Adolfo Pérez Esquivel facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Adolfo Pérez Esquivel
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Adolfo Pérez Esquivel in 2010
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| Born | 26 November 1931 Buenos Aires, Argentina
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| Alma mater | National University of La Plata |
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Adolfo Pérez Esquivel, born on November 26, 1931, is an important person from Argentina. He is an activist, artist, and writer. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1980. He received this award for standing up against the military government in Argentina between 1976 and 1983. During that time, he was arrested and held without a trial. He also received the Pacem in Terris Award.
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Early Life
Adolfo Pérez Esquivel was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on November 26, 1931. His father was a fisherman from Spain who moved to Argentina. Adolfo's mother died when he was only three years old. Even though his family was poor, he went to art schools. He studied at the Manuel Belgrano School of Fine Arts and the National University of La Plata. There, he learned to be a painter and a sculptor.
For 25 years, he taught art at all levels, from primary school to university. He also worked with different types of sculptures. In the 1960s, Pérez Esquivel started working with groups in Latin America. These groups believed in peaceful ways to help people. In 1974, he left his teaching job. He became the leader of groups that worked to help poor people using non-violence.
Fighting for Human Rights
In March 1976, a military government took over Argentina. General Jorge Videla became the leader. This government started to treat people very badly. Pérez Esquivel helped create and support groups to defend human rights in Argentina. These groups also helped the families of people who were hurt or disappeared during this time, known as the Dirty War.
He helped start an organization called Servicio Paz y Justicia (which means "Service, Peace and Justice Foundation," or SERPAJ) in 1974. This group worked to protect human rights. They started an international campaign to tell the world about the terrible things the military government was doing. SERPAJ is part of a bigger group called the International Fellowship of Reconciliation (IFOR). IFOR supported Pérez Esquivel's work from the very beginning.
Facing Challenges
Pérez Esquivel faced many dangers for his work. In 1975, the police in Brazil arrested him. In 1976, he was put in jail in Ecuador with other religious leaders. In 1977, the police in Buenos Aires, Argentina, arrested him again. He was treated badly and held without a trial for 14 months. While he was in jail, he received the Pope John XXIII Peace Memorial award.
Nobel Peace Prize
In 1980, Adolfo Pérez Esquivel was given the Nobel Peace Prize. Two previous Nobel Peace Prize winners, Mairead Corrigan and Betty Williams, suggested him for the award. He received the prize on December 10, 1980, for his efforts to defend human rights.
When he accepted the prize, he said he was doing it "in the name of the poorest and smallest of my brothers and sisters." He gave all the prize money to charity. Even after winning the Nobel Prize, he continued to support groups like the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo. These mothers were looking for their disappeared children. He also worked to help indigenous peoples of Argentina and protect the environment.
In 1999, Pérez Esquivel received another important award, the Pacem in Terris Award.
Pérez Esquivel has held many important roles. He was the president of the Honorary Council of Service, Latin American Peace and Justice Foundation. He was also a member of the Permanent Peoples' Tribunal. He wrote a book called Caminando Junto al Pueblo ("Walking Together with the People") in 1995. In this book, he shared his experiences with nonviolence in Latin America. In 1998, he became a Professor of Peace and Human Rights Studies at the University of Buenos Aires.
Recent Years
Adolfo Pérez Esquivel continues to teach at the University of Buenos Aires Faculty of Social Sciences. He leads a special class called "Culture for Peace and Human Rights."
In 2013, he spoke about the election of Archbishop of Buenos Aires Jorge Bergoglio as Pope Francis. Pérez Esquivel said that as a leader of the Jesuits, Bergoglio "had lacked the sufficient courage shown by other Bishops to support our cause for human rights during the dictatorship." However, he also said that Bergoglio "was no accomplice and had no links with the dictatorship." He clarified that many religious leaders asked for prisoners to be released, but these requests were often not granted by the military government.
In June 2017, he supported the government of Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela. He said that the country was facing an attempt to overthrow the government.
In January 2022, he was hospitalized after having a stroke.
Works of Art
Adolfo Pérez Esquivel is also a talented artist. His work includes art shows, large wall paintings (murals), and monuments. Some of his notable works are:
- The 15-station Latin American Via Crucis, created in 1992. This work remembered 500 years since the arrival of Europeans in America.
- A Monument to Refugees, located at the main office of the UNHCR in Switzerland.
- The Latin American Peoples Mural in the Cathedral of Riobamba, Ecuador. This mural honors Monsignor Proaño and the indigenous peoples.
- A bronze statue honoring Mahatma Gandhi in Gandhi Square, Barcelona, Spain.
See Also
In Spanish: Adolfo Pérez Esquivel para niños
- World Social Forum
- Adolfo Perez Esquivel: Rivers of Hope
