Maria da Penha Maia Fernandes is a Brazilian biopharmacist and women human rights defender. She advocates for women rights, particularly against domestic violence. Born in 1945 in Fortaleza, in the Brazilian state of Ceará, Maria da Penha was a victim of domestic violence by her husband. She brought a case against her attacker to be condemned, first in the Federal Court of Brazil and later in the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.