Anti-Chilean sentiment (Spanish: ''antichilenismo'') refers to the historical and current
resentment
Resentment (also called ranklement or bitterness) is a complex, multilayered emotion that has been described as a mixture of disappointment, disgust and anger. Other psychologists consider it a mood or as a secondary emotion (including cogniti ...
towards
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
,
Chileans
Chileans ( es, Chilenos) are people identified with the country of Chile, whose connection may be residential, legal, historical, ethnic, or cultural. For most Chileans, several or all of these connections exist and are collectively the source ...
, or
Chilean culture
The culture of Chile reflects the population and the geographic isolation of the country in relation to the rest of South America. Since colonial times, the Chilean culture has been a mix of Spanish colonial elements with elements of indigenous (m ...
. Anti-Chilean sentiment is most prevalent among Chile's neighbors
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
,
Bolivia
, image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg
, flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center
, flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...
and
Peru
, image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg
, image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg
, other_symbol = Great Seal of the State
, other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal
, national_motto = "Fi ...
.
One of the historic causes of anti-Chilean sentiment is the perceived
Chilean expansionism
Chilean expansionism refers to the foreign policy of Chile to expansionism, expand its territorial control over key strategic locations and economic resources as a means to ensure its national security and assert its Power (international relations ...
that took place during the 19th century when Chile won the
War of the Pacific
The War of the Pacific ( es, link=no, Guerra del Pacífico), also known as the Saltpeter War ( es, link=no, Guerra del salitre) and by multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought ...
, a war declared by Bolivia after forming a secret alliance with Peru. The sentiment also applied to Chilean immigration in
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
and the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
.
History
Despite no war erupting between the two nations, there have been elements of anti-Chilean sentiment in Argentina in the past and present. Anti-Chilean sentiment in Argentina can be blamed on the historical and ongoing border disputes in the
Patagonia
Patagonia () refers to a geographical region that encompasses the southern end of South America, governed by Argentina and Chile. The region comprises the southern section of the Andes Mountains with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and gl ...
region. In addition, the events that occurred during the
Beagle conflict
The Beagle conflict was a border dispute between Chile and Argentina over the possession of Picton, Lennox and Nueva islands and the scope of the maritime jurisdiction associated with those islands that brought the countries to the brink of war i ...
in 1978 resulted in many anti-Chilean speeches and rhetoric in the Argentine media. Argentine General
Luciano Benjamin Menendez was a leading advocate for war during the conflict and was known for his aggressive and vulgar discourse against Chileans.
Another source of resentment are the substantiated accounts that Chile's Pinochet regime aided Britain during the latter's
Falklands War
The Falklands War ( es, link=no, Guerra de las Malvinas) was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and its territorial de ...
victory over Argentina.
In the 1990s, Chile's involvement in the Falklands war was only a source of speculation; however, it was highlighted in the Argentine tabloids when
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. S ...
visited
Augusto Pinochet
Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte (, , , ; 25 November 1915 – 10 December 2006) was a Chilean general who ruled Chile from 1973 to 1990, first as the leader of the Military Junta of Chile from 1973 to 1981, being declared President of ...
during his home detention in London in the late 1990s. Chile's involvement in the war unraveled when Thatcher acknowledged Pinochet for helping Britain win the war.
In Bolivia, anti-Chilean sentiment is fueled by
Bolivian claims for territory in the Pacific coast. A common political discourse attributes Bolivia's underdevelopment to its loss of seaports in the
War of the Pacific
The War of the Pacific ( es, link=no, Guerra del Pacífico), also known as the Saltpeter War ( es, link=no, Guerra del salitre) and by multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought ...
becoming thus a
landlocked country
A landlocked country is a country that does not have territory connected to an ocean or whose coastlines lie on endorheic basin, endorheic basins. There are currently 44 landlocked countries and 4 landlocked list of states with limited recogni ...
. This anti-Chilean sentiment has been exploited by Bolivian politicians for more than a century
In Peru, a strong anti-Chilean sentiment exists due to losing "a large chunk of its southern territory to Chile" in the
War of the Pacific
The War of the Pacific ( es, link=no, Guerra del Pacífico), also known as the Saltpeter War ( es, link=no, Guerra del salitre) and by multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought ...
.
Citizens of all three countries also believe they have been economically exploited by Chilean businesses over the last decade, which have taken over large market shares of various consumer businesses, especially retail (
Cencosud
Cencosud S.A. is a publicly traded multinational retail company. It's the largest retail company in Chile and the third largest listed retail company in Latin America, competing with the Brazilian Companhia Brasileira de Distribuição and the Mex ...
,
Falabella
The Falabella is an Argentine list of horse breeds, breed of small horse. It is among the smallest of horse breeds, with a height at the withers in the range ..
History
The ancestral stock of the horse of South America descended from horses bro ...
,
D&S) and banking.Ironically, Peruvian and Bolivian citizens constitute the bigger immigrant groups in Chile
Outside of
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...
during the
California Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush (1848–1855) was a gold rush that began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California fro ...
, Chileans experienced a high degree of anti-Chilean sentiment by United States miners. Chilean businesses and mine workers were usually harassed and at times violently attacked.
Anti-Chilean terminology
In Argentina the word ''Chilote'' is the degrading term for Chileans,
instead of ''Chileno'' which is the correct word for Chilean. Normally a Chilote is an inhabitant of the
Archipelago of Chiloé
An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands, or sometimes a sea containing a small number of scattered islands.
Examples of archipelagos include: the Indonesian Archipe ...
(part of Chile) and so Chileans do not feel it is an insult, but it is rather as ignorance from Argentinians since in Argentina, the word has been picked up to describe any Chilean. But they really feel insulted when Argentines refer to them as ''traitor'', mainly for a widespread feeling of betrayal that they felt while Chile offered support to
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
during the
Falklands War
The Falklands War ( es, link=no, Guerra de las Malvinas) was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and its territorial de ...
in 1982.
In Peru and Bolivia, the word ''
roto
''Roto'', f. ''rota'', (literally "torn" or "broken") is a term used to refer to Chilean people and in particular to the common Chilean. In Chile from the start of the 20th century it was applied with a negative classist connotation to poor ci ...
'' ("tattered") is used to refer disdainfully to Chileans. The term ''roto'' was first applied to Spanish conquerors in Chile, who were badly dressed and preferred military strength over intellect.
In modern usage, ''roto'' is an offensive term used to disparage the ill-mannered mentally-broken people or those whom the speaker wishes to associate with the ill-mannered.
''Rotos chilenos'' and ''Chilenos rotos'' later applied to "broken and impoverished" lower classes (generally peasants). The terms were first applied to Chileans during the
War of the Confederation
The War of the Confederation ( es, Guerra de la Confederación) was a military confrontation waged by Chile, along with Peruvian dissidents, and the Argentine Confederation against the Peru–Bolivian Confederation between 1836 and 1839. As ...
; specifically, Chilean soldiers received the name from Peruvian soldiers.
The term later became used by Chileans themselves in praise of the conscript soldiers of the Pacific War era, to indicate determination despite adversity.
[Gutiérrez, Horacio]
''Exaltación del mestizo: la invención del roto chileno''
(in Spanish) In Chile, ''roto'' also became a term of nationalist
Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...
rhetoric, sexism
Sexism is prejudice or discrimination based on one's sex or gender. Sexism can affect anyone, but it primarily affects women and girls.There is a clear and broad consensus among academic scholars in multiple fields that sexism refers primari ...
, and racial superiority
Supremacism is the belief that a certain group of people is superior to all others. The supposed superior people can be defined by age, gender, race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, language, social class, ideology, nation, culture, ...
at that time.
See also
* Día del Mar Día del Mar (''Day of the Sea'') is an annual celebration in Bolivia that observes the loss of Litoral Department during the 1879–1883 War of the Pacific with Chile. The day is celebrated on the 23 of March, at the conclusion of the week-long '' ...
* Nacionalismo
* Racism in Chile
* Revanchism
Revanchism (french: revanchisme, from ''revanche'', "revenge") is the political manifestation of the will to reverse territorial losses incurred by a country, often following a war or social movement. As a term, revanchism originated in 1870s Fr ...
* War of the Pacific
The War of the Pacific ( es, link=no, Guerra del Pacífico), also known as the Saltpeter War ( es, link=no, Guerra del salitre) and by multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Anti-Chilean Sentiment
Anti-Chilean sentiment
Foreign relations of Chile
Chilean
Discrimination in Bolivia
Discrimination in Argentina
Discrimination in Peru
Racism in Argentina
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
Stereotypes of Hispanic and Latino people