The Politics of Gender in Exile

Abstract

This article explores the experiences of Chilean men and women exiled in Britain since the military overthrow of the Popular Unity government in September 1973. The study, based on in-depth interviews, examines the very different accounts of exile given by men and women. These gender differences in accounting are related to men's and women's different location and involvement in public and private spheres. During a period of accelerated social change - from a period of socialist experimentation and a military dictatorship in Chile to exile in a developed capitalist country - both public and private spheres undergo dramatic quantitative and qualitative shifts. This study highlights the impact of these shifts for relations between men and women exiles. It is argued that public and private spheres were brought into a new and more conflictual relationship in exile, politicising areas of life which had been largely unexamined during Popular Unity. The impact of these changes for women's experiences of subordination in the home and marriage and on women's ability to formulate their grievances as public issues are explored.