HIST/LAS 460: State Terror, Human Rights, and Memory in Latin America

HIST/LAS 460 examines the state terror policies of the Argentine and Chilean military regimes in the 1970s and 1980s, the struggle for human rights in both countries, and the ensuing—and ongoing—debates over impunity, justice, and historical memory. In studying repression and its impact, the course draws on a wide range of distinct sources, including historical analyses of dictatorship, of the actions of national and international human rights organizations, and of personal—as well as collective—forms of remembering; accounts of both the perpetrators and the victims of state-directed violence; a play that dramatically explores questions of justice, impunity, reconciliation, and the legacies of torture; music that acts as a form of social and political critique; and feature-length and documentary films that consider issues such as censorship, silence, corruption, memory, and the long-term consequences of authoritarian rule.

Schedule & Contact:

Late Summer 2025 (AB1)
Tues. & Thurs. 1:00 – 4:40 p.m.
Instructor: Geoffrey Spurling
Contact info: geoffrey.spurling@ufv.ca

Course Highlights:

Gripping films

Compelling narratives

A suspense-filled play

Music of protest & exile