Feminist strategies against the far right in Chile: the #EnContra campaign and the 2023 exit plebiscite

This article examines the feminist campaign #EnContra, which emerged in Chile in response to the 2023 constitutional plebiscite led by far-right actors. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork conducted between September and December 2023, this study analyses how autonomous feminist groups collectively diagnosed the socio-political threat posed by the proposed constitution and mobilized against it through a multifaceted strategy. Through assemblies, working groups and territorial outreach, feminist actors reframed the constitutional proposal as a threat not only to reproductive rights and gender equality, but to democracy itself. The analysis shows how feminists developed a counter-narrative grounded in urgency, clarity and collective memory, using slogans such as #EsPeor (‘it’s worse [than the current constitution]’) and #EsPeligrosa (‘it’s dangerous’) to connect with broader audiences and navigate the dilemma of opposing a flawed text without legitimizing the Pinochet-era constitution it sought to replace. In a context marked by democratic backsliding and the resurgence of ultra-conservative ideologies globally, the Chilean case offers a valuable lens to explore how feminist movements confront institutionalized threats to gender and sexual rights. The #EnContra campaign exemplifies the capacity of feminist movements to act strategically in moments of institutional threat, while sustaining broader visions of democracy, care and collective life.