Dec 2, 1971-1971
Chile
Cacerolazo
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ACTIVISTS/ACT.GROUPS/DESCRIPTION OF THE GROUP
Women
TARGET
Salvador Allende and his government
WIDELY HELD BELIEF
Every family should have access to food and no one should starve.
CASE NARRATIVE
Issue and Opponent: The fact that citizens began resorting to the black market as a means of sustenance, women took empty pots and beat them to symbolize the lack of food they contained. There are several reasons why the regime was unable to respond to the challenges. It was already understood that the Allende regime was deeply unpopular because of its socialist policies and Salvador Allende’s inability to meet his campaign promises. Given that he was democratically elected, Allende could not meet his protestors with violence and could only end the protest through legitimate means. He attempted to fix the food shortages in Chile for the duration of his term, however, he failed to introduce any new measures. Dilemma Action: The act of “Cacerolazo” is a form of protest, where protesting citizens used the concept of “noise” as a means of delivering their campaign. This would include creating noisy disturbances through the banging of pots, pans, kettles, and other kitchen utensils. Though the Cacerolazo (known as a charivari) was first practiced in 1832 in protest of Louis Philippe I of France and his monarchy, the modern iteration was introduced in 1971 in Chile as a protest against Salvador Allende and his government. Citizens sought to speak out against the widespread hunger brought upon by the regime by marching through the streets of Santiago banging empty pans, kettles, and stew pots with spoons to create noise and disturbance. The action was taken primarily by women. Outcome: Salvador Allende was forced to attempt to address the concerns of his citizens as a result of the Cacerolazo protests. Yet, he was unable to fix the food shortage problems adequately and was upstaged in a military coup led by Augusto Pinochet in 1973 as a result of his failure. It is for this reason that we may suggest that the Chilean Cacerolazo was successful in creating regime change. The Chilian Cacerolazo in 1971 was part of a larger movement to remove Salvador Allende from the government due to his socialist leadership and policies.
PRIMARY STRUGGLE/GOAL
NONVIOLENT TACTICS USED
DA TACTICS USED
Symbolic sounds
CASE NARRATIVE WRITER
SUCCESS METRICS
9 / 12
(CONC) Concessions were made
(MC) Media Coverage
(MSYMP) Media coverage was sympathetic to the activists
(OR) Opponent response
(PS) Dilemma action built sympathy with the public
(PUN) Punishment favored the activists
(REFR) Dilemma action reframed the narrative of the opponent
(RF) Dilemma action reduced fear and/or apathy among the activists
(SA) Dilemma action appealed to a broad segment of the public
PART OF A LARGER CAMPAIGN
2 / 3
Encouraged more participants to join the movement
Internally replicated by the same movement
RESOURCES
Project documentation
Dilemma Actions Coding Guidebook
Case study documentation
Dilemma_Actions_Analysis_Dataset
SOURCES
Thomas, Kaitlin E. 2020. “Chilean Cacerolazo: Pots and Pans, Song and Social Media to Protest,” Ethnomusicology Review, June 13. Retrieved July 20, 2023. (https://ethnomusicologyreview.ucla.edu/content/chilean-cacerolazo-pots-and-pans-song-and-social-media-protest).
Snider, Colin M. 2012. “A Brief History of Pots and Pans,” Americas South and North. June 8. Retrieved July 20, 2023. (https://americasouthandnorth.wordpress.com/2012/06/08/a-brief-history-of-pots-and-pans/).
Biblioteca Nacional de Chile. “Mujeres y derecha politica (1964-1973),” Memorial Chilena. Retrieved July 20, 2023. (https://www.memoriachilena.gob.cl/602/w3-article-100709.html).
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