Chile: Progress, wealth and despair | DW Documentary
Chile is going through a social and environmental crisis that is fracturing society. The wealthy nation is undergoing a migratory crisis on an unprecedented scale. Shantytowns are multiplying as a result, creating unprecedented societal tension.
Chile possesses huge mineral wealth and is an export giant. The country produces the most copper in the world, and is home to one of the globe’s largest open-pit mines, the Chuquicamata mine. Located in the Atacama Desert, this mine is one kilometer deep, four kilometers long and three kilometers wide. The town of Chuquicamata had to be abandoned in 2004: as the mine grew, so did levels of waste gas and dust in the air. The extraction of raw materials has many downsides.
Chile also mines lithium and manganese and holds some of the most productive salmon farms and marine resources in the world.
At the head of this economy are major industrial groups. Most are owned by old Chilean families. Some made their fortunes in the 70s, thanks to close ties with General Pinochet’s regime. The film presents the Pérez Cruz family business, which has a monopoly on gas distribution. They are typical of a small Chilean elite that is intent on defending traditional values.
But the impact of climate change and pollution represents a threat. The mining and textile industries are putting pressure on the ecosystem in a nation that grapples with extreme weather. In some regions, it no longer rains.
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Video “Chile: Progress, wealth and despair | DW Documentary” was uploaded on 11/07/2024 by DW Documentary Youtube channel.
While it's true that the water crisis particularly affects rural and marginalized communities, it’s misleading to present it as uniformly split along ethnic lines. The issue goes deeper when we consider how narratives about Latin America are often crafted. The videography in this documentary reinforces a tired, reductive portrayal of Chile—depicting it as an underdeveloped society rather than the vibrant, modern country it is. The filmmakers chose to focus on hardship and conflict, recycling the same outdated imagery of poverty and division. Meanwhile, they conveniently ignore Chile’s magnificent achievements—its advances in technology, its flourishing arts scene, and its dynamic urban culture.
This type of portrayal is all too common. In the U.S. and other parts of the world, there’s a pattern of showcasing Latin American countries as places of poverty and ignorance, pitting Indigenous communities against the descendants of European colonizers time and again. It creates a convenient platform for viewers to feel a sense of superiority and to perpetuate stereotypes, rather than understanding the complexities and richness of these nations. Chile is not defined by poverty or conflict—it is a country full of resilience, cultural diversity, and progress, and it's high time documentaries reflect that truth.
The epitome of oligarchy
Very educational documentary. Subscribe on DW and DW News ever since. 👍👍
Economic development at the cost of nature destruction. What's new? What are the Greensheperd doing now???
Very sad
i heard pinochet did helicopter tours.
I always thought that Chile is just a corridor.
Americans couldn't handle living under those conditions. The country would crumble. They choose to continuously horde resources as if they will never run out or result in adverse environmental & geopolitical consequences. Living more sustainably & efficiently would require cooperation & compromise which Americans are incapable of. Drill baby drill! Til the final fateful drop…
What's the point of the "protective clothing" if you're not wearing gloves, yuck 😄
DW thank you for your amazing documentarys.
Es lo mismo de todos lados el ser humano destruction por avaricious
Far right (though far left too) is like 'oh we want meritocracy' then 'you must be from that ethnic group, think and behave according to this, and friend with that guy' so basically all about family connections and social status
This happend when you let capitalism run rapitly
What an opening line!
TOTAL RECALL.
Cohagen made oxygen expensive so that the people need to pay a lot for it.
Eventually the people rebelled.
Very nice video 📹 👍 👌
First girl is a warrior
इन्सान खुद ही अपनी मौत का इंतजाम करता है 🧐😒💀✅
23:40 the animals come before the wives
Mexican GDP per capita is 15k and Chilis 16k 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
21:14 the wines unaffordable to most Chileans are RESERVED for Export
like much such documentary
How do you keep this from flooding? I've never seen a video about managing water in such mines.
KATHMANDU😢😢
Sometimes, I hate history… it’s same everwhere… people kill others to gain power and wealth.. shares it with other people and make a gang of their own.. time passes and the gang pretends or justifies themselves with some small improvements, which is also not really achieve by them by but the others they terrorized.