People of the Walk - Santiago, Chile

If you have ever been in Santiago, Chile and spent a week there you would have recognize the “People of the Walk.“ They are the ones that have a certain street by the Palace area, and I guess one would call it the merchant area and they start gathering there about 4:00 PM. Sometimes even earlier, let’s say 2:30 PM. I’m not sure if they have some kind of a deal or not with the police, but they really stick together on this one street. No cars, just a walkway for the most part.

I found it most interesting, also a little sad, a little frustrating, and a little impressed with the people, so many emotions for this group of slum merchants. Or call them down and out merchants. Or sole proprietors with little money. But whatever you call them, they are not afraid of work, and some of the Americans can take a good look at them, some of the lazy ones that is, who want a free ride all the time, and think society owes them something.

Each day my wife and I would walk down this street a few times, around 10:00 PM there were at least a hundred or more of these People on the Walk. They had a system, let me explain:

they, each had a bag, suitcase or some kind of carry case to haul there merchandise with, something that could be folded up in a hurry; the reason being, if the police came walking by, they could—quickly—fold their four-by-four foot-space area up, that they had their merchandise on (usually some kind of blanket or plastic material), and walk away, as if they were not doing business. Then when the police would go, they would put there goods back on the ground and sell them to the passerby, casual observer, and member of the public. I purchased a few things from these merchants, they were good folk, and like anyone else, trying to make a buck, —but in this case the hard way.

Sometimes you would look behind yourself and the whole street, four to five blocks (of which they were selling on) were clean of merchants; although if you looked harder, they were resting against the nearest wall, as if they had disappeared, that is when the police were nearby disappeared, for within a minutes time, it was business as usual: yes, after the police left, it was dizzying.

The people were a sample of the whole city I believe—as young as eleven or twelve and as old as sixty or more, male and female.

Another interesting fact is that they all seem to know one another and had there own little clicks, -- amazing it was. It seemed to be understood, if not well known, that if the police caught a person, s/he could lose their possessions, and be put into jail, or simply have their things taken away from them. And that was their fear. But on the other hand, they had formed a kind of pack among themselves, a union of sorts, and when a few of the policemen took the merchandise, or was about to take it from a certain individual, they’d beat the policemen up, or try. I guess it had been done. And here I was watching this from the second floor of McDonald’s (and at other locations depending on the time of day).

And so my trip to Santiago, Chile, had one interesting element to it.

And to the “People of the Walk,” God bless you, and instead of stealing or robbing or selling drugs, Chile should be proud you are at trying to sell something to stay alive. I do realize there are no taxes being paid by you folks, and some of the items being sold are stolen from the local stores they are standing and selling in front of, but nothing is perfect, is it.

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About the Author: Dennis Siluk from http://dennissiluk.tripod.com

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