— Every morning during television coverage of the World Cup, on the
Mexican equivalent of the “Today” show, co-hosts chat, trade barbs and
yuck it up. Behind them, actors in blackface makeup, dressed in fake
animal skins and wild “Afro” wigs, gyrate, wave spears and pretend to
represent a cartoonish version of
Yes, in the 21st century, blackface characters on a major television network.
But this is
and definitions of racism are complicated and influenced by the
country’s own tortured relationship with invading powers and indigenous
cultures.
Many Mexicans will say they are not racist and that very little racism exists in
As proof, they point to the fact that slavery was ended in
It is true that
But the full truth is that racism is alive and well in
It is primarily directed at indigenous communities who account for as
many as 11.3 million people, or roughly 10 percent of the national
population. The indigenous remain disproportionately mired in poverty
and denied work, political access, education and other rights.
And there is a smaller community of black Mexicans,
Afro Mexicanos, many descendants of slaves first brought to the region
by Spanish conquerors in the 16th century.
Often referred to by academics as the “third race” and concentrated in the coastal states of
they have been fighting for years for recognition as a distinct ethnic
group, to be included in history books and to be given opportunities to
transcend poverty.
“Racism in
head of the National Council for the Prevention of Discrimination,
which has protested the blackface TV caricatures. “There is a lot of
denial about it.”
Or, as columnist Katia D’Artigues once put it:
“Although subtle, discrimination has become something invisible in our
society. We no longer see it, or we consider it normal!”
Still, in
people operate with a different comfort level when it comes to physical
attributes. It remains common for Mexicans to use nicknames like
“Chino” for someone with almond-shaped eyes, “Negrito” for someone with
dark skin, “Gordo” (Fatso) for a plump person.
These terms are jarring when seen through the prism
of U.S. sensibilities, but here they are usually used in a context of
affection and friendship.
The issue of racism in
told a U.S. audience that Mexican immigrants were necessary because
they performed the jobs that “not even blacks” wanted to do. He had to
apologize and receive a visit from
As the furor died down, another popped up when
printed postage stamps that commemorated a well-known comic-book
character from the 1950s, Memin Pinguin. The character is a black boy
drawn with exaggerated features. It was seen as racist by many in the
U.S. who demanded
including several leftist intellectuals, defended Memin Pinguin as a
beloved part of Mexican culture. (Withdrawing the stamps became a moot
point when they sold out within hours of going on the market.)
The people at Televisa,
pre-eminent broadcasting company, say they mean absolutely no harm with
the blackface characters on their morning chat show. It’s just a spoof,
they say, a humorous segment when the news is over but the day’s World
Cup match hasn’t yet started, and shouldn’t be taken seriously. After
all, one of the co-hosts is a green-haired clown. More “Saturday Night
Live” than “Good Morning America.”
The ratings, by the way, are through the roof, Televisa adds.
For Friday’s game between
minutes after the morning dose of blackface, saw the two teams read a
pledge against discrimination and parade with a huge banner that said:
“No to racism.”
———
(c) 2010, Los Angeles Times.
Visit the Los Angeles Times on the Internet at http://www.latimes.com/
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
