Chilean National Identity in the Bicentennial

• In Event: 594 - Section on Political Sociology Roundtable Session (one-hour).
  In Refereed Roundtable: Table 02. Collective Memory

Abstract

In 2010, Chile celebrated its Bicentennial. This year also marked the 20-year anniversary of the return to democracy after a dictatorship. In this paper, I analyze the planning of the Bicentennial and the attempts to promote the Chilean nation without appearing to harken back to the zealous nationalism that justified the dictatorship. I also analyze the lasting divisions around national identity in Chile, especially in regard to race, and the attempts to overcome these for the Bicentennial. Much of the Bicentennial planning focused on supporting cultural infrastructure, which served to emphasize politically neutral investments, create a lasting legacy of the 200-year anniversary of the nation and show to the world that Chile is a progressive, modern nation. However, this focus meant that enduring divisions within Chile, particularly around race and class, were not adequately addressed. Further, the focus on infrastructure relied heavily on private capital. I argue that the central role granted to private capital furthers Chile’s privileging of neoliberal capitalism as central to Chilean national identity. This also provides the conditions that allow for the continued marginalization of class- and race-based groups who object to this model of development. Theoretically, my paper suggests that we look at both structural factors and unforeseen events as shaping nation-building projects and that we pay close attention to the role of private interests in shaping putatively public national identity.

Author

• Sarah Dodge Warren, Lewis & Clark College