{{Short description|Spanish politician}} {{family name hatnote|Bosaho|Gori|lang=Spanish}} {{Infobox officeholder |name = Rita Bosaho |image = (Rita Bosaho) TRAS LAS CÁMARAS en el Ministerio de IGUALDAD (cropped).jpg |caption = Bosaho in 2020 |office = Director-General for Equality of Treatment and Ethnic-racial Diversity in the Ministry of Equality |predecessor = Ignacio Sola Barleycorn |successor = Beatriz Carrillo |term_start = 31 January 2020 |term_end = 8 December 2023 |office2 = Member of the Congress of Deputies |constituency2 = Alicante |predecessor2 = |successor2 = |term_start2 = 13 January 2016 |term_end2 = 27 February 2019 |party = Podemos |birth_name = |birth_date = {{birth date and age|1965|5|21|df=y}} |birth_place = Santa Isabel (Malabo), Spanish Guinea, Spain |death_date = |death_place = |children = |alma_mater = University of Alicante |occupation = Politician, activist, sanitary staff }} '''Rita Gertrudis Bosaho Gori''' (born 21 May 1965) is an Equatorial Guinean-Spanish politician and activist member of Podemos, who served as Director-General for Equality of Treatment and Ethnic-racial Diversity in the Spanish Ministry of Equality from 2020 to 2023. She was a member of the 11th and 12th terms of the Congress of Deputies. In 2015, Bosaho became the first person of color, male or female, to be elected to a seat in the Spanish Parliament.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Spain's First Black Member Of Parliament And The 'New Politics' |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2016/03/04/469049902/spains-first-black-member-of-parliament-and-the-new-politics |access-date=2025-03-29 |work=NPR |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Spain's first black lawmaker – DW – 03/13/2016 |url=https://www.dw.com/en/rita-bosaho-spains-first-black-lawmaker/a-19110779 |access-date=2025-03-29 |website=dw.com |language=en}}</ref>
== Biography == Bosaho was born on 21 May 1965 in Santa Isabel (Malabo),<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.congreso.es/portal/page/portal/Congreso/Congreso/Diputados/BusqForm?_piref73_1333155_73_1333154_1333154.next_page=/wc/fichaDiputado?idDiputado=219&idLegislatura=12|publisher=Congress of Deputies|title=XII Legislatura (2016-2019). Bosaho Gori, Rita Gertrudis}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|title=El papel de las ONG y de la sociedad ha suplido a veces la vergüenza del propio Estado|page=10|issue=3|year=2016|journal=Derecho|publisher=Red Acoge|first=Miguel de|last=Juan|url=https://www.redacoge.org/mm/file/Revista%20Derecho%2013/Derecho13_n3_web.pdf}}</ref> in the province of Fernando Poo, Spanish Guinea. Bosaho is the niece of {{ill|Enrique Gori Molubela|es}}, a bubi member of the Francoist Cortes, representing the then Spanish colony of Fernando Poo, as well as president of the Fernando Poo's provincial deputation.<ref name="EM2">[http://www.elmundo.es/espana/2015/12/18/567315ff268e3e5c6d8b4611.html Rita Bosaho, la lucha por la mujer llega de África al Congreso], El Mundo, 18 December 2015</ref><ref name=em />
Bosaho moved to Spain at the age of 4, living with military foster families in Cádiz and Cartagena before moving to Alicante.<ref name="EP1">[http://politica.elpais.com/politica/2015/12/24/actualidad/1450949690_338464.html Rita Bosaho: “Hay que cambiar la estructura del patriarcado”], El País, 24 December 2015</ref>
She holds a degree in history from the University of Alicante.<ref name="EM3">[http://www.elmundo.es/comunidad-valenciana/2015/11/09/56406e1c268e3e464d8b4601.html Los críticos de Podemos cuestionan a Bosaho como cabeza de lista], El Mundo, 9 November 2015</ref> She worked as a nurse for 23 years in Alicante's general hospital.<ref name="TG">[https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/dec/21/podemos-rita-bosaho-becomes-spains-first-female-black-mp Podemos’ Rita Bosaho becomes Spain's first female black MP], The Guardian, 21 December 2015</ref> She earned a Master in Identities and Integration in Contemporary Europe and is preparing a PhD dissertation on the impact of European colonization in Africa.<ref name=em>{{Cite web|url=https://www.elmundo.es/loc/famosos/2020/01/21/5e208a9221efa0ea158b458f.html|website=El Mundo|title=Rita Bosaho, mano derecha de Irene Montero, primera diputada afroespañola y sobrina de franquista|date=21 January 2020}}</ref> She has also undertaken activist work in the field of human rights, focusing, in particular, on reducing violence against women.
A member of Podemos, Bosaho stood as a candidate in the May 2015 Valencian regional elections,<ref name="EP1"/> failing to win a seat. In November 2015, Bosaho was selected as the lead candidate on the party list to the Congress of Deputies in Alicante for the December 2015 general election,<ref name="BOE">[http://boe.es/diario_boe/txt.php?id=BOE-A-2015-12471 Candidaturas presentadas para las elecciones al Congreso de los Diputados y al Senado, convocadas por Real Decreto 977/2015, de 26 de octubre]</ref> a decision which was disputed by opponents within the local branch.<ref name="EM3"/> As she earned a seat, she became Spain's first-ever black member of the Lower House.<ref name="TG"/><ref>[http://www.elmundo.es/comunidad-valenciana/2016/05/21/573f553ce5fdea35468b45fb.html Pablo Iglesias mete a uno de los suyos como 'cunero' en Alicante], El Mundo, 21 May 2016</ref> She renovated her seat at the 2016 general election.
In January 2020, following the formation of the Sánchez II Government, Bosaho was appointed as Director-General for Equality of Treatment and Ethnic-racial Diversity of the Ministry of Equality led by Irene Montero.<ref>[https://www.eldiario.es/desalambre/directora-direccion-igualdad-colectivos-antirracistas_0_985152462.html La elegida para encabezar la Dirección de Igualdad de Trato y Diversidad étnico-racial renuncia para evitar el malestar de colectivos antirracistas ] in eldiario.es (in Spanish)</ref> She assumed the post on 31 January.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.eldiario.es/canariasahora/sociedad/Igualdad-promete-construir-feminista-posesion_0_990751508.html|title=El equipo del Ministerio de Igualdad promete construir un país "verdadera feminista" al tomar posesión|access-date=2020-01-31|author=EFE|website=eldiario.es}}</ref> In 2023, PM Sánchez changed the whole Ministry of Equality team.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's new cabinet |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/who-is-who-spains-new-cabinet-2023-11-20/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231122033507/https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/who-is-who-spains-new-cabinet-2023-11-20/ |archive-date=2023-11-22 |access-date=2025-03-29 |work=Reuters |language=en-US |url-status=live }}</ref>
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bosaho, Rita}} Category:1965 births Category:21st-century Spanish women politicians Category:Bubi people Category:Equatoguinean emigrants to Spain Category:21st-century Equatoguinean politicians Category:21st-century Equatoguinean women politicians Category:Living people Category:Members of the 11th Congress of Deputies (Spain) Category:Members of the 12th Congress of Deputies (Spain) Category:People from Malabo Category:Podemos (Spanish political party) politicians Category:Spanish activists Category:Spanish people of Bubi descent Category:Spanish women activists Category:University of Alicante alumni Category:Women members of the Congress of Deputies (Spain) Category:Bubi women Category:Black Spanish politicians