  Coined by Julieta Kirkwood of Chile as the “years of silence”, the years spanning from 1950–1970s/1980s saw women (mostly middle-class) increasing their political presence by participating in popular social movements and political parties (Kirkwood 1986: 70). However, their social and political participation lacked explicit feminist demands. Although not a strict set of dates, the years of silence lasted well into the 1980s for some parts of Latin America (e.g., Chile); these years, the time of baby boom and populism, were politically rife in post-World War II Latin America. It was also a time characterized by McCarthyism which precipitated the U.S. intervention in Guatemala and the Dominican Republic with intentions of warding off communism (Gargallo 2004: 94). These years also witnessed the fall of the Somoza dictatorship in Nicaragua in 1956 as well the rise of conflict and military regimes in countries like Colombia, Argentina, and Chile. Hence, political mobilization took place around the changing landscape of Latin America, and middle-class women participated, but their explicit role in these movements is complicated by the fact that their presence and impact were not readily documented (Ungo Montenegro 2000: 45). Notwithstanding, the years of silence were not quiet on pages. Women during these years were literarily active and produced texts that privileged their position which was theoretically underappreciated because of their literary style (Gargallo 2004: 95).