Sources: Wikimedia Common
chilita 007. “File:Partidarios De Pinochet.jpg – Wikimedia Commons.” Accessed December 13, 2022. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Partidarios_de_Pinochet.jpg.
Many people during the 1973 election had mixed opinions on President Allende. Many saw Allende as a communist who would ruin their lives, while others saw him as a leader that would save their country. When the coup happened on September 11th of 1973, many people were unsure what will happen next. Pinochet’s new government would seize power and hunt down any big supporters of Allende. However, some believed that the new government would put an end to communism in Chile and would save Chile from debt. In this primary source by Patrica Politzer, we examine an individual that lived during the coup that would support Pinochet’s new government and would do anything to support the new leader.
Elena Tesser De Villaseca was a mother living in Chile and would participate in a political group called the Female Power to fight against Marxism. Elena joined this in order to make life easier for her kids because she believed that the idea of a communist government would have a negative effect on them. Her group believed that the election was rigged for President Allende and that the results were false. When the news of Allende’s death was broadcast on the radio, Elena would cry for joy. After the coup was over, Elena and her group would support the government in any way possible. Elena would even donate her wedding rings to the government to show support, “I asked my husband for his ring, put it together with mine, wrapped it in a handkerchief, and delivered it to the central bank”. [1]
Elena would continue to support Pinochet’s government even through some controversial periods of Pinochet’s rule when hundreds of people would disappear. Elena would continue to support the government and claim that the people who were disappearing were part of a terrorist group that was causing trouble for the people. This insight into Elena’s life shows us how a supporter of Pinochet thought and acted. This document helps us fully understand the whole picture by showing a different viewpoint that is often overlooked when discussing the 1973 cope of Chile.
[1] Politzer, Patricia. Fear in Chile: Lives under Pinochet. (New York: New Press, 2001) 95
chilita 007. “File:Partidarios De Pinochet.jpg – Wikimedia Commons.” Accessed December 13, 2022. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Partidarios_de_Pinochet.jpg.