The poster above is part of a campaign, "Careful: Machismo Kills"
The ad is for a razor for me and says "If you shave, I'll go out with you". RIDICULOUS.
Word of the Day:
dar piropos(Chile)- cat call
femicidios- killing of women, usually meant for very specific reasons related to gender
I’m fairly sure that I rant about catcalling quite a bit, but as much as I get used to how frequently it occurs, it still really angers me. At least in the US, cat calls are usually related to how good you look. In Chile, it has pretty much nothing to do with that. It’s more a manner of marking you as female and responding in kind.
Today made me really mad although at the same time it was admittedly kind of hilarious. I was just waiting for a bus, not looking particularly good, wearing pants, with a tank top because it was broiling, but not showing any cleavage whatsoever. A truck stopped at a light, filled with construction workers who began to clap and yell at me. Of course it was a long light...The bus finally came, except once I got on, they continued to yell things at me, causing everyone on the bus to stare at me like I was insane. Not cool.
While piropos might be the most evident manifestation of machismo in the street, Chile has a very serious problem with domestic and other violence against women which I wanted to use this forum to speak out against, since I wasnt able to make it to a protest march about it the other day. Doing my part!
By some estimates, 1 woman in Chile is killed WEEKLY by her partner. The Chilean Network Against Domestic and Sexual Violence counts 55 femicidios during this year alone. Sexual violence and domestic abuse are far far more common, with some estimates at 35 % of the population subject to violence from their partner, with tragic results for many women. Until very recently, we’re talking the 80s or so, there weren’t even laws that distinguished between a husband beating his spouse and him hitting a random person on the street: it was considered a private matter. So there’s been an improvement, at least legally. But there’s a real need for cultural change, which many strong women are cultivating.
If anyone is really interested and speaks Spanish, here’s a really comprehensive article about the problem.
http://www.nomasviolenciacontramujeres.cl/files/Femicidio_en_Chile_2004.pdf
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