My First Riot!

Today was Day of the Youth Combatant in Santiago. Two sides to this story. 1. It marked the killing of two young brothers, Rafael and Eduardo Vergara, who were fighting for MIR, or the leftist revolutionary movement. They were assasinated by carabineros in the Pinochet regime March 29th, 1985. High school and university students protest against a dictatorial educational system and various other demands, like changing the newly established transportation system, Transantiago. 2. The two brothers killed were robbing a bakery, and the carabineros showed up to arrest them, the situation escalated, and they were killed. My director told me that today is also called "El día de los Delincuentes" because in general, delinquents use the occasion to rob, beat up, break windows, burn tires, and cause general mayhem. Unfortunately, I don't live in a well lit area and have been directed to cancel my last class, which would normally end at 10:45, and go directly to my house. Also, I've been told that my neighborhood is rife with delinquents and there isn't reliable transportation anywhere: colectivos, taxis, metro, buses, and the like are spotty. How will I get home? I certainly don't want to walk through some of the projects that litter my path to and from the school...

Anyways, students usually come out in droves for these protests, which often turn violent, with students clashing against water cannon spraying and tear gas lobbing carabineros. Today has been no different. Lots of fire bombs and rock throwing went on as carabineros in riot gear knocked some heads around and arrested a couple hundred people. Some students had organized a peaceful protest in Plaza Italia, at the center of the city, but everybody knew that fighting would break out, which it did sporadically throughout the city. As I write this, it is early evening, and more mayhem is predicted to occur later tonight.

I had plans to go clubbing with all the people from Pelotón, the reality TV show that one of my acquaintances was on. We've got free VIP passes and are going to rub shoulders with a lot of rich people that piss me off and make me wish I had paying job, not a volunteer job. Either way, I'm pretty far away from the a majority of the violence, and only need to worry about my long, dark, and now, presumably dangerous trip home. Don't know if I'll make it to the club though. I will be going downtown tomorrow, but by then the carabineros should have kicked everybodies asses enough so they calm down.

Classes are going well and I have my first test to give on Monday and Wednesday. I was able to burn my photos to some cds and should have some new ones of my house and my school posted whenever I write next. I also get my first stipend next week, which is dandy! I can blow through that instead of my own money, which continues to dwindle rapidly...

I would've put some photos of the riots on there, but I couldn't transfer the photos correctly. Just look up http://www.infoshop.org/ and search for Day of the Youth Combatant, Chile. It's a pretty leftist website, which you might gather from all the "comrades" and "down with capitalism" that pops up, so take it with a grain of salt and search CNN, too. Or google image the photos, because I've certainly never been anywhere where stuff like this happens.