Argentina Passes Gay Marriage Law

Thursday, 15 July 2010 21:34 Marie Trigona
Toward Freedom

Argentina approved a gay marriage law early this morning, making the country the first in Latin America where same-sex couples can wed. Same sex couples will now be granted the same rights, responsibilities and protections that married couples have. President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner’s government supported the bill and defied the Catholic Church’s opposition to the law.

Landmark vote

The Senate voted just before 4am, after 15 hours of intense debate. The law passed with a vote 33 to 27, with 3 abstaining. Leading up to the vote, activists stood outside of Congress listening to the heated debate, applauding and booing at the respective Senator’s deliberation. The law will cover adoption rights, inheritance protection, shared custody responsibilities and recognition and coverage of social security for same sex couples.

Religious groups opposing the law have pushed for the Senate to vote on a Civil Unions bill instead. That bill would limit the rights and protections for same sex couples. Outside of Senate building, Senator Miguel Ángel Pichetto, from the President’s Peronist Party said the government wouldn’t consider that option. A week before the Congressional vote, opposition pushed through by a slim margin add-on legislation for a Civil Unions bill which would have prohibited adoption and other rights for same-sex couples. During deliberations on the Senate floor Picheto considered the oppositions’ calls for modifications to the laws that had lower house approval synonymous with a “totalitarian state.”

Gay marriage

Nine same sex couples have already wed in Argentina, after a Buenos Aires judge overturned Argentina’s ban on same sex marriage in 2009. Alex Freyre and Jose Maria Di Bello were the first gay couple to get married in Argentina. Two hours before Thursday’s pre-dawn vote, Freyre told Toward Freedom he was hopeful. “I’m here enjoying the night on which Argentina will vote in favor of judicial equality. Tonight is a fundamental step toward an end to discrimination, a law that doesn’t justify legal discrimination,” he said. “It means that our families can have peace of mind in the face of the law, especially for children who live with gay and lesbian parents.”

Gay rights advocates rallied in support of the law which now guarantees equal rights as stated in Argentina’s constitution. Alberto Rucci, lived 18 years with his partner and when his partner died 2 years ago, his partner’s ex-wife inherited the house where they lived over a decade together. Legally, he could do nothing. Maria Alejandra Aranda, says that she as a lesbian wanted to law to pass so that gays, lesbians, bi-sexuals and trans-sexuals can come out and demand visibility without fear. “Now that the law is passed it is a triumph, because Argentina will truly be a progressive nation. Whether or not the law would have passed, we still would have won a cultural battle and gained support from society.” In the weeks leading up to the vote, groups held concerts and rallies throughout the nation. “We are considered second class citizens. The nation is civilized enough to guarantee equality, freedom and fraternity for everyone,” said Aranda.

Religious opposition

The legislation faced fierce opposition from the Catholic Church and Evangelicals. On the eve of the vote, tens of thousands from the religious community rallied in front of Congress to protest against the same-sex marriage law. Ninety one percent of Argentines identify as Catholic.. Maria Yrcovich, a 70-year old immigrant, opposed the legislation: “Why are we here? Because we are supporting what our Church asks us to. We are in favor of family. We are against what is unnatural. Homosexuals are people. But next, they are going to ask for a law to be able to marry an animal. It’s abnormal, it’s not normal. Marriage is for a man and women.”

The Catholic hierarchy in Argentina took a clear stance against gay marriage. The Church sanctioned a priest who defended gay marriage. Father Nicolas Alessio was sanctioned and prohibited from giving mass for his declarations in favor of equality in the sacrament of marriage. Alessio told the daily Pagina/12 that he would not accept the sanction and would continue giving mass, “this is censorship and punishment, they cannot prohibit me from exercising my calling.” The Catholic priest, Christian Von Wernich, charged with carry out human rights abuses while working in several of the clandestine detention centers used to disappear 30,000 dissidents during the 1976-1983 military dictatorship continues to give mass with the bishop’s blessing.

President Fernandez de Kirchner publically scorned the declarations from the Catholic hierarchy saying that “expressions such as ‘war of god’ or ‘devil’s law’ refer to times of the Inquisition” when rights were clearly violated. In a final attempt to gain opposition, groups held the rally under the banner, “All children deserve a mother and father.” The church paid for buses to bring people to and from the event, which evoked a natural order to marriage.

Argentina taking the lead

Argentina now joins the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Canada, South Africa, Norway, Sweden, Portugal and Iceland as the 10th country to approve a nation-wide gay marriage law. Marcelo Torres, a public school teacher waited outside of Congress for the vote. “I’m here because I’m gay, and I support this law. I want to get my marriage just like any straight person in this country. And I’m very proud to be here. I think that this is probably one of the most important moments, because we are having great changes,” he said. “It would be like the first South American country with a gay marriage law. It would be like a revolution in South America and it will be related to other countries because they will follow us. I guess they will follow us.”

As the law passed at nearly 4am, hundreds outside of Congress celebrated, hugging each other in tears, in near freezing temperatures. For more than 10 years, gay rights activists have been working on the campaign for same-sex marriage. President of Argentina’s Federation of Lesbians, Gays, Bi-sexuals and Trans, Maria Rachid, says that more Latin American countries may follow Argentina’s lead in granting equal rights to gay couples.

“The law was passed because of how hard we fought. We are a ton of activists, from the Federation of Lesbian, Gays, and Trans who worked for this law to be passed. Today we are a more just and democratic society. And this is something we should all celebrate. And we can be proud to be the first country in Latin America to make this progress in Human Rights,” said Rachid.

Latin America to follow lead?

Although Argentina's capital Buenos Aires was the first to legalize same sex unions, not all rights were granted under the civil union code. No other Latin American nation has a nationwide gay marriage law. However, same-sex civil unions are legal in Uruguay and in some states in Brazil and Mexico. Gay marriage is legal in Mexico City. President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner backed the law and has vowed to pass the legislation.

With the gay marriage vote, Argentina transformed into a reference point for other governments in Latin America. Activists throughout South America plan to propose similar laws, in Chile and Paraguay. The Uruguayan gay community dissatisfied with limitation under the Civil Union statute also hopes to extend marriage right for same-sex couples. As activists celebrate the historic victor for equality and freedom, gay rights advocates hope that Argentina’s decision adds momentum to similar efforts around the world.

Marie Trigona is a writer, translator and radio producer based in South America. She can be reached through her blog: www.mujereslibres.blogspot.com

Argentina legalizes gay marriage – a first for Latin America

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Argentina approved a gay marriage law early this morning, making the country the first in Latin America where same-sex couples can wed. Same sex couples will now be granted the same rights, responsibilities and protections that other married couples have. From Buenos Aires, Marie Trigona reports:

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30,000 presentes! 34th anniversary of Argentina's military coup

Landmark Human Rights Case in Argentina Puts Torture on Trial

Americas Program, Center for International Policy (CIP)

Argentine courts have launched an investigation into crimes committed at the ESMA Navy Mechanics School during the nation's military dictatorship. The landmark human rights trial is one of the most far-reaching attempts to bring crimes of Latin America's bloody past to justice.

For more than three decades, survivors and their families awaited the trial that finally began on Dec. 11, 2009. During Argentina's 1976-1983 dictatorship, the ESMA Navy Mechanics School served as a clandestine detention center, used to torture and disappear thousands of people. Now 17 former ESMA officers face charges of human rights abuses, torture, and murder.

The ESMA trial was scheduled to begin in November but was postponed at the request of the defense. Those on trial include Alfredo Astiz, Jorge Acosta, Ricardo Cavallo, and Adolfo Donda—cited by human rights groups as among the most brutal and sinister repressors in the Argentine security forces. In total, 13 marines, two police, one coast guard, and one army official are on trial.

More than 200 witnesses will testify in the historic trial. Groups have stressed the need for witness protection following a wave of threats and the disappearance of a key witness, Jorge Julio Lopez, three years ago. Even President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, who has supported the human rights trial, has received threats. While traveling in her presidential helicopter, the helicopter's transit radio signal was intercepted at almost exactly the same moment as the ESMA trial opened. Anonymous voices were broadcast saying the words "kill her," followed by the military hymn that was played when Jorge Rafael Videla took power in the March 24, 1976 military coup. Interior Minister Anibal Fernandez says the threats could be "closely linked" to the ESMA trial.

ESMA, Symbol of State Terrorism

During Argentina's 1976-1983 military dictatorship, more than 30,000 people were forcefully disappeared. Kidnapped by commando groups in the middle of the night, they were taken to clandestine detention centers. The largest and most notorious torture center, the ESMA Navy Mechanics School in Buenos Aires, still stands today, but as a museum to remind the nation of the terror of the coup regimes.

Victor Basterra inside the ESMA, in the officers' barracks basement used to torture detainees.

Victor Basterra is among the "lucky" ones who survived the torture at ESMA, where he was held from 1979-1983. As he walks through the basement of the ESMA Officers' Quarters, Basterra recalls the place where he and detainees underwent unimaginable terror. He points out a small room. "This area was called the 'huevera' or 'egg cup' because the walls were lined with egg cartons to drown out screams."

Naval officers, along with other police and military groups, devised a complex system for the forced disappearance of individuals using the ESMA facilities. Most of the prisoners were held at the Officers' Quarters, where high-ranking officials lived while women and men were tortured in the basement and attic.

"There were different teams of torturers. The police, coast guard, naval guard, secret service, and the penitentiary service all had torture teams. They rotated," said Basterra. "They were always active, especially when they had a prisoner who had information. They would torture the person for days. On one occasion they tortured me for two days without stopping. They would constantly change posts, because the torturers would get tired."

Torture survivors from the ESMA provided much of the information on what is known about how the ESMA operated. Basterra, who will testify in the trial, took photos of officers and prisoners during his detention at the ESMA, risking his life to smuggle them out to later provide evidence for the trials. The photos were used in the first Junta Trial in 1985.

This trial includes only a handful of the military involved in the complex lexicon of torture inside the ESMA. More than 5,000 people were detained and disappeared at the ESMA Navy Mechanics School. Hundreds of officers, cadets, and high-ranking officials worked at what was comparable to a concentration camp.

Juan De Wandelaer, from the Peace and Justice Service (SERPAJ), says the ESMA trial is a landmark case for Argentina. "The Argentine Navy has never faced trial. The ESMA is a symbolic building and carries a lot of weight for Argentines. Thousands of people were disappeared from the ESMA, most of whom were thrown from planes into the sea after being drugged," says De Wandelaer.

"This trial will bring to light the evidence showing how the ESMA functioned, because not only navy and military officers are facing trial, but also police and civilians. In this aspect, the trial is important because it will further dismantle the wall of impunity."

Landmark Trial

The ESMA was also used as a maternity ward, where pregnant detainees were forced to give birth blind-folded.

Many of the crimes that the trial will examine were previously held up in court in the mid 80s. The perpetrators enjoyed freedom for the past 20 years thanks to the Due Obedience and Full Stop laws passed in the early 90s, which prevented any successful prosecution of ex-military leaders for human rights crimes by the courts.

Appropriately named "the blonde angel of death," Astiz was 22 when he infiltrated the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo posing as the brother of one of the disappeared. He marked his victims with a kiss outside the Santa Cruz Church. On Dec. 8, 1977 the founders of Mothers of Plaza de Mayo, Esther Careaga and Maria Eugenia Ponce, were kidnapped from the Santa Cruz Church along with 8 others. Azucena Villaflor, another founding mother, was kidnapped outside her home just days later. The three women were taken to the ESMA, and later dropped into the sea from death flights. The Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team identified their bodies in 2005. Astiz was tried in Argentina in 1985 but the amnesty laws halted the proceedings. He has since been sentenced to life in prison by a French court in connection with the disappearance of French nuns, Léonie Duquet and Alice Domon.

In the courtroom, Astiz wore jeans, a navy blue sweater, and a sinister smile. During the opening allegations, which included over 80 accusations of forced disappearances, torture, and rape, the accused sat under the scrutiny of dozens of media outlets who were filming and taking photos. After seven hours of accusations, as the former officers were being handcuffed to be transported to their jail cells, rights activists in the courtroom chanted: "Like the Nazis, you'll get it too." Astiz looked at the activists and with a smile displayed the book he opted to read during the trial—Return to Kill (Volver a Matar) by Juan Bautista Yofre, ex-chief of the nation's State Intelligence Agency. Rights advocates responded, "30,000 disappeared—present! Now and Forever!"

Outside the courtroom, survivors and relatives reiterated the need to keep the historic memory alive and seek the truth. "They tried to deny us justice for so many years," said Enrique Fukman, a torture survivor detained at the ESMA. Fukman spoke to hundreds of supporters at the trial opening, expressing his relief that the trial has begun. Another survivor of the ESMA, Graciela Daleo, said that the military officials who decided who would live and who would die are now vulnerable in the justice system. "Those of us who survived detention, when returning to the ESMA for the first time collectively understood the power of those buildings, because those buildings sheltered the people who owned life and death. Now they are the ones being photographed and handcuffed."

Slow but Overdue Justice

Since the Supreme Court overturned amnesty laws barring courts from trying officers involved in rights abuses during the dictatorship, 26 trials have begun and 58 former military and police officers have been sentenced. Carolina Varsky, human rights lawyer and director of the Center for Legal Studies (CELS), says that while justice has been slow, lawyers must follow strict procedures to ensure that the sentences served will be lengthy. "Argentina has progressed in the trials, using its own judicial system and not an international court. While we are proud that we can carry out justice in our own country, I wish the trials were faster. Because relatives of victims are dying; the ones who repressed us are dying. The number of accused who have not testified because they are declared incompetent or who have died before going to trial is quite high."

Groups rally outside the courthouse.

CELS is a human rights organization formed in 1979. The push by CELS for the Trials for Truth in the 90s, when justice was not possible under the amnesty laws, led to the Supreme Court's decision in 2003 to overturn the laws. "We must play by the rules of the courts. The difficulty is presenting evidence to the courts 33 years after the actual events took place, and after the State destroyed much of the evidence, burning papers that could incriminate the military," says Varsky.

The persistent work of survivors, relatives, and human rights advocates over the past three decades has resulted in the collection of overwhelming evidence, and more military personnel will face trial in the coming year. The proceedings in the ESMA trial are expected to conclude in six to eight months. "These are not the trials that we want, but they are the trials that we have," said Daleo, hoping that human rights groups can continue to make strides against impunity for crimes against humanity.

Human rights continue to be an open wound for much of Latin America, especially the countries that survived brutal military dictatorships in the 70s and 80s, such as Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Patrick Rice, a former Irish priest detained by a commando group in a Buenos Aires shanty town in 1976, said that while many countries have made progress in seeking justice for crimes committed by military juntas, some countries still have impunity laws protecting the military. "We have an ambiguous situation in Latin America regarding human rights, with a coup in Honduras and U.S. military bases in Colombia. There have been a number of progressive governments in Chile, Brazil, and Bolivia that have made strides in the broad sense of human rights. Argentina is taking a clear lead on human rights, with its trials on crimes committed during the past. This is very hopeful for Latin America."

The ESMA trial is a welcome step toward justice, however much remains to be known about the whereabouts of 30,000 people who were forcefully disappeared. Argentina's military continues to deny human right lawyers' requests for the release of archives and top-secret information about the crimes the military coup committed. The disappearance of the witness Julio Lopez in 2006 has reignited painful memories of selective repression with impunity and fears about the possibility of violent repercussions against survivors and witnesses participating in human rights trials.

Despite hard evidence concluding that thousands of officers were involved in the crimes against humanity and disappearances, only 280 former officers are facing trial, and many of those charged with crimes are under house arrest rather than awaiting trial in jail. Without the decades of dedication from survivors, relatives of victims, and human rights advocates, convicted assassins like Alfredo Astiz might never have been tried in the country where they committed the crimes. While there is hope for Latin America, even in Argentina the human rights trials have limited scope in the fight against impunity.

Marie Trigona is a journalist based in Argentina and writes regularly for the Americas Program (www.americaspolicy.org). She can be reached at mtrigona(a)msn.com.

Memory and Justice: A Photo Essay on Argentina's Human Rights Movement

Photos and Text by Marie Trigona
for Upside Down World

Some 30,000 people were disappeared during Argentina’s 1976-1983 military dictatorship. Kidnapped by commando groups in the middle of the night, they were taken to clandestine detention centers. The largest and most notorious torture center, The ESMA Navy Mechanics School in Buenos Aires still stands today, but as a museum for Memory.

At the ESMA the Navy along with other police and military groups devised a complex system for the forced disappearance of individuals. Most of the prisoners were held at the Officer’s Quarters, where high ranking officials slept and lived while women and men were tortured in the basement and attic.

Torture survivor Victor Basterra was held at the ESMA from 1979 until the end of the dictatorship. In the basement of the ESMA’s Officer’s Quarters, Basterra traversed through the same space where he and detainees underwent unimaginable terror. “This area was called the ‘huevera’ or ‘egg cup’ because the walls were lined with egg cartons to drown out noises.”

More than 5,000 people were detained and disappeared at the ESMA Navy Mechanics School. Hundreds of officers, cadets and higher ranking officials worked at concentration camp. Prisoners were also held and tortured in the attic also known as the “Capucha” or “Hood.” The military gave this sinister name because detainees were held handcuffed and hooded.

Many of the victims from the ESMA were drugged and dropped into the sea in the death flights. Few bodies have been recovered.

The ESMA housed a clandestine maternity ward where pregnant women held at the ESMA were forced to give birth in captivity. Doctors and nurses assisted in the delivery. Shortly after birth, newborns were separated from their mothers and appropriated by marines or other members of the military forces. It is estimated that 35 children were born while their mothers were held in illegal captivity at the ESMA.

The few torture victims which survived the ESMA provided much of the information as to what is known about how the ESMA operated. Basterra, who will testify in the trial, took photos of officers and prisoners during his detention at the ESMA, risking his life to smuggle them out later providing evidence to try the officers. The photos were used in the first Junta Trial in 1985.

For more than three decades, survivors and their families anticipated the trial of officers who worked at the ESMA and now face charges of human rights abuses, torture and murder.

For 29 years the human rights group Mothers of Plaza de Mayo has held their annual March of the Resistance on International Human Rights day to demand justice and information as to the whereabouts of their children. Marta Ocampo de Vazquez is the president of the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo – Founding Line. “Today we are holding the 29th March of the Resistance, remembering our past. And remembering that we still don’t have truth and justice. We still don’t know the whole truth and what happened to our children.”

Since 1977, the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo have protested in the historic Plaza de Mayo. Because many of the mothers are now in their 80s, some worry that they will not live to see the military held responsible for its crimes. This year’s march of the resistance came a day before a major human rights trial began.

At the opening day of the ESMA trial, survivors, relatives and rights activists wore T-shirts displaying the message trial and punishment. Victoria Donda, who was born at the ESMA while her mother was in captivity attended the trial (second from left). Donda recuperated her identity in 2003.

The ESMA trial is one of the biggest human rights trials in Latin America’s history. Among those on trial include Alfredo Astiz, Jorge Acosta, Ricardo Cavallo and Adolfo Donda, referred to by Human Rights groups some of the most sinister repressors among the ranks of the military. In total, thirteen marines, two police, one coast guard, and one Army official are on trial.

The ESMA trial is a welcomed step toward justice, however much remains to be known about the whereabouts of 30,000 people who were forcefully disappeared. The trials were made possible by the work of human rights activists who have endlessly demanded justice for the crimes committed against their loved ones.

This photo essay originally appeared in Upside Down World http://upsidedownworld.org/main/content/view/2261/1/

Argentine farmers protest government export taxes

Farmers in Argentina are holding a nation-wide strike against the government´s agricultural policies. FSRN´s Marie Trigona has more from Buenos Aires.

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Farmers camped out along highways burning tires and monitoring trucks carrying grain throughout Argentina as part of the protest that has frozen grain and cattle sales. This protest is the latest episode in a long standing dispute between the agricultural sector and President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner over tax exports on soy. Farmers say the on soy drives profits down for producers. They're also upset over the Presidential veto of a farming law that would have exempted farmers from draught struck areas from paying export levies.

Argentina's capital declares Swine Flu emergency

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In Argentina, the capital city of Buenos Aires declared a Swine Flu health emergency as deaths from the H1N1 flu virus continue to rise. More than 17 provinces in Argentina have declared health emergencies in an attempt to slow down the spread of the swine flu pandemic. FSRN´s Marie Trigona has more from Buenos Aires.

http://www.fsrn.org/audio/argentina%C2%B4s-capital-declares-swine-flu-emergency/4994

Argentina's President Loses Power in Mid-Term Elections

What's next for Argentina?

Argentina's President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner faced a major test in the recent mid-term election in which she lost considerable power and her party's congressional majority vanished. The June 28 mid-term election could be better described as a referendum on Fernandez. As the first woman president elect her party fed the fire, turning the elections into a poll on the President's popularity. More than 70 percent of voters voted for opposition parties, according to official election results - indicator that Fernandez's popularity and support for her Peronist leaning party, Frente Para la Victoria (FPV) may be waning among the 19 million voters who went to the polls.

The Kirchner's have dominated the Argentine political scene since Nestor Kirchner, her husband, was elected in 2003 and credited for the nation's rapid recovery from the 2001 financial crisis which devastated the economy. Opting out of re-election in 2007, his wife Fernandez de Kirchner ran and took office with an 80 percent approval rating. However, the good times for Latin America's "power couple" who have also been described as the Kirchner dynasty were short lived as the economic crisis hindered hopes for continued 2003-2007 economic growth.

President Fernandez de Kirchner called for early elections originally scheduled for October so that her administration and legislative bodies "can focus on how to tackle the economic crisis." But many analysts claim that the government pushed elections up early so that Fernandez could avoid blame on how her government has handled the economic crisis which is beginning to take hold of South America's second largest economy.

The fall was hard for the Kirchner's. Nestor Kirchner lost the high profile political race in Buenos Aires province, the province with the most voters, by a small margin. He was defeated by Francisco de Narvárez, a wealthy heir from the conservative-right coalition Union PRO. Narváez, an unlikely candidate, Columbian-born with a tattoo on his neck and son of a supermarket giant, reveled in his victory as the working-class suburbs of Buenos Aires had long been Kirchner's electoral home turf. The very next day Fernandez abruptly resigned as leader of the Peronist party. Despite the loss, President Fernandez de Kirchner played down the election results citing that it was a close race and diversity in the legislature will help the democratic process.

What caused this fall from grace? And what's next for Argentina?

The center-right candidates from the Union PRO won the most ground in both the nation's autonomous capital district and in the Buenos Aires province. The candidate of the PRO party, Gabriela Michetti, won the congressional elections in Buenos Aires City with 31.08 percent of the votes. Both PRO candidates Michetti and Narváez marketed themselves for voters who "don't like the Kirchners." They called for a regression to policies implemented in the 90's favoring markets, foreign investors, and the privatization of public services, while tackling crime with a hard hand.

However, there are other indicators that voters would like the President to turn more to the left, rather than remain in the center. Fernando "Pino" Solanas, candidate for the leftist leaning Proyecto de Sur coalition and the director of the classic political film The Hour of the Furnaces, came in second winning 24.5 percent of votes in the capital. His campaign focused on the renationalization of natural resources like the nation's mining and oil industries.

Fernandez adopted many policies, which the nation's consolidated press described as unpopular and probably were for the business community which has benefited from decades of government subsidies, but received approval from unions, social movements, and regional partners such as Venezuela and other members of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas (ALBA), a regional leftist trade bloc. She nationalized pension funds almost bankrupted by private companies that acquired retirees' pensions in the 1990's. The President also supported the legislative move to renationalize the country's largest airline. The formerly state-owned Aerolinas Argentina was privatized in 1990, but the government said that mismanagement put the carrier into 900 million dollars in debt. These measures, described as erratic and combative, were a move away from the 2001 neoliberal policies, adopted under former neo-conservative Peronist President Carlos Menem (1989-1999), which caused the country to go broke.

The economy, which saw economic growth under her husband topping 8 percent from 2003-2007, has now slowed down to a reported 2 percent, likely an inflated figure. For example, leading up to the elections, the national statistic institute (INDEC) was accused of inflating numbers to show that the country's economy is on track. Independent analysts say that the inflation rate, published at 9.6 percent, is much higher than official statistics. Unemployment figures are relatively low, officially reported at 8 percent. Economists estimate that more than 50,000 people have lost their jobs since the onset of the current economic crisis.

In a positive step, the President has finally spoken in defense of workers who occupy their workplaces in order to keep their jobs. The national government would like to modify the nation's bankruptcy laws, which currently favor creditors and bankrupt businesses rather than workers, to make it easier for workers to start up cooperatives.

Union groupings held numerous protests and even a national strike calling on Fernandez to implement protection measures for job security and wealth redistribution as recession slowly unfolds in the nation's industry. Consumer associations are also demanding price controls on food and consumer products. But following the June 28 election, business community announced price increases. Fernandez has reluctantly imposed price controls, essential with rising inflation so that the majority of the population can access basic goods like milk, meat and bread. In addition to inflation, basic goods have become more expensive since enormous monoculture soy plantations now dominate the countryside.

Argentina's soy farmers tried their hardest to influence the mid-term elections, but failed to win much political ground. Agrarian associations representing the country's soy farmers proved to be the president's biggest challenge since taking office. In 2008 and into 2009, farmers held several paralyzing strikes over the government's decision to increase an export tax on soy, a policy carried over from Nestor Kirchner, who upped the tax to 35% as an emergency measure to revive the economy after the crisis. Many of the provinces where the opposition won votes are precisely the bread-basket producing provinces, where the production of genetically modified soy has invaded more than 42 million acres of fertile land. It's unlikely that the government will reverse its support of the soy tax, as revenue from soy exports topped nearly 16 billion dollars in 2008 alone, crucial income for the government's treasury reserves. One agro-leader and hopeful governor candidate, Alfredo De Angeli received heavy criticisms after he said that in order to defeat the Kirchner's land owners should "find the farmhands on the estates, put them on a truck and tell them who they should vote for." A number of agro-leaders ran for congress hoping to win 17 percent of seats but fell short only winning a Senate seat and lower house seats.

A health crisis is looming due to the spread of the deadly H1N1 "swine flu" virus. As voters went to the polls, many voted wearing surgical masks and registry personnel were instructed not to shake voter's hands. More than 26 have died from the deadly epidemic and more than 1,500 have been infected with the virus. The Southern Hemisphere's winter temperatures are accelerating the spread of the virus. Yet the government has delayed declaration of a health emergency, resulting in the Health Minister Graciel Ocaña's resignation the day after the June 28 elections. It may have been prudent to hold off an election to deal with the deadly epidemic. Like many of the nation's structural problems such as the economy and growing crime the government opted to ignore the dilemma rather than dealing with it. The epidemic may spiral into a real crisis for the already stumbling economy.

What's next? President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner and the new legislative representatives taking their posts this December are going to face many challenges as the economy takes an inevitable severe downturn. How they come out of the crisis is part of the game of politics. One of the first challenges for the President post-elections will be to take a strong stance in her foreign policy favoring regional integration and cooperation among progressive governments. Indeed, she is traveling with the OAS commission to escort illegally and forcibly exiled Honduran President Manuel Zelaya back to his country. Fernandez will also have to decide whether to reverse her anti-IMF discourse to gain loans to help meet the nearly 20 billion dollars in debt payments due by the end of 2010. At this point, the President can continue to push forward an alternative agenda or go back to the neoliberal model, but this election, as well as the regional trend in governing, suggests that Argentina and the region are ready for the alternative.

Marie Trigona is an independent journalist and radio producer based in Buenos Aires. www.mujereslibres.blogspot.com

Argentina’s Soy Storm: Tensions Rising Among Farmers

Written by Marie Trigona Friday, 18 April 2008
Argentina has often been described as the bread basket of the Southern Cone, with plenty of fertile land for grains and cattle. In fact, the economy is based on agro-exports. But with soy production taking over massive tracks of land, producing food crops for domestic consumption has become an increasing challenge for the resource rich South American nation. With world food prices soaring, soy critics worry about Argentina’s ability to feed its own people at affordable prices.

The debate over soy has riveted the country, and has proven to be a major crisis for the first woman elected president of Argentina, Cristina Kirchner. The president's decision to increase the export tax on soy has been in the eye of the storm.

Crippling Farmers’ Strike

The government implemented a tax on soy exports at a rate of 45%, up from 35% in early March. Farmers became angry and went on strike. For more than 20 days the nation-wide farmers’ strike paralyzed food deliveries. The strikers, demanding that the government roll back the tax hike, threw the country into turmoil for much of March. Supermarket shelves were scarce and meat coolers in butcher shops were completely empty for nearly two weeks. The strike had almost entirely blocked food supplies from being delivered to Buenos Aires, the nation’s capital. Farmers finally suspended the strike for 30 days in late March to facilitate negotiations with the government. Had the strike continued, city residents could have further suffered from real food shortages and skyrocketing prices.

Global soy prices have soared in recent years, making the agro sector the nation’s most profitable. Cristina Kirchner’s soy export tax is a policy carried over from her husband, former president Nestor Kirchner, who upped the tax to 35% as an emergency measure to revive the economy after the 2001 crisis. According to political economist Atilio Boron, the tax hike hit small farmers while large land owners could afford to move production to more lucrative nations like Brazil. Boron says the tax hike was uncalled for: "The country is not in an emergency. Argentina has a strong financial base, more than 50 billion dollars in liquid reserves in the central bank, which is a lot. The taxes are still going on."

In response to the farmers’ strike, president Kirchner has vowed not to back down on the tax hike. This is the biggest conflict so far in president Kirchner’s first 100 days in office, especially after upper-middle class citizens poured into the streets of Buenos Aires banging pots and pans in opposition to the president and in support of the farmers. Feeling pressured from the opposition, Kirchner held a massive pro-government rally in downtown Buenos Aires. She slammed the farmers, accusing them of destabilizing the economy and social order.

Farmers’ Plight

The farmers were enraged at Kirchner’s attacks against soy producers. "Most people blockading the highways were people who make their living with a lot of effort, hard work and sacrifice, it is unfair to tax the little guy," explains Boron. How much money has the soy tax made? In 2006 with the 35% tax, the government collected $11 billion in soy taxes.

On the farmers’ side, small and mid-sized agro producers organized the blockades in what they said was a reaction to a tax that was the straw that broke the camel’s back. The tax hike is hammering small farmers, who have had increased costs in fertilizers and fuel. In an unusual pact, the large land owners allied with small farmers during the farmers’ strike. These two sectors have historically despised each other.

Along the nation’s highways, soy farmers stopped trucks transporting food goods from arriving to market. However, large land owners which own more than 500 hectares of land were not the leading protagonists in the barricades. Small farmers who control only 20% of Argentina’s agro production made the farmers’ plight a national conflict.

Hector Bitonte is one of those farmers who blocked a major highway leading from the nation’s grain harvesting cradle to Buenos Aires. He says that the new 44% tax is unfair for small farmers already struggling with increased costs in soy production. "I was hurt by the food that was thrown out due to the blockade. It’s bad for the country. The strike is a hard action to take -- but how many years have we suffered tax increases? The latest tax was the last straw. Either we disappear as farmers or we take this action to see if the government reacts with policies in favor of small farmers."

Soy, Rising Inflation and Food Prices

Argentina is a leading producer of soy and grains at the global level, trailing the United States and Brazil as leading soy producers. In 2006, Argentina produced more than 47 million tons of soy. Top soil erosion and pollution caused from pesticides and fertilizers have been just some of the side effects to soybean plantations which have expanded exponentially at a rate of 10% annually. More than 550,000 acres of forest land are cleared each year for soy production. The situation is so severe that the National Agro Tech Institute studies predict that in 10 years 70% of Argentine land will become desert.

Economists worry that mono-crop production like soy for plant-based fuels and feed will cause food prices to soar in Argentina, where food inflation continues to rise over 15% annually. During the strike, millions of liters of milk were dumped and millions of chicks were drowned for lack of chicken feed. The strike has had a significant impact on the prices on many goods like meat, chicken, vegetables, and dairy products. Consumers may have to pay high prices on these products for months to come. The strike may also have sparked inflation, which was already rapidly rising. The government’s official inflation rate is 10%, but independent analysts put the rate at 20%.

Cristina Kirchner thought it would be easy to target large soy producers who historically have been characterized as detested oligarchs. Unlike other parts of Latin America, farming is high tech in Argentina, mostly mechanized and creating few jobs. Kirchner claimed that the commodity boom can be used to redistribute wealth to Argentina’s eight million poor. She also raised concerns over Argentina’s ability to feed its people, the environmental effects of soy and checking inflation on food products.

Could the farmers’ conflict be a warning sign that Argentina could be poised for a food crisis? Even the International Monetary Fund is beginning to plead governments to "tackle the extremely serious" problem before wars are triggered over food shortages. With riots in Haiti, violent bread lines in Egypt, tortilla wars in Mexico and severe shortages in Zimbabwe, the world must brace itself for a culminating global food crisis.

In Argentina, there is rising alarm over the cost of food and the depleting supply of domestically produced food stuffs. The production of Argentina’s famous beef has plummeted in recent years. Many producers simply see soy farming as more profitable and lucrative, especially as speculations over global prices continue to increase due to the biofuels market. Grain production for biofuels could make the world wide price of food skyrocket 76% by 2020. More than 90% of Argentina’s soy is exported. Argentines do not eat soy, and as the production of meat, milk and vegetables continues to decline, the likelihood of a major food crisis in Argentina grows.

Marie Trigona is a writer, radio producer and filmmaker based in Buenos Aires. She can be reached at mtrigona@msn.com. All photos by Trigona.

Thirty Two Years Later, Argentines Still Seeking Disappeared

Written by Marie Trigona Thursday, 27 March 2008

Argentina marked the 32nd anniversary of the nation’s 1976 military coup on March 24. An estimated 30,000 were disappeared during the so called dirty war. Thirty two years later, the bodies of the disappeared still remain to be found and identified. Since 1984, a team of anthropologists, The Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team, has investigated human rights violations committed by bloody military junta.
Open wounds

In the offices of the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team, Pedro Cerviño overlooks the remains of his sister who was kidnapped by the military in 1976. María Teresa Cerviño was murdered and buried in a cemetery in a Buenos Aires suburb. Cerviño and an anthropologist touch the bones laid out on a table as if they were transported 30 years into the past.

The Anthropologist gives the gruesome details of María Teresa’s death. The hands and feet of the skeleton are missing. She says that it was common for the military to cut the hands off of the disappeared before burying them in unmarked graves in cemeteries. From the marks on the skull it is apparent that before her death she received several injuries to the head.



"With the disappearance there’s a perverse feeling of not knowing. Not knowing what happened, if the person is dead or alive," says Luis Fondebrinder. Luis Fondebrider has worked as a forensic anthropologist with the The Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team (EAAF) since its founding. The EAAF has identified the remains of 300 disappeared since 1984.

The anthropologist says the identification of remains allows family members to have closure after 30 years of searching. "It’s a cultural and psychological need of having certainty. It also allows for family members to know their loved ones are dead and to recover the bodies and to hold funeral services depending on the religion and culture. It allows for them to close a period of so many years of pain and anguish."

Anthropological and forensic methods

In this past year the team identified 45 bodies. The team completes three stages to identify the remains of the disappeared. The most extensive is the preliminary research, the research of documents from the dictatorship and the state such as archives from cemeteries and intelligence reports carried out by the Argentine State. The second stage is a reconstruction of events based on interviews with family members and witnesses that allows the forensic anthropologist to develop a hypothesis of events and where the body may be buried. The final stage is the scientific field work in excavation sites.

Much of the team’s work has helped to reconstruct the historical void surrounding the Argentine military dictatorship’s organization and methods. In order to disappear 30,000 the military dictatorship organized an extensive network of clandestine detention centers and methods of terror. Human Rights groups have investigated the existence of 375 clandestine detention centers that operated throughout the South American nation.

The "Vuelos del Muerte" (Flights of Death) were the military dictatorship’s most common method of terror – drugging dissidents and dropping them from planes into the Atlantic Ocean. Many of the bodies have never been found, let alone identified. The Argentine military weren’t as careless as the Nazis, they did not regularly use mass graves to dispose of bodies, although they adopted the fascist ideologies and methods of mass extermination. To date, two mass graves have been discovered. When the disappeared were buried, their remains were put into unmarked graves in cemeteries.

Bringing back identity

Family members and fellow activists carry the remains of María Angelica Pinto Rubio to a cemetery in Buenos Aires. María Angelica Pinto Rubio was disappeared in 1977 at 21 years of age. Her sister Margarita reads a memorial letter at the funeral in 2007. "For 30 years the military wanted us to believe the families were responsible for our brothers’ and sisters’ disappearances. For 30 years they wanted to take away María Angelica’s identity, transforming her into a Jane Doe."

While choking back tears that carry 30 years of pain and longing, Margarita commemorates María Angelica along with Mothers of Plaza de Mayo and fellow activists. "Thanks to the struggle and the work of the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team we were able to bring back a face, name and history of struggle for our dear María Angelica. Today we can say, María Angelica, disappeared social activist, disappeared for believing that our country had to be more just. We can say María Angelica you’re present now and forever."

Thanks to the work of the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team relatives and fellow survivors can bring closure to a painful past. The team has allowed relatives and fellow activists to bring back the identity of the disappeared – every single one of the disappeared has a name, a history, commitment to social justice – each one of them gave their lives in the struggle for a better world.

Thirty two years of impunity

Thirty two years after Argentina’s bloody military junta human rights groups and relatives continue to demand justice for the crimes against humanity committed during the 1976-1983 military dictatorship. "The identification of the disappeared also gives objective evidence to the courts in the trials of those responsible for these crimes," says Fondebrinder.
Justice is now legally possible since the Supreme Court nullified the amnesty for military leaders through the full-stop and due-obedience laws passed in the 1990’s. Much of the evidence has been researched by human rights organizations, with very little support from the government. More than 200 former military personnel and members of the military government have been accused of human rights crimes and are now awaiting trial. However, groups worry that the trials are advancing at a snail’s pace.

Emi Dambra is the mother of two disappeared. She does not know where the remains of her son or daughter are located. According to Dambra, those responsible for leading the bloody military junta should be put behind bars. "We want to know what happened to each one of the victims, we want the people who organized this slaughter to be put in regular jails, with life sentences."
The EAAF has launched a national campaign for DNA testing of relatives of the disappeared to help in the identification of 600 unidentified skeletons the team has excavated from unmarked graves throughout the country. From preliminary investigations, the team believes the bodies belong to individuals disappeared by the military dictatorship.
To learn more about the work of The Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team visit http://www.eaaf.org/
Marie Trigona is a writer, radio producer and video maker based in Buenos Aires. She can be reached at mtrigona@msn.comThis email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it Her website is http://mujereslibres.blogspot.com/

32 Years Later, Argentina Still Seeking its Disappeared

Argentina marks the 32nd anniversary of the start of the nation's 1976 military coup today. An estimated 30,000 people were disappeared during the so-called dirty war. More than three decades later, the bodies of many of the disappeared have yet to be found and identified. FSRN's Marie Trigona reports from Buenos Aires on the work of a team of anthropologists that investigate human rights violations.

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Propagandhi: A Band With Values

By Marie Trigona

They are thrasher, punk, and political. With almost 20 years on the music scene, Canadian punk rock band Propagandhi has made more than just a musical name for themselves. Propagandhi has come a long way politically and artistically since forming the band in the mid-1980s, when Chris Hanahh posted the ad: “progressive thrasher band looking for bassist” at a local record store. The members of the band— singer/guitarist Hanahh, bassist Todd Kowalski, and drummer Jord Samolesky decided to put the band at the service of social change, which has inspired their lyrics, benefit shows, and volunteer work in their hometown of Winnipeg, Ontario.

The band embarked on their first tour through Latin America in October. While in Buenos Aires, Propa- gandhi stayed at the BAUEN Hotel, which has been under worker control for the past four years in the heart of the city. Enthusiastic about staying at the 19 story hotel with no boss or owner, they asked all kinds of questions about how the cooperative is organized. Many of the questions were rooted in their own experience self- managing a band and record label, G7 Welcoming Committee. Long- time Parecon [Participatory Economics] advocates and Z readers, Hanahh and Kowalski sat down in the basement of the BAUEN Hotel, at video collective Grupo Alavío’s office, to talk about Propaghandi’s political growth and artistic future.

TRIGONA: What is Propagandhi?

HANAHH: The name is just something that we came up with when we were 16. Maybe it still has meaning, but it’s basically a name to us now. The band is value based.

KOWALSKI: I think in terms of what the band is—songs, lyrics, things that we support, benefits we play.

How do you produce music?

HANAHH: There’s not a specific set of job complexes for the band. It’s a pretty natural evolution of how things happen. We try our best to make everything collaborative. We try to get everybody’s input, when you do it like that the final product is better when everybody contributes. Luckily, it’s just naturally how it’s been, we haven’t had to force that process. I think that speaks to a natural tendency for how things can be. Things can be better when everybody contributes rather than one person tells everybody what to do and you end up with their product rather than everybody’s product.

What is the underlying philosophy of G7 Welcoming Committee records?

HANAHH: First and foremost, to deal with artists or musicians that we actually like and that we think are ignored by a music industry that is more profit-driven than value-driven. That’s a certain aspect. The other aspect has been the workplace structure, to always make sure that it doesn’t replicate what I think is an immature way to organize your workplace, which is to have a president or a boss. Then everyone else follows a chain of command where directions come from the top down. We’ve seen it with our former U.S. label, Fat Records, and other labels. There’s a king, then everyone does what they are told.

In my estimation, it’s ruined the projects that the label has been responsible for. Whereas G7—despite what’s happening with music where records aren’t selling and downloading is more popular—will survive because of our workplace structure. It’s more resilient in a lot of ways. Everybody—well there’s only two guys now—but even when we had five people working at it, people were there because they were interested in the values rather than turning a quick buck. That’s important to us.

How has being a band that owns its own label affected distribution?

HANAHH: Per capita we’ve done a better job than the top-down rich companies. The workplace structure is an internal, practical application of the idea. Outside of that we provide distributors with records on time. Outside of our workplace structure we are still slaves to the market.

What social and political movements have inspired Propagandhi’s work?

KOWALSKI: Most recently, Sisters in Spirit based in Winnipeg. We’ve played benefits for them. Sisters in Spirit works with aboriginal Canadian women. They try to find missing aboriginal women in Canada who’ve been murdered and cops aren’t doing enough to find them. Also, to bring awareness of the abuse of aboriginal women in Canada’s society. Also for me there’s a place called the Welcome Place, a center for recent refugees to Canada where I’ve spent a lot of time volunteering. Showing people around, getting library cards, showing them how to use the Y.

HANAHH: Really, over the past 15 or 20 years of involvement with organizations, things that make our ears perk up are groups that are doing something different than the existing institutions that are clearly failing everybody on almost every level. When we were kids our ears would perk up about anarchism or socialism, anything that seemed more about values than pure profit. That’s brought us to where we are today, still trying to find what is effective or efficient in people making that real.

Now that you’re in Latin America what have you found inspiring?

KOWALSKI: Some of the art we’re seeing in the street.

HANAHH: As far as human social institutions go, this [BAUEN Hotel] is probably pretty unique for what we’ve seen so far. The other thing that’s impressed me, not totally positively, especially in Central America, was how much people knew about, almost to a fault, North American culture. I expected to come down to Central America and get deluged with different sounds and people not knowing what’s going on in North America and showing us what’s going on with the bands here. It’s very Americanized. That really surprised me. It’s a one way street—North American culture to Latin America. It’s not healthy to have a one way street with culture exchange.

KOWALSKI: You come down here and you don’t want to rip people off. You also fear that if a tour goes reasonably well, you’re opening the door for dickweed bands that want to come and try to make money off of kids. So it can be a double-edged sword.

What is an artist’s role in social change?

HANAHH: I’m not ashamed of saying something on stage that is regarded as political or using the stage as a political platform. We usually say something at shows.

Personally, and we probably share this perspective, I have a responsibility as somebody born into this world and who sees the world in a certain way. And who sees the world in such a crazily wrong way [I have] to comment on it. Through the band it’s the least we can do to be responsible about…how can you walk through the world and see what you see, whether it’s on the news or on the street, and get together with a bunch of people and comment on it instead of pretending it’s not there.

KOWALSKI: I think that people react when people listen, they react to what they can relate to. Different crowds react to different segments of the lyrics. If you get this part, if you don’t, you don’t.

HANAHH: We don’t say things to try to be different from everybody. Our idea is that there’s a principle of mediocrity in effect. Most people can relate, for example, if I feel that it’s wrong for there to be a boss-employee relationship. If I feel that there’s something fundamentally wrong, that I’ve never personally enjoyed about that relationship in my entire working life, then my assumption is that the majority of people also share that experience of having a negative boss-employee relationship. I’m not a particularly unique person. So when you put those ideas out there and you start seeing that, yeah, everybody has had a similar experience. If you ask for a show of hands about something like that, all the hands go up. It’s just that most people don’t organize or else they feel like they can’t organize. Everybody feels isolated and that’s why nothing ever seems to change too much.

Do you think music can send a message better than other mediums?

HANAHH: It could, but it doesn’t because a lot of the bands—especially in the punk music scene—choose not to. They enjoy the social relationships that exist, they enjoy the gap between the rich and poor that they can leverage to their benefit. Despite what they say, I believe that most of the established punk bands in North America have no interest in making change. Music could be a powerful tool.

Propagandhi performing in Buenos Aires—photo by Marie Trigona

KOWALSKI: The thing about music is that it makes you feel something, or you can understand how someone else is feeling about something. You hear it and then you say, “Yeah.”

How has the DIY [“Do It Yourself”] culture in punk affected the way Propagandhi makes music and the kind of music you make?

HANAHH: DIY culture has definitely informed it from the very beginning. When Todd was in Eye Spy, his previous band, and Propagandhi and Eye Spy were growing along together, DIY was the ethic we were aiming for. To this day, every practical, every impractical aspect, we try to create in our own realm.

KOWALSKI: One time we had 5,000 CDs and we sat and cut pieces of cardboard for every CD trying to make cases.

HANAHH: DIY to the point of absurdity in some cases.

KOWALSKI: Then the ink rubs off the cardboard onto the CD and wrecks it.

HANAHH: But the logical extension of DIY is people cooperating instead of somebody imposing their ideas on everybody else.

What are the overall political goals?

KOWALSKI: One of our main goals as musicians is to make the ripping-est songs we can when we get home. Make good lyrics and good songs. I’d like more of what we are doing to have more impact on our website. Sometimes we’re inching along and disappearing in the shadows. It would be nice to stay up front with new ideas all the time and more stuff going on.

HANAHH: Times are changing for music and bands. Making songs that make us incredibly happy—you can’t lose because people will hear and say “Yeah, I can dig that.” And then that matters for the ideas and music too. You can have great ideas but if you have totally crappy music, people aren’t going to buy into it at all.

How have you grown artistically and politically?

KOWALSKI: Artistically, we’ve grown ridiculously. When I think about my own actual playing over the years, I can’t believe we faced a crowd in any form. I have videos of my old bands and clearly we’ve gotten better.

As veteran punk rockers what are you most proud of in your career?

KOWALSKI: It’s hard to say. Certain songs or parts of songs.

HANAHH: Maybe even just keeping it real for as long as we have. Watching a lot of our peers either selling out or just getting shittier and shittier. We never went for the perverbial brass ring. We’ve kept it real. It’s four friends who are literally in the basement making music each guy likes.

KOWALSKI: Sometimes you got to be proud that you know that the band you’re in is what you would have liked as a kid, but as a kid you wouldn’t have been able to imagine the music you’re making because the exact sounds and styles weren’t there when you were a kid. You took the music and you made it new.

HANAHH: On a more abstract level and a more cliché level, getting feedback from people, not even just young people, people in general. Them claiming that the band has had an impact on their lives in a way that reflects our values, that’s huge. Up against the entire system that teaches certain values, a band manages to turn a person to values that you think make way more sense. You could say that’s your life justification, even if it’s just anecdotal.

What’s the song that’s closest to you?

KOWALSKI: If I was to go with one that I made, “Bringer of Greater Things,” that I wrote the lyrics for. I grew up in Regina. It was so racist. My family was racist. To manage to turn it around in my life and realize, when I was 17-18, we’re all fucked. To see my mom latch on and say “Yeah, we are fucked” and my brother latch on and say “Yeah, we are fucked.” To write a song about it that isn’t lame and has some meaning for me and carries a weight that I can view in my head as a full picture. The song is about, in Saskatoon, the cops taking aboriginal people out of the city and making them walk home in 40 degree below weather. A few guys have died from that. You know it happens. I feel proud of having got something off my chest in a way that is artistically enjoyable for me.

What’s in store for the future ?

KOWALSKI: Going home to thrash as hard as we can.

HANAHH: Another record in whatever format that market forces allow. More playing, more rocking in the basement, keeping it real, connecting lyrics with the bands to what we do in our real lives. Trying to support people also doing things that are connected to the band’s professed values. A huge part of the band is supporting people actually doing the dirty work.

KOWALSKI: We’re trying to do the same work. There’s the band and trying to do that kind of work. All of it’s enjoyable. None of it seems like work. None of it is paid work either.