They Used to Call Us Witches: Chilean Exiles, Culture, and Feminism

They Used to Call Us Witches is an informative, highly readable account of the role played by Chilean women exiles during the dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet from 1973-1990. Sociologist Julie Shayne looks at the movement organized by exiled Chileans in Vancouver, British Columbia, to denounce Pinochet’s dictatorship and support those who remained in Chile.
Through the use of extensive interviews, the history is told from the perspective of Chilean women in the exile community established in Vancouver. Shayne tells the very human story of these exiled Chilean women, and in doing so, provides a glimpse into the struggle of other Chilean exile communities around the world. In addition to the Chilean women’s activism against the Pinochet dictatorship, the book pays specific attention to their feminist activism. Shayne also shows how both culture and emotions inspired and sustained the women’s social and political movements. They Used to Call Us Witches should be read by those interested in social movements, women’s studies, feminism, Latin American politics and history, and cultural studies. For more information about this project, contact Julie Shayne at [email protected].