in Latin America, the United States, and the world.
A memorial gathering to remember and honor her life was held at the Community Church of Boston last Sunday, April 23. Each one of her friends, comrades, and family members in attendance gave testimony of the work carried out by Cristina for social justice, art, culture and education, in Massachusetts and abroad. She was a true internationalist. We shared this moment with her children Alberto and Elvia, and her nephew, Efrain.
As we say in Latin America when a social change activist passes, ¡Cristina Martínez: Presente!
Cristina is survived by three of her four children: Alberto Molina-Martinez, Elvia Rubald, and Silvia Molina de Gelbard. Her dear son Eduardo Molina-Martinez, sadly, died in 2007.
|