In the town of Vallenar, in Chile’s Southern Atacama region, a group of families live in rows of striped circus tents, on the edge of the highway under a never-ending heavy sun.
Theirs is a life on the edge. Always on the edge.
They are Chilean — their ancestors arrived here more than a century ago.
And they are foreigners.
Somewhere in between. Always in between.
“Where are you from?” we ask.
“From everywhere,” they respond, in Spanish accents that carry in their cadence the spray of far away oceans and the chill of distant mountains.
When they are alone, they speak their own language, Romani.
A language carried with them, when they came with their belongings and their memories.
Some of their people have left behind their ancestor’s ways.
But not them. They are Roma and they will not give in.
In the day, the men work, and the women read palms, sell trinkets and give blessings.
Their young children are with them, in the shade on the edge of a busy gas station parking lot. One of the few for a hundred miles.
The locals walk quickly past. They try to avert their eyes, as if these women in colorful dresses, and their children, were as bright as the sun, or as dark as the night. Or a plague. Or a virus that might catch them up and carry them away, or their kids.
The locals grip their children’s hands. They hold their pocketbooks close. They skitter to their cars, locks their doors and drive away.
They are afraid.
They should be. These women carry the strength of generations fighting to survive. When they look at you, their eyes do not waver. They stare into your soul.
They carry weight. They carry truth, though they keep it hidden. Their gestures are smooth and defiant.
They speak magic passed down from parents and grandparents.
Real magic. Magic for the receiver. And magic that will also line their pockets.
They live in a world on the borders of society. On the edge. Their homes are malleable, like their lives — made of tarp and fabric.
They have to be. It is their means of survival. To dance on the edge of the acceptable. To give and to take. To defend their own. To hold on to their culture, their language, and their way of life.
To resist.
This is the 17th episode of Stories of Resistance. This project is co-produced by The Real News and Global Exchange. Each week, we bring you stories of resistance and hope like this. Inspiration for dark times.
Tomorrow, April 8, is the International Day of the Roma, or Romani, people. It takes place each year to focus attention on the discrimination and marginalization of Roma communities across the world.
Stories of Resistance is written and produced by Michael Fox. You can support his work and see exclusive pictures of many of these stories on his patron.
This content originally appeared on The Real News Network and was authored by Michael Fox.
Michael Fox | Radio Free (2025-04-07T21:01:53+00:00) Chile’s Roma community: Maintaining an identity through resistance. Retrieved from https://www.radiofree.org/2025/04/07/chiles-roma-community-maintaining-an-identity-through-resistance/
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