Today I went with my American friends and professors to the Plaza de Mayo to see the mothers march and chat with them afterwards.
La asociación madres de la Plaza de Mayo (the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo) are a famous group that have done tremendous work for social justice. The founders of the group were mothers whose children "disappeared:" were kidnapped and tortured by the military regime. (I wrote a bit about the disappeared in my blog about la ESMA.) When people went missing in the early 70's (almost all of them 20-30 years old and middle-class), many of their mothers tried desperately to get any information they could about where their children were. They asked neighbors, police officers, churches, kiosk vendors — anyone who might have a clue. But the people they asked couldn't help them, and often directed them to another useless contact. Many mothers were searching, and when they realized that they all had similar problems and goals, they formed a group to look for their children together.
Las madres risked their lives many times by being open about their children's disappearance and demanding to know where they were. Three of them were killed by the regime.
For a long time the mothers thought and hoped that their children had been imprisoned or exiled and were waiting to have a trial somewhere. It was years before they learned of the torture their children had suffered and the practice of kidnapping and appropriating victims' babies.
When they got this information, las madres (and abuelas: grandmothers) did all they could to locate the children of the disappeared to tell them about their true identities and families. 95 appropriated men and women have been located by the mothers and grandmothers so far. Through denouncements, identity doubts, and a national blood bank they are working on, they hope to find still more.
Every Thursday at 3:30, las madres, abuelas, y hermanos (brothers and sisters) of the disappeared, and well as those who support their cause and efforts, march at la Plaza de Mayo — between la Casa Rosada (the Pink House, like the White House) and el Palacio Municipal (the Buenos Aires government building). Today I marched with them!
The mothers and supporters marched, some with pictures of the disappeared and other signs, while one mother read family members' letters to the disappeared and called their names. After each name was announced, supporters yelled "Presente!" — "Present!" Siempre presente, always present.
After the march, we went to las madres' headquarters and three of them talked with us. They told us about their initial convictions that their children were alive, their initial search. They told us about the three women abducted for their activism in the organization: one of them a nun who publicly denounced concentration camps that she'd discovered. The church didn't help them: the church was always with the government. They told us about their children, young university students.
One mother told us about the day her daughter was kidnapped. The mother was playing Scrabble with her friends when her daughter called and said "Mom, come home" in an urgent voice. The mother went home and saw the police in the house. The police rummaged through all of their things, stole money and valuables, and were very rude. They demanded to know where the mother's husband was — he was at work. They found a book about social movements and asked why they had it — it was one of the kids' university books. They found a forgotten picture of Perón from the 1950's (forbidden during the coup d'etat), and said that they were peronistas, too, but on the right, not the left. Then they kidnapped the girl, who'd done activism against the regime.
The remains of one mother's child were found this November. She was very happy her son was found, and glad to learn that although he was killed in an explosion, he was in a building away from the bomb — some people were in a building with the bomb, but he was further away. She said that you can recognize a face in the skull, in the teeth. She is happy to have her son again, and talks to him.
All of the mothers have endured a lot. Some committed suicide when they discovered what had happened. Their strength and achievements are worth so much.
At the end of the chat, one of the mothers said that it makes her glad to see others doing activism work like her own children did, and to see people smiling and free.
It was a privilege to meet such strong women and be a part of their march today. =)
Here are some pictures of the disappeared: about 30,000 people were kidnapped and killed.
This is a picture I took a few weeks ago at el Facultad de Derecho, the graduate school for law. It lists the students who had disappeared. The first student listed has my same birthday and current age (21).
Thanks, everyone, for your readership! Feel free to ask questions or comment.
Ciao!
Kaeli
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