Before our most recent meeting I had never learned or heard much about the history of Chile and especially the political upheaval of the 1970's. It was very interesting to hear both men speak of their experience leaving Chile and their continued connection to the country. What struck me the most was how neither seemed at all bitter about their experience with Chile. They struggled with persecution and abuse while in the country, yet they still have fond memories and speak highly of the country.
After the meeting with Alex and Ricardo I read up on some basic history from the Pinochet era and realized just how challenging this period of Chilean history must have been to live through and escape from. Just learning about the number of people who were affected by the brutality of the Pinochet regime was shocking. The exact numbers varied in the articles that i looked at, but they all agreed that the number of Chilean exiles during Pinochet's tenure was in the hundreds of thousands. While the number of exiles was shocking, the amount of abuse at the prisons and camps was even more shocking.
It was very interesting to hear about this era from Alex and Ricardo and very inspiring to see how settled and successful they are in the US despite having to go through so much abuse in their home country.
After the meeting with Alex and Ricardo I read up on some basic history from the Pinochet era and realized just how challenging this period of Chilean history must have been to live through and escape from. Just learning about the number of people who were affected by the brutality of the Pinochet regime was shocking. The exact numbers varied in the articles that i looked at, but they all agreed that the number of Chilean exiles during Pinochet's tenure was in the hundreds of thousands. While the number of exiles was shocking, the amount of abuse at the prisons and camps was even more shocking.
It was very interesting to hear about this era from Alex and Ricardo and very inspiring to see how settled and successful they are in the US despite having to go through so much abuse in their home country.