Comparing the Memorial Sites of Argentina’s Last Dictatorship

Argentina underwent its most recent dictatorship during the years of 1976-1983 when a military junta ruled the country and crushed dissent through a program of kidnappings, torture, and extrajudicial assassinations. During the transition to democracy, the infrastructure of this dictatorship, including over 700 clandestine detention centers, remained and the question of what to do with them was key to political discourse both then and today.

​

Through photos and observations from a series of visits to sites throughout the country my project seeks to compare and contrast these memorial sites and examine what the role of place is in sites of memory.

 

Through contrasting sites that have an important spatial connection to the state crimes of the dictatorship and sites where specific location is less of a feature, we can see that both types of memorials serve important but distinct purposes

 

Former clandestine detention sites are often characterized by the desire of survivors and families to preserve evidence for trials and justice. They are also often defined by the importance of reclaiming space from the state, often becoming sites of memory decades after the return to democracy.

 

On the other hand, non-spatial museums and memorials are often characterized by artistic expression, individualization of trauma, and situating the dictatorship in a broader national and global narrative. These spaces are less likely to see their role as being trapped in time as a history lesson and more likely to connect memory to other issues.

​

Though the spatial relevance of each site informs their use, I argue that both types of memorial are equally important and valuable, serving different purposes for survivors and for greater society.