Who is crying now?

 

Kudos, Argentina. Here is an article (below) that I originally posted on Jim Neal’s blog.

 

A Dirty War, Crisis, and Human Rights

In voting to extend the full and complete rights of marriage and adoption to same-sex couples, the Argentine government has taken another step away from the nightmare of military bureaucratic authoritarian regimes, and has opened a new chapter in South American Human Rights. It is an astounding accomplishment just 27 years after the return to democracy, and a direct defiance of the acerbic campaign rhetoric of the Catholic Church in a country that is 91% Catholic. Equally striking is that the measure was supported by an estimated 70% of the population. To understand what happened, let’s look at two major historical periods which continue to shape Argentine society: the military regime of 1976-1983 and its dirty war, and the economic collapse of 2001. These pivotal events shed light on the thought processes that lead to Wednesday’s legislation, and show that Argentina’s Human Rights debate is leapfrogging not just its neighbors’, but our own.

The military regime waged a war against its own people, “disappearing” thousands of the opposition, labeling them “subversive” members of society. This complete disregard of Human Rights is etched in Argentine memory. Rights aren’t taken for granted to the extent that they are in the States, because older generations of Argentines know what it is like to lose them. The Madres de la Plaza de Mayo(Mothers of the May Plaza) marched for decades to protest the disappearance of their children, and singer Mercedes Sosa was converted into a folk hero after her exile. Millions of footprints circling thePlaza de Mayo, the adrenaline of prolific protest drums, and the formation of dozens of political parties are testament that in Argentina, Human Rights discussions are not hypothetical, nor are they taken lightly.

Argentines know how to use their voices because they were stripped of the things that had let them be silent. During the financial crisis of 2001, 57% of the country was plunged into poverty overnight, something our “Great Recession” hasn’t come close to touching. Families lost everything, and housewives in Buenos Aires took to the streets in the cacerolazo protests, banging pots and pans because they couldn’t feed their families. The pot and pan protesters became the symbol of the crisis, and their image was so strong that they are still invoked today. These protests escalated violently, leading to the president’s resignation, and a string of failed successions right up to Nestor Kirchner, the current president’s husband.

So, what we have is a society that has dealt with terrible Human Rights violations by the state, is suspicious of powerful institutions, and knows that opiates like stability, continuity, and money can fail. The country’s history is punctuated not just by strongmen rulers, but also by strong women (hello, Evita) and minorities with strong voices at the center of protest movements. The first elected female president (sorry, Evita) just asserted that extending rights to minorities strengthens the rights of all, and that the Church’s incursion on civil issues is akin to the Inquisition. Those, my friends, are fighting words. Earlier, her ruling party had shot down a “compromise” civil union bill which did not include adoption—they recognized that you cannot compromise on rights.

What we have is an example of how the US isn’t just behind the curve on debating and supporting Human Rights, but that in this instance, it doesn’t even seem to know what that sort of debate would look like. Get your pots and pans ready, because I feel like taking to the streets.

The author is a volunteer in the US Peace Corps.  This post does not express the views of the US Peace Corps, or of the US Government.