Chile's tattooed president-elect honors homeland in ink

[Judi Lynn]

By PATRICIA LUNA
yesterday



A tattoo of a lighthouse set on the Strait of Magellan decorates the arm of then presidential candidate Gabriel Boric during a rally in Santiago, Chile, Monday, Nov. 1, 2021. The tattoo on the now President-elect´s arm is by Chilean tattoo artist Yumbel Gongora and it shows the famed sea rout in southern Chile where Boric hails from. (AP Photo/Esteban Felix)

SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — When Gabriel Boric is sworn in as Chile’s president he’ll not only be the youngest to lead the South American country but also the first in Latin America to sport several tattoos.

The question is whether he’ll openly display them.

One person hoping he does is Yumbel Góngora, the self-proclaimed “tattoo dissident” who inked the three elaborate designs that fill Boric’s arms and back with sweeping imagery from his native Patagonia region.

“It’s important that a person never forgets their roots. That always keeps you focused on where you are and what’s important ... not get lost in the fame,” Gongora told The Associated Press while taking a break at her parlor in downtown Santiago decorated with artwork containing feminist slogans.

Boric, 35, scored a historic victory in Sunday’s runoff over a one-time admirer of Donald Trump after campaigning on a promise to attack the nagging poverty and inequality that he and leftist supporters argue is the unacceptable underbelly of a free market model imposed decades ago by the dictatorship of Gen. Augusto Pinochet.

More:
https://apnews.com/article/gabriel-boric-tattoos-chile-da5b63ab220c8805a7cb7dcb25a3568e

[ColinC]

1. "One day our generation is gonna rule the population.."

[Judi Lynn]

2. Had never heard this song. Thank you, ColinC.

🎄 🎄 🎄 🎄

[ColinC]

3. Welcome! It is one of my favorites.

When I was a teenager, this song came out. I've been waiting for my generation to be represented in governments since. It is finally starting to happen, and I am hopeful.