Adolfo Pérez Esquivel Biography

Adolfo Pérez Esquivel is an Argentine human rights activist who won the 1980 Nobel Peace Prize. He is a painter, architect, and sculptor by profession. He is a champion of human rights and nonviolent reforms in Latin America, and his efforts to coordinate human rights activities throughout Latin America earned him several prestigious awards and accolades. Born in Buenos Aires to a Spanish fisherman who emigrated to Argentina, he had a very difficult childhood. He lost his mother when he was three and grew up in abject poverty. Hard working and resilient, he bravely faced the challenges of his youth to emerge a good student and went on to study at the Manuel Belgrano School of Fine Arts and the National University of La Plata where he was trained as a painter and sculptor. He embarked on a career as a professor of architecture and taught at all levels from primary to university over a teaching career spanning over two decades. He became involved with pacifist groups in the 1960s and relinquished his teaching post to devote his efforts towards working for the cause of peace. He became a coordinator general for a network of Latin America-based communities promoting liberation of the poor through non-violent means and has also served as president of the Honorary Council of Service, Latin American Peace and Justice Foundation.