Approaches to the Afro-Colombian Experience in Chile

Abstract

This article proposes to characterize the situation of Afro-Colombian immigrant families, with emphasis on women living in the Region of Antofagasta, Chile. A mixed methodology was used, with interviews, conversation groups, and surveys of groups of men and women born in Colombia who have settled in Chile. It was sought to describe their experiences in two contexts: the first, from outside in, as a context of emigration from Colombia, and the second, the current context of immigration in Chile. The principal findings include a description of what the displacement means for the women based on their motivations to migrate and the relevant experiences they had in accessing Chilean territory and in the normalization of their migratory status. Transversally, the authors observed whether or not their basic, social, and economic rights were prevalent and the constant impact that the contextual and ethnic systems that affect them had on the immigrant women.