Workers’ Assembly Halls (Argentina)
Workers’ Assembly Halls (Argentina) is part of the Tentative list of Argentina in order to qualify for inclusion in the World Heritage List.
The Workers’ Assembly Halls are a proposed serial transnational nomination that represents the international democratic labour movement from 1850-1950. In Argentina, the component consists of the Edificio de la Confederación General del Trabajo in Buenos Aires. It dates from 1950 and was inaugurated by Juan Peron. Despite destructive activities during the military dictatorship, the building is still in use by unions.
Map of Workers’ Assembly Halls (Argentina)
Load mapThe coordinates shown for all tentative sites were produced as a community effort. They are not official and may change on inscription.
Community Reviews
Els Slots
A visit to Argentina’s contribution to the Workers' Assembly Halls serial nomination at the moment is mostly about what you do NOT get to see. The building of the CGT at 802 Azopardo Street itself is a mildly interesting example of modernist architecture. On its façade it features a mural depicting Eva Peron at a young age, which symbolizes the relationship Juan and Eva Peron had with this labour organization and the building. It’s very much a symbol of the Peronist era, and one wonders what Argentina’s current right-wing government thinks of it and whether they hate it enough to oppose a WH nomination.
Inside, but closed off now to non-members, are two main points of interest. There is the Eva Peron Museum, a reminder that this was the place where Eva’s embalmed body was on display for years after her death. And there is the Salon Felipe Vallese, the main hall decorated by murals depicting scenes of the labour movement.
It will be interesting to see what the focus of the narrative of the overall nomination will be. The title says ‘Assembly Halls’ and indeed what all locations seem to have in common is a multifunctional venue where debates, political meetings, etc took place geared to the ‘working class’. This CGT building apparently has just that in the Salon Felipe Vallese, but it would make no sense to include it in the nomination and keep it closed to the outside world.
Philipp Peterer
I see a lot of potential in this nomination. The CTG is the biggest syndicate in Argentina, a country that loves (and is probably partially ruined by) syndicates. This topic is not represented on the list, so it would fill a gap. The building itself was inaugurated 1950 by Juan Perón and was built in Rationalism style. It survived the military dictatorship and is still in use. Unfortunately, it is currently not open to public, but this could change in case of a successful inscription.
I passed the building on a walk through the city centre. It’s just a few blocks from the Casa Rosada (the Argentinian White House) and close to the interesting Mercado San Telmo, the fancy Perto Madero and Siga La Vaca, the one restaurant that every Uber driver recommended to us. It was a short visit of course, as it is only one inaccessible building. At least you can take a picture of the entry area with the stairs through the partial glass door.
If this gets inscribed and opens to public I will definitely be back. I also got inspired to visit the worker’s museum in Copenhagen.
Site Info
- Full Name
- Workers’ Assembly Halls (Argentina)
- Country
- Argentina
- Added
- 2023
- Nominated for
- 2027
- Type
- Cultural
- Categories
- Structure - Civic and Public Works
- Link
- By ID
Site History
2023 Added to Tentative List
Site Links
Locations
The site has 1 locations