One of the advantages of being a contributor in this space, is that I get the opportunity to write in long hand, my point of view regarding this very important subject that Anthony has touched upon, a subject that has profound implications for the Church in Latin America, for missionary efforts to and from Latin America and also for our understanding of why Socialism is creeping back to our region.
Let me please begin by profiling myself so you know where I come from. I am not your typical Guatemalan. I have been blessed with a wonderful education both inside and outside Guatemala, I have had the opportunity to travel to many parts of the world, I have lived in the US and Brazil and also come from a mixed cultural background. My father is from Nicaragua, most likely direct descendant of "mestizos" -i.e. a mix between Spanish and indigenous blood-. My mother was born in Guatemala, from a Guatemalan father with an italian last name (Aquino -Aquinas-) and my grandmother had a German father (Germans settled in Guatemala during the late 19th century to develop the coffee industry) and a Guatemalan mother -most likely mestizo-).
As a "ladino" (the term we use in Guatemala for all non-indigenous (Mayan) people), I have not suffered the effects of racial oppression in my own country personally, although I have seen them and have sometimes been guilty of racial prejudice against non-ladinos (blacks, indigenous, asians, gringos, etc.). I have also experienced prejudice towards me during my time in the US, being classified immediately as a hispanic, latino or wet back.
This is the vantage point from which I write.
Here is a critique of Asturias' work called "Remnants of Racism".remnants.doc
Having said that, let's get down to business.
The history of race in Latin America is a very complicated one. Mainly because it is not a question of one race against another, but rather, the interaction among innumerable ethnic groups with Europeans (the Spanish and the Portuguese mainly). It is important to add to this complex situation the issue of African slaves, which added still another ethnic group to an already boiling racial tension issue.
In Guatemala alone there are at least 23 identifiable different ethnic groups, each with its own history, culture and language. It is not correct to identify them all as "Mayan" for each different group developed different expressions of what that mean, especially towards the 16th Century which is when the conquest took place and well after the "classical" Mayan Empire period. By the time the Spaniards arrived, Guatemala was already divided into different nation states -the Quiche's, Cackchiquel's, etc.- which were at war with each other. The Spanish were very shrewd to take advantage of this situation (applying key learnings from their recent war against the Arabs in Spain) and basically used a "divide and conquer" strategy through which they were able to subdue all the indigenous tribes and thus establish the system of "Encomiendas" -a form of indentured servanthood- and not outright slavery because that would mean that they would, from the start, acknowledge these indigenous people as human beings, and not as merely intelligent animals.
Fast forwarding to today, the effects of this generated a culture that still views the indigenous people as inferior, and thus, justifies the perpetuation of ignorance, illiteracy and what I have come to call "compassionate racism" - a way we express ourselves when we learn, for example, that an indigenous person has completed his/her college degree....we tend to say..."Oh, how cute!".
Our relationship with African Americans is very different, at least in Guatemala, because they never really expanded as a racial or ethnic group in Guatemala, but rather settled on our Caribbean coast and basically developed their own subculture from which they hardly break out of, except when they excel in sports like soccer and make it to our major teams.
There is a lot to be said about this, buy I do recommend reading books from Miguel Angel Asturias, a Guatemalan Nobel laureate known for his prejudice against the indigenous people. I recommend getting "Men of Maize" and "The President" both available in English. If you can get your hands on his thesis "El Problema Social del Indio" (The Social Problem of the Indian) which I believe has been translated into English, you will also get a deeper understanding of where he came from and of what many Guatemalans think.
The practical implications of this is the view of race as a political issue, the rise of socialism and the relevance of liberation theology to the oppressed indigenous peoples of Latin America, etc, etc, etc.
This is just the beginning of a hopefully constructive discussion of the many sides to this important issue.
I found the bibliography for the thesis I mentioned in English: Guatemalan Sociology : The Social Problem of the Indian / translated by Maureen Ahern. � Tempe : Arizona State University Center for Latin American Studies, 1977
http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/literature/laureates/1967/asturias-bibl.html
hey Juan, this is an interesting blurb. question: is there now an explicit (or covert) "sistema de casta" in place there now? and are there any major efforts to address inequalities that are effective?
I would say it is more covert, although there are many great stories of people that have been able to go way beyond the "casta" boundaries and moved up and are really contributing genuine development. The case of Almolonga is one great example, a journalist by the name of Estuardo Zapeta is another one.
The efforts, unfortunately, are very politicized. It is more an issue of individual success stories, rather than any massive efforts.
I would say it is more covert, although there are many great stories of people that have been able to go way beyond the "casta" boundaries and moved up and are really contributing genuine development. The case of Almolonga is one great example, a journalist by the name of Estuardo Zapeta is another one.
The efforts, unfortunately, are very politicized. It is more an issue of individual success stories, rather than any massive efforts.