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And Then There Was Chile
A friend in Chile said, come visit anytime
A friend from Chile has invited me to visit. Not right away, but perhaps in the near future. Wow, I said. It got me thinking, especially in light of the election of Donald Trump as President.
Over 50 years ago, the duly elected Democratic Republic of Chile was reportedly overthrown by a coup assisted by the U.S. government. Richard Nixon said President and Henry Kissinger, Nixon’s henchman, allegedly helped put this in motion.
The democratically elected President Salvador Allende was overthrown in the coup. He killed himself allegedly rather than allow himself to be taken prisoner. Others in the government were killed. The writer, Ariel Dorfman, escaped ironically to America. Dorfman was working in the government at the time. The poet Pablo Neruda was allegedly poisoned. He didn’t die right away, but not long afterward.
General Augusto Pinochet took over Chile and installed a military junta. He ruled as a dictator for nearly two decades. Thousands of Chileans went missing during this period. Many were never found. Chile, the country, was occupied by an outside invading force, aka, the United States.
It seems odd that someone I know from Chile is throwing open the welcome mat for me. No, I am not thinking of going to Chile to…
