The making of ‘extraordinary whiteness’: race, class and masculinity in German-Chilean fraternities, 1896–1940

This article explores the articulation of a specific construction of whiteness in Chile by members of German-Chilean student fraternities or Burschenschaften, at the time of their creation and consolidation, from 1896 to 1940. Following the model of German Burschenschaften, these fraternities brought together male university students of German descent in Chilean cities – descendants of German immigrants who were welcomed through the state-led whitening initiatives of the mid-19th century onward. First, the article situates its approach within scholarship of whiteness and white masculinity in Latin America. Second, it examines the racial, class, and national discourses articulated by a founder and distinguished member of the first Chilean Burschenschaft. Third, it analyzes how these discourses relate to practices such as fencing, beer consumption, and the delivery of speeches – activities aimed at educating fraternity members and fostering conviviality. The article argues that such practices contributed to the construction, embodiment and sustaining of a specific form of white masculinity in Chile. The conclusion hints at the possible significance of this work for developing a more comprehensive analysis of whiteness – and particularly of ‘extraordinary whiteness’ – in Chile.