María Gómez Carbonell

María Gómez Carbonell (June 29, 1903 – May 24, 1988) was a Cuban educator and attorney. She was the first congresswoman in the country's House of Representatives (1936–1940). She also served as a Senator and a Minister without portfolio. She founded Cruzada Educativa Cubana in 1962, as well as the Alliance of National Feminists.

Carbonell was born June 29, 1903 in Havana. An only child, her parents were Jose Fernando Gomez Santoyo and Candelaria Carbonell Rivero. Her maternal grandfather, Néstor Leonelo Carbonell Figueroa, as well as three uncles, José Manuel, Néstor, and Miguel Angel were involved in Cuba's politics and society. She was one of the first women to earn a Ph.D. from the University of Havana.

Carbonell served in the Cuban Senate for two terms for four years (1940 to 1944). She was a member of the cabinet of Ministers and also worked as a Minister without portfolio (Ministros Sin Cartera), in 1958. During her career in Cuba's Congress, she delivered more than 160 speeches. She founded the Alliance of National Feminists in Cuba, as well as the Cruzada Educativa Cubana in 1962. Described as a "sought-after speaker in the Cuban exile community", she was exiled to the United States in 1959. While in exile in Miami, Florida, she became the founding member of civic organization (CEC) and the also umbrella organization of Municipios de Cuba en el Exilio (Cuban Municipalities in Exile). In the publication called the El Habanero, a Cuban exile periodical, she was Director for the Havana Province.

While in exile in Miami, under the aegis of the Cruzada Educativa Cubana, she organized Cuban Culture Day on 25 November every year when the Juan J. Remos Award was presented to Cubans for their contribution in the cultural and educational fields. The Cuban Teacher Day was also observed in Miami on July 11 every year when the José de la Luz y Caballero (a famous nineteenth century Cuban teacher and philosopher) Award was presented. She also scripted and presented a Spanish-language radio program titled "La Escuelita Cubana" highlighting issues related to Cuban history.

Carbonell died on May 24, 1988 in Miami, Florida. She is cited as a "community icon in both Cuba and the United States".