Social and Political Activism
Los de Abajo are well known for their left-wing ideas. They were born in the Pinochet dictatorship, and the majority of the Universidad de Chile fans were known for their opposition at the dictatorship. On the other hand, Pinochet was honorary president of the archirival Colo-Colo, and many universidad fans think that he helped on the building of the stadium with government funds, though they have no proof of this and actually that was only a presidential campaign promise. So for every game played in the Colo-Colo field they like to destroy the "Pinochet Stadium", as they call it.
The group is mainly formed by working-class men, lower-class teens, and students. Los de Abajo make several charity events, and recreational activities. Also, in 1999 they opened the "Escuela Libre Los de Abajo", a free school for teens of low-class and people that didn't finish their basic grades. In 2006 they also open a free pre-university, so the students can study to achieve the university aptitude exam.
Politically, in 2003, they were one of the founding organizations of the Juntos Podemos Más, a left-wing coalition that includes the Communist Party of Chile and several others organizations. They had one candidate to deputy on the 2005 parliamentary election.
Read more about this topic: Los De Abajo
Famous quotes containing the words social and/or political:
“America is a nation with no truly national city, no Paris, no Rome, no London, no city which is at once the social center, the political capital, and the financial hub.”
—C. Wright Mills (1916–1962)
“My dear young friend ... civilization has absolutely no need of nobility or heroism. These things are symptoms of political inefficiency. In a properly organized society like ours, nobody has any opportunities for being noble or heroic. Conditions have got to be thoroughly unstable before the occasion can arise.”
—Aldous Huxley (1894–1963)