More than bureaucratic objects: the mothers of the disappeared in Mexico and the potentialities of their investigation files

Abstract

The crisis of disappearances in Mexico started in 2006, when then‐president Felipe Calderón launched the war on drugs framed by a military perspective. Since then, more than 111,000 disappearances have been reported nationwide. Faced with this panorama of violence and uncertainty, a bureaucratic body has emerged which attempts to manage the search by, and mourning of, families who are still waiting for the return of their loved ones. This article addresses the way in which the official investigation carried out by the authorities plays a central role in the search process. Through the voices of thirteen mothers whose daughters and sons have disappeared, the investigation files adopt the category of a person‐object, which represents a type of presence of the victim. Thus, one of the central arguments is based on a reflection of how missing persons, through objects, continue to participate both in the daily lives of their relatives and in claims for justice against the Mexican state apparatus.