The CIA and the Chilean military have rightly been seen as central culprits in the 1973 overthrow of socialist president Salvador Allende. But we shouldn't overlook the important role that the Chilean middle class played in the coup and its aftermath.
The Economist marked 50 years since the Chilean coup by calling for the country to move on from the past. What the magazine didn’t do was confront its own key role in demonizing Salvador Allende and building Augusto Pinochet’s international legitimacy.
The great achievements of Salvador Allende’s socialist government in Chile have often been overshadowed by its brutal defeat. But the fall of his government wasn’t inevitable.
The moment that Salvador Allende was violently deposed on September 11, 1973, democratic socialists in the US knew it was a crime. They joined others around the world organizing solidarity efforts and supporting political refugees.
Friedrich von Hayek and Milton Friedman are the founding fathers of neoliberal economics. When Augusto Pinochet overthrew Chile’s elected government, they helped devise his economic agenda and endorsed the brutal repression that was needed to force it through.
Filmmaker Patricio Guzmán and his team documented Chile’s Popular Unity government and the 1973 coup that destroyed it. Smuggled out of the country to be edited in exile, The Battle of Chile is an unforgettable record of an extraordinary historical moment.
Fifty years on, more details on the US role in overthrowing Salvador Allende’s socialist government are being uncovered. Among the latest revelations: Richard Nixon knew that the 1973 coup was going to happen days before it did.
After becoming Chile’s president, Salvador Allende discussed his background and political outlook with the French writer Régis Debray. In this excerpt from their conversations, he also spoke about the danger of a violent right-wing counterrevolution in Chile.
Chile’s socialist leader Salvador Allende became an icon of resistance to oligarchic tyranny after the right-wing coup that began 50 years ago today. His ideas and his sacrifice remain a powerful example for anyone seeking to build a movement for change.
For years, the history of Chile’s Popular Unity government under Salvador Allende has only been accessible through written records and photographs. Thanks to new research, the vibrant and politically engaged music it helped produce is playing online until tomorrow.
Tomorrow marks the 50th anniversary of the brutal coup that overthrew Chile’s democratically elected president, Salvador Allende. North American support for the coup wasn’t limited to US policymakers — the Canadian government was also complicit.
Before Chile’s coup, Salvador Allende’s government was engaged in plans to reform the environmentally destructive copper industry. Augusto Pinochet’s military dictatorship put a stop to them, crushing organized labor in the process.
Fifty years after Augusto Pinochet's dictatorship came to power, Chile’s government has now admitted guilt for “disappearing” over 2,000 people. Yet many on the Chilean right still defend Pinochet — disturbing evidence of the dictator's lingering legacy.