Life quality and social integration of migrants settled in Chile: Venezuelan Narratives

Local economic crisis, violence and permanent political uncertainty, especially in some developing countries, has led to a massive migration of Venezuelans, lately to other countries of South America, looking for better living conditions or mere subsistence. The total number of Venezuelans living in Chile had reached until 2022, 532.715 individuals, representing 32,8% of the migrant population in the country. Since 2014, Venezuelans have arrived in waves with different social, economic and cultural characteristics. This paper presented a qualitative analysis of the effects of selected indicators on the quality of life and social integration of ten Venezuelan migrants in Chile by gender, age and class, as narrated by themselves. Its aim was to explore their socioeconomic and cultural trajectories during settlement in Chile and show how they affected their resilience strategies and social integration. Findings showed a precarious stability in life quality, devaluation of their work and professional status, daily suffering of a variety of maltreatment forms and injustices, most especially, though not only at work. The resilient strategies they have followed involve regrouping among compatriots, certain emotional isolation from nationals, absence of or mild confrontation of ill-treatment, as well as denial of migrant discrimination as a marked social trend.