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Memory Flag
Background
On March 24th, 1976, a Military Junta forcefully took power in Argentina. Congress and democracy were suspended, political parties were banned and civil rights were highly limited. During this dictatorship, that ended in 1983, the Argentine Armed Forces launched a bloody campaign of State terrorism against their political opponents that included clandestine imprisonment, torture, sexual violence, enforced disappearance of people and baby-stealing. All of these are considered crimes against humanity. It is estimated that more than 30.000 people were disappeared by the Armed Forces during this period. They are called βlos desaparecidosβ (βthe disappearedβ).
In response to the enforced disappearances of their children, a group of women created the human rights association βMadres de Plaza de Mayoβ (Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo) in 1977. Since then, they have never stopped fighting for human rights, wearing white headscarves as symbols of their struggle. Every year, on March 24th, Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo and other human rights entities organize a peaceful protest to remember the disappeared and to demand justice and truth. They also denounce the human rights violations that continue to occur in the country.
This particular image:
"Memory Flag"
More than 100 people carry a very long flag showing the faces of the disappeared during a March 24th protest.
Photographer: Laura Reyes (Mellodora)
Year: 2022
Location: Plaza de Mayo, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
