I rushed out of my house to catch the bus for my Wednesday afternoon class when I noticed a loud whirring noise. I looked up to see a helicopter circling around my residential neighborhood. First, I was amazed about how close the helicopter was, and then I thought, “Crap. There was an unplanned student protest, and I’m going to be late for my class again.’”

Universidad de Chile has a campus two blocks south from my house. Because this campus houses the political science department, protests are a common occurrence. The police force here, which is more militarized and less friendly than in the United States, keeps a tank on standby in the case of an unplanned protest.

During my seminar class through SU Abroad, I learned about the students who started the protest movement. In 2011, the political involvement of Universidad de Chile’s students was made famous by the Student Movement. This liberal group asks for constitutional reforms and free access to quality education. The former dictator Augusto Pinochet created the current constitution under his military regime, which fell in 1990.

Under Pinochet’s regime, private universities were founded as for-profit institutions. Although there have been reforms, the tuition is still astronomically more expensive than what the majority of Chileans can afford. Which is why in 2011 the Student Movement held the biggest protests in Chile since the fall of the dictatorship, according to an Aug. 31, 2011 Public Broadcasting Service article.

But, the movement is still a large force on the campus of Universidad de Chile. My friend at Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, who is involved in the protests, said that about every two months there is a large march downtown with thousands of students from many universities.

At Universidad de Chile and Católica, each academic department has a student vote to cancel classes to support the student movement protests. In the Universidad de Chile’s equivalent of the Schine Student Center, each department sets up a ballot box and students submit their votes.

Normally at Universidad de Chile, they cancel classes. At the more conservative Universidad Católica, classes continue for most departments.

On Aug. 21 thousands of students took to downtown to protest. I received an email from my program director and the international student center at my university to avoid this section of the city for the day. Normally, the beginning of the protest is peaceful, but they end by violently clashing with the police.

At Universidad de Chile, many students vote to support other protests as well. This week, for example, there was a march of the United Workers of Chile, another group that asks for reforms to the constitution. The students at Universidad de Chile voted to cancel classes so they could participate.

My host family and neighbors said the campus closest to my house has the most demonstrations. During the first protest I encountered here, I was probably the most eager onlooker. I was, once again, on my way to the bus for my afternoon class. While walking the two blocks to the bus stop, I noticed a crowd of maybe 20 people staring at a police tank blocking the road and the militarized police blocking the main avenue. The police had thrown tear gas at the protesters. The protesters were blocked from my view, but I could hear them chanting.

Someone told me that there was a manifestation. When I asked for what reason, she said, while throwing up her arms, “Because there is sun today.”

The second time I came about a protest while walking to my bus stop, I arrived while everyone was dispersing. The helicopter left shortly after I started my walk. I saw some covering their faces as to avoid the tear gas, but I didn’t smell any. The remnants of a protest were in the street.

But my bus was on time, so I didn’t stick around to find out any more.

Danielle Roth is a junior majoring in magazine journalism and international relations. She is following her desires for good food and adventure in Santiago, Chile. Email her at dlroth@syr.edu or tweet at her @danielleroth_.

Published on September 9, 2014 at 12:01 am