Voices of their living children: resistance and echoes of the narratives of mothers who lost their children to the armed wing of the State

Abstract

This paper aims to give visibility to the narratives of mothers whose children were assassinated by the State’s armed arm. To that order, it intends to bring forward a few stories of grieving women, that participate in social movements, are living in the peripheries and, in most cases, are black; and the causes they fight for. By talking about their children and engaging in this mobilization, these women humanize their children and pressure the State into recognizing its responsibility in their extermination and promoting socio-economic reparation. Starting with registering the stories and trajectories of some of these women, we intend to call upon the categories of ‘enquadre’ (framing), a psychoanalytic concept coined by Argentine author José Bleger. We also aim to understand how the loss of children through State violence relates to a violation of the rights to maternity and to grief of these women, particularly the black ones. Finally, we will analyse the role of communication, particularly that of alternative and community journalism, in echoing the voices and narratives of these women. With this work, we intend to strengthen the mother’s movement, as well as draw attention to the lack of public policies designed for them.