Author Lisa Baldez devotes considerable energy to articulating three theoretical ideas -- "tipping," "timing," and "framing" -- in the book Why Women Protest. She raises numerous questions as to why women historically have protested in Chile and how gender issues factor in when women have protested. The book approaches three historical episodes in Chile: the struggle for Chilean women's suffrage in the late 1800s, women's protest against Salvador Allende's administration (1970-1973), and women's opposition to General Augusto Pinochet (1973-1990).

Baldez defines "tipping" as a social movement in which different groups face the common goal of challenging the social and political situation. She mentions the importance of the tipping model to Chilean history in which different women's movements joined together to protest under the same umbrella. In addition, the tipping model explains "the result of individual decisions made by activists and members of the general populations about whether or not to participate in a protest" (6). Baldez describes the interaction between the sociopolitical macroconditions and the initial microfoundations of protest.

Second, she explains the theoretical idea of "timing" in which women were mobilized to protest. These women's protests helped to create the concept of "realignment," in which different groups came forth to protest in Chile against political parties. Realignment helped to develop a new coalition among them.

Last, Baldez tries to find out, via the theoretical idea of "framing," what conditions motivate women's movements to protest. She sees that opportunity, gender, and individual actions facilitated the protests by Chilean women's movements. Baldez explains, for example, how women's movements were excluded from politics, an exclusion that initiated protests by a framework of women's movements in three historical episodes in Chile. She notes the case of Señora Domilita Silva y Lopez, the first Chilean woman who attempted to vote in 1875. As a result, the Chilean government passed a law denying women the right to vote, but the pro-Catholic Conservative Party intervened to support a women's protest. Eventually, President Ibañez Del Campo passed a law permitting women to vote in 1934. The government created polling places for Chilenas and Chilenos. During this time, political parties' coalitions were divided in Chilean society. The Socialist party, Communist party, and Radical Party helped to mobilize women to unite in Chile. The Movement for the Emancipation of Chilean Women (MEMCh) helped to unite the middle class and working class in 1935.

Baldez believes that it was not enough that women's movements and their offshoots protested in Chile. Gender norms in Chile classified women as outsiders in politics. Baldez explains that the existence of machismo and marianism are problematic issues in Chilean society. She also explores the Empty Pot Protest in Chile, explaining from a tipping point of view the anti-Allende movements in Chile (1971). The Empty Pot Protest helped different groups to unite forces to protest against Allende's administration. During that time, President Allende nominated General Augusto Pinochet to control the civilian protest in Chile. Consequently, a military coup took power in 1973 and appropriated the March of the Empty Pots Protest. The author describes the women's movements' mobilization against Pinochet. She explores economic survival and women's rights groups as part of the intervention against the Pinochet regime. These protest groups against Pinochet confronted waves of violence in Chile. On the other hand, an opposing coalition of military officers' wives demonstrated support of Pinochet's administration: "La Justa de Govierno en Chile." Under Salvador Allende's administration Minister of Defense Carlos Prats was officially removed from his position. In the meantime three hundred officers' wives demanded that General Carlos Prats resign. General Prats was replaced by Pinochet.

Why Women Protest also explains the impact of women's movements in the late 1980s. Baldez claims that these women's movements shaped the process of democracy in Chile, helping to change the political agenda of the military government. The military government pursued a free election in which people mobilized to vote in October 1988. Baldez notes that the existing Chilean government monopolized the women's electoral power in Chile. The presidential election captured two percent of the people in Chile. As a result of the elections women's votes reached 3,826,459, and men's votes 3,609,454.

Overall, Baldez' book is useful for understanding why Las Chilenas protest and how individual groups were motivated to protest in the three historical episodes in Chile. The scope of Baldez' research is limited to those three historical episodes, and Baldez excludes women of color and los movimientos Indigenas de la Mujer in Chile. The reader may consider exploring these issues from other resources.

In seeking to explain why the miners' wives from the El Teniente Company were motivated to protest, Baldez leads the reader to believe that the miners' wives shared the same goal of protest as the women who protested against Allende's administration. Baldez writes, "the strike [was] an effort to force the government to pay mineworkers in accord with legislation already on the books" (111). There are other interpretations of this event. Readers might want to explore the main purpose of why miners' wives initiated the protest in Radio Rancagüa, Chile. The protest was an effort to demand 41% of the mineworkers' pay according to the legislation in Chile. Moreover, Salvador Allende helped the mineworkers from El Teniente to be approved for the 41%. This happened before Allende became the president of Chile.

With the exception of these two weaknesses -- the overlooking of indigenous women and the weak interpretation of the El Teniente mineworkers -- this book is an excellent resource for persons interested in gender issues, protest movements, and Chilean history.