los desaparecidos: photo exhibit and lectures

Nunca Más (Never Again) has been the cry of thousands of families in Argentina, Chile, and other Latin American countries that suffered under military dictatorships during the 1970s and 1980s. In Chile some 3,000 people were murdered, tortured, or disappeared.

In Argentina, the numbers are much higher: 30,000 desaparecidos — students, young workers and intellectuals, as well as bystanders with no political agenda — who vanished without a trace. The six-year reign of terror began when a junta overthrew Argentina's democratically elected government on March 24, 1976 and attempted to systematically cleanse the country of "subversives."

Democracy was restored in 1983 and a national commission documented the abductions of men, women (some pregnant), and children; 340 well-organized secret detention centers; and the methodical use of torture and murder. Records of most of the atrocities were destroyed by the military in the aftermath of the Falklands War in 1982. The perpetrators of the crimes have not been brought to justice and most of the victim’s families have never recovered the bodies of their loved ones.

After seeing several films ("The Official Story," "Missing," and "Cachimba" are all good) and a few PBS specials on the topic, I'm going to the photo exhibit at the Mission Valley Library and plan to attend the public lecture at San Diego State University on April 4. There are several films, including "The Official Story," and additional lectures on the topic at the library, as well.

Virginia Gianonni, installation artist from Argentina, will speak about her artistic tribute to the desaparecidos.

Gianonni's installation consists of exhibition panels depicting the faces of 600 hundred of the missing taken from photographs published in a Buenos Aires newspaper. Included are tributes from their loved ones.

Gianonni's April 4 lecture in Spanish will include a short videotape about the exhibition's reception in Argentina. Call (619) 594-6736 for more information.

Via SDSUniverse and the San Diego Public Library