Water cannons chase crowd in Santiago. A caustic liquid was mixed with the water to irritate the skin and lungs.

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Chile Despertó: People's Uprising / Images from the Front Lines

Orin Langelle | Chile

Organization: Langelle Photography

In 1973, the US helped bring the notorious Pinochet Dictatorship to Chile with the overthrow of democratically elected Salvador Allende. The regime ushered in a “neoliberal experiment” in which all public services were privatized and Mapuche people and others evicted from their lands, which were handed to Pinochet allies and large corporations.

The People’s Uprising documented in these photographs began in Chile in late October 2019 in reaction to a small increase in subway fares. It quickly became a mass revolt against the neoliberal economic system that never went away even when democracy was re-established. People rose up against the model that forced many to live on the economic edge, with Mapuche communities in desperate poverty.

After months of protest, the uprising led to the establishment of a Constitutional Assemblea led by a Mapuche woman, formed to create a new peoples’ Constitution that would usher in transformational systemic change. While the Constitutional process remains unresolved, the uprising and subsequent organizing led to the democratic election of the youngest President ever, Gabriel Boric, a leftist and former student organizer.

KPFK Pacifica Radio in Los Angeles – especially the Sojourner Truth Show with Margaret Prescod – other Pacifica Radio Stations – Brenda Norrel from Censored News– New Visions Foundation – Observatorio Latinoamericano de Conflictos Ambientales (OLCA) - Gary Hughes from Biofuelwatch– Lucio Cuenca – Verónica González – Felipe Grez – Steve Taylor –and a very special thanks to the people of Chile

As a concerned photographer my work is mainly concentrated on documenting images pertaining to social, ecological and economic issues. Showing how they are intrinsically linked is crucial to understanding the whole –to seeing the big picture – instead of compartmentalizing each separately – as everything is interconnected. The root causes of these problems are often one and the same.

My work is an historical look at social movements, struggle and everyday life. It is designed to counter the historical or societal amnesia from which we collectively suffer –especially with regard to the real history of social, economic and ecological struggles.

My objective is to show the hidden or forgotten history of which many are not aware. Truths that powerful entities cover up or falsify for their own ends – truths displaced by a more ‘respectful’ or sanitized history – a falsified, commodified version of reality that elites want society to believe – the dominant social organization of forgetting.

History is a great teacher – if, in fact, presented truthfully.

Manhattan’s Museum of Modern Art says, “Photographs can bear witness to history and even serve as catalysts for change. They can foster sympathy and raise awareness or, alternatively, offer critical commentary on historical people, places, and events. Throughout the history of the medium, photographers have aimed to capture the essence of events they witnessed...”
 

Langelle Photography is an on-going project spanning five decades and six continents.


This is not merely a chronicling of history, but a call out to inspire new generations to participate in the making of a new history – that includes the transformation of the dominant system. For there has been no time when such a call has been so badly needed.

Global Justice Ecology Project

Red de Acción por los Derechos Ambientales (RADA)

Langelle Photography

POB 124

Randolph, NY 14772   US

+1.716.536.5669

orin@langellephoto.org

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