Understanding "Anti-US"

First things first: a bit of business. I want to try and explain the Chilean attitude toward people from the United States. A word of warning: please understand that this is from my personal, very limited point of view, taken mostly from interactions with my host mother. So here it goes…

First of all, I’ve learned to identify as “Estadounidense,” one from the US, instead of “American” because South America is also part of America; people get slightly offended. ¿Cachai? But that’s only somewhat related to the issue at hand. I think a bit of historical context is needed to really understand the current Chilean mind-set. I’ll try to make it relatively short.

In 1970, Salvador Allende became the first democratically elected Marxist president in world history. I’m not much of a political analyst, but I do know that the US is not particularly fond of communism, especially in a rapidly-developing, influential country such as Chile. Needless to say, the CIA’s fingerprints are all over the 1973 coup against Allende’s government. What was to follow is Chile’s darkest moment in recent history: seventeen years of military dictatorship, lead by Augusto Pinochet. Thousands died, tens of thousands tortured, overall just a really painful time (economically speaking, too). I heard that in the first two years of the dictatorship alone, an estimated 1/10 of Chilean families experienced arrest, torture, and/or exile. My host mother’s father and grandfather were tortured, along with many other family friends. Can you imagine?

As a self-proclaimed “woman of the left,” (and I don’t mean Democrat…think way farther left) my host mother has very strong opinions of the Pinochet era, the US involvement in the situation, and the effects of it all that she still sees today. On the one hand, she offers a very, I mean very, interesting perspective to what I’m learning and my general experience in Chile. On the other hand, however, our relationship comes with a few expectations. She admitted to me that she has a very strong anti-US attitude (rightfully so), and that one of the reasons for hosting her first study abroad student was to break that prejudice. Talk about pressure, right? Well, you’ll be happy to know that so far I believe I’ve represented the US quite well; we’re forming a very strong relationship, my mother and me.

One can imagine that there are many people in Chile that have similar anti-US feelings (again, rightfully so), but it can be rather frustrating to encounter them and know that I won’t have the opportunity convince them otherwise. At the same time, though, I don’t feel like I have the right to convince them of anything. Does that make sense? It’s almost like I empathize with their opinions of the US and don’t even want to try to justify them—1) because I probably couldn’t articulate it in Spanish and 2) because I’m pretty sure I would feel the same way in their position.

Pictures of women who are still missing from the Pinochet dictatorship.

Me and Yarella, my host mother.

On a lighter note, here’s a story for you: I met a fellow Richmond Spider in Santiago a few days ago. It’s such a small world, isn’t it? Walking back from class, I hear “Hey, Spider!” coming from a nearby internet café. How did he know I go to UR, you ask? Well, I’d like to say it’s because we Spiders have a certain way of carrying ourselves, a certain air of intelligence…..but alas, it was the gigantic spider on the back of my t-shirt from the UR bookstore. Anyway, he graduated in 2007 and is teaching private English lessons in Santiago. It was a very strange experience but really fun to reminisce with someone about Richmond.

Here are a few pictures from our wine tasting tour this past Sunday:

Sad with empty glasses.

That's better.

Getting a tour of the second vineyard of the day.

And last but certainly not least, I have another video for your viewing pleasure.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE COOLEST VIDEO EVER!

Hasta luego!