1983–today
Through crisis — Argentina today
A country that has faced crisis after crisis and risen again, while guarding its democracy.
The 2001 crisis
Even after democratization, Argentina kept facing fierce economic waves. The 1990s policy of pegging the currency to the dollar eventually reached a dead end, and at the end of 2001 a default on foreign debt and a freeze on bank deposits (the “corralito”) plunged the country into an unprecedented crisis.
Unemployment passed 20%, and people banged pots in the streets crying “¡Que se vayan todos!” (Out with them all!). In the political chaos, presidents changed one after another in a matter of days.
Memory, human rights, and the present
And yet the pursuit of memory and human rights did not stop. The work of the Mothers and Grandmothers of the Plaza de Mayo, and the trials of the regime's leaders, are admired worldwide — including the effort to return stolen grandchildren to their families through DNA testing.
Still carrying the challenge of economic instability, Argentines keep facing their own history — its light and its shadows — head-on.
Key terms
- 2001 crisis
- An economic crisis of default and frozen deposits.
- Corralito
- The measure that restricted bank withdrawals.
- Memory and human rights
- The Mothers/Grandmothers and the trials of the juntas.
Even after democracy returned, Argentina overcame many hardships.
In 2001, a huge money crisis hit, and many people lost their jobs. Even so, people keep remembering the painful past and working to protect human rights. Argentina is a country that faces its own history honestly.
Key terms
- Economic crisis
- When money and daily life become very hard.
- Human rights
- The rights every person should be given.