The Story Behind the Campaign
Sept. 3^rd 2005, Santiago, Chile:

Knowing the historical importance in Chile, the Americas and the world of a woman possibly being elected President, a group of extranjeras, came together on a rainy Saturday afternoon at Starbucks in Santiago. They were in awe of the possibility that a qualified woman leader in Chile could rise to power during their time living in the country. So, instead of sitting back and watching the various campaigns for Bachelet unfold around the city, they took action to start something unique that might have a positive influence over the voters, especially the youth.

Without the ability to vote in Chile, the girls discussed what specific role they could play in the four months leading up to elections. From the very first meeting of GPB the conversations about objectives of the campaign emphasized the need to be well informed about Chilean political parties, the platforms of all of the candidates running, Michelle’s positions, etc. In addition, the initial planning also included a lot of debate on how to maximize cultural sensitivity. “Being ‘gringas’ we didn’t want to be seen by Chileans as imposing any kind of outsider views on anyone, but rather focus on the benefits resulting from Chile’s rapid progress, which serves as a model for the rest of the world to follow. As a successful Defense Minister and the most likely candidate to win President, Bachelet exemplifies this model (the best candidate also happens to be a woman)”, said Erin Vranas from Oregon, one of the founding members of GPB. The campaign strived to communicate that point whenever receiving criticisms that they were just supporting her because she was a woman. “Our first objective was to promote the importance of increased representation of qualified women in public offices in Chile and around the world, with the secondary objective being Bachelet… using her candidacy as a platform to spread an important message to our own countries and the rest of the world,” said Sonya Datta-Sandhu from Michigan, USA:

After solidifying the base of GPB, the group moved forward into the community by participating in activities with various parts of the Bachelet supporters, from Mujeres con Bachelet to Jovenes x Bachelet and even Cyclists for Bachelet. They started off by stopping by the Mujeres office to introduce themselves and the group to other members of the campaign and participating that same night in the remembrance of the “Yes” vote on the plebiscite that kicked Pinochet out of office. They also went with the Youth to paint a preschool in La Pintana, participated in Fiestas Ciudadanas, had representation by a gringa in Valparaiso and even writing back home to spread awareness about the campaign and candidate Michelle. More than anything GPB was able to build relationships with various sectors of the Bachelet campaign, gaining respect for their efforts and being included alongside all other supporters. This active involvement and presence even into the second round hopefully allowed GPB to influence the outcome of the election in some small way… contributing to the expansion of a new vision of leadership in Chile and around the world.

For more information contact Adrien Lopez: adrienlopez@yahoo.com