Race and Racism in Latin America

Race and Racism in Latin America

Rafael Shimabukuro

This session will explore the historical construction of ‘race’ in Latin America as a way of highlighting its impact today. We will discuss what race is and is not and how it is understood in Latin America, highlighting the roles of indigeneity and mestizaje. We will discuss how formulations of race shift across the region. We will then critically evaluate the arguments of the decolonial theorists, who argue ‘coloniality’, the creation of the colonial ‘other’ and the enduring colonial matrix of power are constitutive of Western modernity.

Readings

  • Wade, P. (2010). Race and Ethnicity in Latin America. London: Pluto. (Chapter 1: The Meaning of ‘Race’ and ‘Ethnicity’, pp. 1-23; and Chapter 2: Blacks and Indigenous People in Latin America, pp. 24-40).

  • Telles, E. and Flores, R. (2013). Not Just Color: Whiteness, Nation, and Status in Latin America. Hispanic American Historical Review, 93(3), pp. 411–449.

  • Quijano, A. (2000). Coloniality of Power and Eurocentrism in Latin America. International Sociology, 15(2), pp. 215-232.

  • Lugones, M. (2010). Toward a Decolonial Feminism, Hypatia, 25(4), pp. 742–759.

  • Rivera Cusicanqui, S. (2012) Ch'ixinakax utxiwa: A Reflection on the Practices and Discourses of Decolonization. South Atlantic Quarterly, 111(1), pp. 95–109.

Note: Consult the complete bibliography in the University's Online Reading Lists here.