Paper Short Abstract:

This paper examines Chile's Estallido Social (2019) through the lens of memory activism, where suppressed collective memories from the civic-military dictatorship (1973–1990) are reclaimed to contest neoliberal fragmentation. Based on militant ethnography at Los Pies del Cerro, an anarchist squat in Santiago, the study explores grassroots practices of "re-existence," including the recovery of expropriated spaces, visibility of detained-disappeared activists, and communal anarchist-popular practices. It underscores how embodied, affective actions challenge hegemonic memory cultures, fostering solidarity and long-term socio-political engagement.

Paper Abstract:

This paper examines the aftermath of Chile's Estallido Social (2019) as a case of memory activism, where collective memories suppressed since the civic-military dictatorship (1973–1990) are reclaimed to challenge neoliberal fragmentation. Grounded in militant ethnography at Los Pies del Cerro, an anarchist squat in Santiago, the study explores grassroots practices of “re-existence” through the recovery of an expropriated school, visibility of detained and disappeared activists, and embodied communal practices rooted in an anarchist ethos. By engaging with conflicting temporal ideologies and vernacular cultural reproduction, this paper highlights how grassroots actors sustain solidarity and challenge hegemonic memory cultures. By engaging with conflicting temporal ideologies and vernacular cultural reproduction, this paper underscores how grassroots actors sustain solidarity and challenge hegemonic memory cultures. It contributes to debates on memory for action (Salazar, 2000) demonstrating the role of embodied, affective practices in shaping memory activism and fostering long-term socio-political engagement.