Codename: Butterflies
Directed by Cecilia Domeyko2009 60mDocumentary
"Code Name: Butterflies," is the first documentary to tell the powerful story of the Mirabal sisters of the Dominican Republic. In the 1950s, Patria, Minerva and Maria Teresa Mirabal, who were known by their secret name of "Butterflies," created a secret resistance movement against Rafael Leonidas Trujillo, one of the most bloodthirsty tyrants the world has ever known. When the dictator had them assassinated making it seem like an accident, the country rose up against Trujillo and a group of conspirators who had been plotting his death but had not dared to move forward, assassinated him. The courage of the Mirabals, simple wives and mothers who helped bring freedom and democracy to their country, is legendary. Today, the Dominican Republic owes much to these incredible women who were willing to sacrifice everything and to fight for what they believed in. The day of Mirabal sisters' death, November 25, has been designated by the United Nations as the "Day of Non-Violence Against Women" in their honor. The documentary interweaves interviews with witnesses to the story, including surviving Mirabal family members, their co-revolutionaries, teachers, friends, and colleagues, with dramatic recreations and archival footage and b-roll.
