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Argentinidad
Néstor and Cristina Kirchner have presided in a marital tag-team tango over the executive branch of one of the largest countries in the Americas. In this single, from n+1 Issue 11: Dual Power, n+1 founding editor and acclaimed novelist Benjamin Kunkel looks at the Kirchner's relationship to the radical leftist Peronist Youth in the university town of La Plata, just outside Buenos Aires.
Three decades after their days as radical students, both Néstor and Cristina Kirchner have served as the president of Argentina. While they have hardly governed as the leftists they appeared to be back in La Plata, the legacy of their militant youth shines through in what may be the two central features of their tenure: the rejection of neoliberalism and the placement of a dictatorship at the center of national memory.
Three decades after their days as radical students, both Néstor and Cristina Kirchner have served as the president of Argentina. While they have hardly governed as the leftists they appeared to be back in La Plata, the legacy of their militant youth shines through in what may be the two central features of their tenure: the rejection of neoliberalism and the placement of a dictatorship at the center of national memory.
23 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 27, 2010
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About the author
Benjamin Kunkel
29 books48 followersBenjamin Kunkel is an American novelist. Kunkel grew up in Eagle, Colorado, and was educated at St. Paul's School in Concord, New Hampshire; Kunkel studied at Deep Springs College in California, graduated with a BA from Harvard University, and received his MFA in Creative Writing at Columbia University.
He co-founded and is a co-editor of the journal n+1. His novel, Indecision, was published in 2005
He co-founded and is a co-editor of the journal n+1. His novel, Indecision, was published in 2005
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
March 21, 2016
HEAD : : DESK
The author writes well and knows the historical narrative. But his uncritical acceptance of the Kirchner narrative is troubling and feels naive -- like it's straight from Cristina Kirchner herself. Yes, the Kirchners made "truth, justice, and memory" official state policy, but everyone who works in this area also knows that the Kirchners claimed this as their own achievement, whitewashing the efforts of many others who began changing amnesty laws in the 1990s. There is also the widely known fact that the Kirchners never showed interest in the past until 2003 -- leading to (credible) charges of political opportunism. This is just one example of many. There is a lack of understanding the full picture here. You also get the feeling that you are reading someone who has far too romantic a view of the place.
The author writes well and knows the historical narrative. But his uncritical acceptance of the Kirchner narrative is troubling and feels naive -- like it's straight from Cristina Kirchner herself. Yes, the Kirchners made "truth, justice, and memory" official state policy, but everyone who works in this area also knows that the Kirchners claimed this as their own achievement, whitewashing the efforts of many others who began changing amnesty laws in the 1990s. There is also the widely known fact that the Kirchners never showed interest in the past until 2003 -- leading to (credible) charges of political opportunism. This is just one example of many. There is a lack of understanding the full picture here. You also get the feeling that you are reading someone who has far too romantic a view of the place.
Displaying 1 of 1 review