ABSTRACT
Hollander analyzes the psychological defenses employed by citizens who must manage the terrifying impact of political terror imposed by the state. We learn about the group of psychoanalysts who allied with the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo’s opposition to military rule and provided psychological assistance to them and their families. These psychoanalysts share insights into the agonizing conflicts produced by the state’s practice of disappearing people, policies that intentionally subverted important opportunities for individuals, families, and communities to mourn lost loved ones. Their narratives provide an important understanding of the salutary effects that political activism offers as an antidote to the pathologies of passivity and isolation that are the intended consequence of political authoritarianism. Several psychoanalytic protagonists describe the psychological destabilization produced by being identified as an enemy of the state and the psychological defenses they employ to sustain their activism under conditions of extreme threat. Hollander details how even as their activism endangers it paradoxically provides the psychological benefits of continuity with their ethical identities and an experience of safety through engagement with like-minded others equally committed to struggles for democracy and social justice.
