The 2000 Census reported that there are about 182 Chilean immigrants living in Philadelphia. People from South American countries are living throughout the city and suburbs. In Philadelphia, numbers of Chileans are living in Center City, West Philadelphia, and amongst established Latino communities in North and South Philadelphia.

Because the Chilean community in Philadelphia is so small, there is little known about them. South American revolutionaries, merchants and scholars are known to have visited Philadelphia in the 18th and 19th centuries. Some were also reported among Philadelphia's "Spanish American" colony in 1910. Small numbers of Chileans were known to have come to Philadelphia after the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965. This act allowed more immigration from third world countries. There also may have been some Chilean migration during the 1970's and 1980's, during the rule of dictator Augusto Pinochet. This was a time in which there were between 3,000 and 5,000 instances of torture, murder, and disappearances in the country. Since the 1990s, globalization, and economic restructuring and crises in Chile have contributed to the number of Chileans seeking various opportunities and reunifying with families in Philadelphia.

The Chilean population in Philadelphia is relatively small. However, it is a part of the larger Latino community. The Latino people make some great contributions to the city of Philadelphia, and at times could use some support. One organization that supports this community is Congreso de Latinos Unidos. Congreso offers a broad range of services including the first Latina domestic violence program, as well as HIV prevention and case management services. Congreso is strengthening the Puerto Rican (and otherwise Latino) community in part because of partnerships with government agencies, health providers, labor organizations, businesses, and other community-based institutions. The Lighthouse is another organization that supports the Latino community in Philadelphia. This group has been serving the multicultural population of Philadelphia since the late 1800's. It provides services such as day care, before - and after - school care, and a food share program, educational, occupational, cultural, and recreational programs, an Adult Educational Program & ESL, an Economic Development Program, a Teen Parenting Education and Employment Program, and a Young Parenting Fathers Program.


If you would like to learn more about this community, and the organizations that serve it, please visit:

Congreso
http://www.congreso.net/
Congreso's website includes information on the programs that it provides, relevant news, available jobs, information on the community it serves, its and funders.

Latino Philadelphia
http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=103
This is a profile of the Latino community of Philadelphia, created by the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. It has a variety of information such as what it means to be Latino/Latina, Latino history in Philadelphia, what it is like to be an immigrant in Philadelphia, community resources, cultural expressions, and more.

The World Fact Book
http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.html
This CIA website contains an extremely large amount of information about all of the countries in the world such as: history, geography, information about its citizens, government, economy, transnational issues, and more. To find out information about this country, pull it down from the menu.

Centro Nueva Creación
http://www.centronueva.org/
Centro Nueva Creación's website has information on its programs, has relevant news, the organization's history, and more.

"Latinos in the United States: Where Are We From?"
http://www.nahj.org/resourceguide/chapter_3.html
This website was created by the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. This section of the website contains information on various Latin American countries, and why their citizens have moved to the US.