Argentina's Missing Bones: Revisiting the History of the Dirty War(6 Violence in Latin American History)

Argentina’s Missing Bones is the first comprehensive English-language work of historical scholarship on the 1976–83 military dictatorship and Argentina’s notorious experience with state terrorism during the so-called dirty war. It examines this history in a single but crucial place: Córdoba, Argentina’s second largest city. A site of thunderous working-class and student protest prior to the dictatorship, it later became a place where state terrorism was particularly cruel. Considering the legacy of this violent period, James P. Brennan examines the role of the state in constructing a public memory of the violence and in holding those responsible accountable through the most extensive trials for crimes against humanity to take place anywhere in Latin America.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgments ix Introduction 1 1. Threats: Apostles of the New Order 8 2. Dictatorship: Terrorizing Córdoba 19 3. Death Camp: La Perla 36 4. Institutional Dynamics: The Third Army Corps 51 5. Transnational Dynamics: The Cold War and the War against Subversion 62 6. Five Trials: Public Reckonings of a Violent Past 77 7. Remembering: Memories of Violence and Terror 89 8. Assigning Blame: Who Was Responsible for the Dirty War? 105 Epilogue 116 Appendix 1 119 Appendix 2 123 Appendix 3 149 Notes 155 Selected Bibliography 181

About the Author :
James P. Brennan is Professor of History at the University of California, Riverside, where he teaches modern Latin American history.  

Review :
"Overall, Missing Bones is a fantastic book that asserts the importance of understanding Córdoba within the context of the history of Argentina’s Dirty War" "Brennan convincingly analyzes how remembering the Dirty War in Argentina is not only an individual or private matter but also encompasses an institutional memory fomented and fashioned by the policies of the Kirchner governments (96). By focusing on Córdoba, Brennan successfully captures the role of the state in constructing public memory of the Dirty War." "Exceptionally smart book . . . a tour de force." "The strength of Brennan’s book is to enable us to reflect critically on both the dirty war . . . and the memory and justice politics that followed."