The American Historical Review · 1995 · 283 citations · 0 references
HumanitiesHistoryLatin American HistoryPolitical HistorySocial HistoryModern Women's HistoryWomen's MovementsWomen's Political HistoryWomen's Social HistoryChurch InvolvementChurch OppositionHistory Of MotherhoodMaternal ActivismMotherhood StudiesWomen's Activism HistoryWorking Motherhood
The Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo emerged during Argentina’s Dirty War, when women protested the abduction, torture, and disappearance of thousands, reshaping the nation’s politics. The book traces the Mothers’ history and explores how they have shifted motherhood from a private to a public, activist role, while outlining their ongoing campaign for justice. The authors chronicle the Mothers’ evolution from informal housewives visiting prisons to organized protesters occupying Plaza de Mayo, contextualized within Argentina’s political history. The study finds that the Mothers’ activism has redefined motherhood as a public, political force and that they continue to pursue justice for their disappeared children.
Revolutionizing Motherhood examines one of the most astonishing human rights movements of recent years. During the Argentine junta's Dirty War against subversives, as tens of thousands were abducted, tortured, and disappeared, a group of women forged the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo and changed Argentine politics forever. The Mothers began in the 1970s as an informal group of working-class housewives making the rounds of prisons and military barracks in search of their disappeared children. As they realized that both state and church officials were conspiring to withhold information, they started to protest, claiming the administrative center of Argentina the Plaza de Mayo for their center stage. In this volume, Marguerite G. Bouvard traces the history of the Mothers and examines how they have transformed maternity from a passive, domestic role to one of public strength. Bouvard also gives a detailed history of contemporary Argentina, including the military's debacle in the Falklands, the fall of the junta, and the efforts of subsequent governments to reach an accord with the Mothers. Finally, she examines their current agenda and their continuing struggle to bring the murderers of their children to justice.