The Defense of Human Rights During the Argentine Dictatorship (1976-1983)

The Jewish Movement for Human Rights

Abstract

The terror, persecution, kidnapping, disappearance and desperate search for members of the Jewish community during the last civil-military dictatorship in Argentina (1976-1983) set the context for this article. It analyses the activities carried out by a small group of Jews aimed at denouncing anti-Semitism and human rights violations committed by the dictatorship, including the liberation of the victims or the investigation of their fate. These actions led, towards the end of the period under study, to the formation of the Jewish Movement for Human Rights. After outlining the main characteristics of a social movement, the paper explores those that correspond to the Jewish Movement for Human Rights: the background of its members, the first conversations, the actions taken to confront the dictatorship and its constitution. It includes the conflicts unleashed not only against the dictatorial regime, but also - and particularly - within the Jewish community. The article culminates with a description of the circumstances that determined its progressive decline until its end, well into democratic times.