The Florence School of Transnational Governance has named its cafeteria after the Madres and Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo, two courageous human rights organizations that emerged in Argentina to resist the military dictatorship (1976–1983).
The EUI Library is pleased to showcase a selection of resources related to the Madres and Abuelas, along with a series of historical posters created by Argentine exiles and allies across Europe and beyond during the 1970s and 1980s, as well as poems written by desaparecidos – kidnapped, tortured and murdered victims whose bodies were disappeared by the military government.
Visit the display at the entrance of the Library’s Stockholm meeting room (when not in use) until Thursday, 3 April 2025. Explore the related resources in the EUI Collection selected by Esteban Octavio Scuzarello, Lucia Bosoer and Sofía Veliz: The enduring legacy of the Madres and Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo.
Register to attend the Special Event, ‘Democracy yesterday and today: The enduring legacy of the Madres and Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo’, 16:00 – 17:15, 28 March, Hannah Arendt Room.
Madres and Abuelas of Plaza de Mayo: An enduring legacy
On March 24, 1976, Argentines woke up to the following announcement circulating on radio stations:
[object Object],[object Object]
Lo Unfortunately, this was not the first time Argentina had experienced a civic-military coup or political violence. The years leading up to the coup were marked by instability, the proscription of political parties and figures, as well as widespread violence and guerrilla activity. However, what was announced that day would soon become the most brutal and bloody dictatorship in Argentina’s history.
The Military Junta, initially led by Jorge Rafael Videla (Army), Emilio Massera (Navy), and Orlando Agosti (Air Force) and with the support of certain civic groups, ruled for seven years (until December 1983), but its social, economic, and political consequences
still echo in Argentina today. The regime quickly implemented severe austerity measures that pushed the country to the brink of economic collapse. As many scholars have noted, this economic plan required a strong repressive component to sustain itself (Aguila, 2006; Pion-Berlin, 1983). Thus, the Military Junta carried out a systematic campaign of persecution, abduction, torture, extermination, and enforced disappearance of anyone deemed “subversive”—a label that, in their view, could apply to anyone: artists, writers, journalists, students, political activists, priests, LGBTQI+ activists, and many others.
The regime established clandestine detention centers across the country, varying in size and execution capacity. Unlike other dictatorships, the Junta did not even attempt to give an institutional framework to its repression by passing laws or decrees. Even within the legal structures of the armed forces, their actions were unlawful.
To this day, the military has refused to provide information about how many people were persecuted, where they were tortured, what was done with their bodies, or what happened to the children born in captivity or kidnapped alongside their parents. While the full extent remains uncertain, estimates indicate that 30,000 people were forcibly disappeared, and around 400 babies were stolen and stripped of their true identities.
The Madres and Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo: A Lifetime of Struggle
The Madres and Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo are women who directly endured the horrors of the dictatorship—their children and grandchildren were kidnapped, tortured, and disappeared by the armed forces. In the face of escalating repression and fear, they self-organized to demand from the Junta the “aparición con vida de sus hijos y sus nietos” (the live reappearance of their sons and grandchildren). They gathered in the main square of Buenos Aires, Plaza de Mayo (from which they take their name), in front of the Presidential Palace. Since public gatherings were prohibited, they began walking in circles around the square. They have done so every Thursday for over 40 years.
Their protests did not end with the fall of the dictatorship and the return of democracy because their children and grandchildren were still missing—many of them, to this day.
The Abuelas have successfully identified 139 grandchildren over the past 40 years. However, they estimate that around 260 remain missing—adults in their 40s today, unaware of their true origins.
The Madres have fought tirelessly for truth and justice, demanding accountability for the crimes of the dictatorship. Over the years, they have become an enduring symbol of resistance, human rights, and memory. Some still search for their children, while others, whose sons and daughters were murdered, have devoted their lives to ensuring that the horrors of the past are never forgotten.
Today, both the Madres and Abuelas continue their work. They remind us that there can be no reconciliation without justice (to date, there have been more than 320 trials against members of the Junta, many of which took place thanks to the efforts of the Madres and Abuelas). Meanwhile, the Abuelas persist in their mission to reunite the stolen children with their true identities, a task that even led to scientific innovations in the field of genetics, such as the ‘grandparentage test.’ Their fight is not just about the past—it is about the present and the future, ensuring that such atrocities never happen again.
[object Object]
References: Aguila, G. (2006). Dictatorship, society, and genocide in Argentina: repression in Rosario, 1976–1983 1 . Journal of Genocide Research, 8(2), 169–180. https://doi.org/10.1080/14623520600703040
Pion-Berlin, D. (1983). Political repression and economic doctrines: the case of Argentina. Comparative Political Studies, 16(1), 37-66.
All posters belong to the Fondo Alicia Raquel Puchulu de Drangosch (Reference Code: AR-ANM-ARPD) of the Archivo Nacional de la Memoria (National Archive of Memory, Argentina).
Blog authors
Sofía Veliz