Latin American Antiracism in a 'Post-Racial' Age

拉丁美洲经常被认为是一个种族主义问题不像美国或欧洲等地区那么严重的地区。由于大多数人是“mestizos”（混血），而混血往往被视为民族认同的本质，因此明确的种族界限模糊不清，导致种族隔离程度相对较低，传统上种族问题在公众中的知名度较低。在欧洲和美国，种族混合和跨种族边界的互动是拉丁美洲的典型现象，在其他地方也越来越明显，一些观察家认为这将导致“后种族”现实，在这种现实中，反种族主义和多元文化主义-在这种观点看来是加剧社会差异的分裂政策-变得没有必要。批评者指出，混合并不是拉丁美洲种族不平等和种族主义的解毒剂：它们都是共存的。这严重限制了混合可以导致“后种族”时代的说法。该项目将调查玻利维亚、巴西、哥伦比亚和墨西哥的反种族主义做法和意识形态。该项目将有助于使该地区的种族主义、种族不平等和反种族主义问题概念化并加以解决。我们还建议，拉丁美洲为思考“后种族”世界中的种族主义和反种族主义提供了新的机会。了解在拉丁美洲种族主义和反种族主义是如何形成和实行的-在种族主义和反种族主义相互混杂的情况下-有助于我们了解如何看待世界其他地区的种族主义和反种族主义，在这些地区，种族观念在某些方面正朝着拉丁美洲的模式转变。同样重要的是，要展示拉丁美洲种族主义与种族主义混合运作和共存的各种方式--拉丁美洲是一个远非同质的地区。每个国家的研究小组将与一系列关注种族主义和歧视的组织合作，探讨这些组织如何概念化和解决关键问题，这些问题在面临类似情况的其他地区变得越来越突出。第一，当大多数人混杂在一起，当他们可能否认种族和种族主义的重要性，而他们自己既是种族主义的受害者又是肇事者时，如何实行反种族主义。第二，当“文化”似乎是谈论差异的主导话语，但当身体差异（肤色、发型等）仍然是强大的，但往往不承认的迹象，使人们歧视。第三，当种族和阶级在很大程度上重合，并使否认种族和种族主义是重要因素变得容易时，如何理解种族主义并与之斗争。第四，在白色男性和非白色女性的混合被视为国家的建国行为的背景下，如何确保反种族主义有效地解决性别差异问题。第五，当人们常常声称几乎没有公开的种族主义暴力，这是种族容忍的证据时，如何开展反种族主义活动。我们将探讨这些元素如何结构-并可能限制-关于（反）机构，组织和日常实践中的种族主义的想法。我们的项目将与玻利维亚、巴西、哥伦比亚和墨西哥的组织合作--这些国家充分体现了该地区的多样性--探讨种族主义和反种族主义是如何在国家和非国家圈子、立法和媒体以及各种运动和项目中被概念化和解决的。我们的目标是通过反馈我们的调查结果和帮助建立网络来加强拉丁美洲的反种族主义做法;并为了解该地区内外的种族主义和反种族主义提供有用的见解。

Latin America has often been held up as a region where racism is less of a problem than in regions such as the United States or Europe. Because most people are "mestizos" (mixed race) and mixture is often seen as the essence of national identity, clear racial boundaries are blurred, resulting in comparatively low levels of racial segregation and a traditionally low public profile for issues of race. In Europe and the United States, the racial mixture and interaction across racial boundaries, which are typical of Latin America and are becoming more visible elsewhere, are heralded by some observers as leading towards a 'post-racial' reality, where anti-racism and multiculturalism - seen in this view as divisive policies that accentuate social differences - become unnecessary. Critics point out that mixture is not an antidote to racial inequality and racism in Latin America: they all coexist. This severely qualifies claims that mixture can lead to a 'post-racial' era. This project will investigate anti-racist practices and ideologies in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia and Mexico. The project will contribute to conceptualising and addressing problems of racism, racial inequality and anti-racism in the region. We also propose that Latin America presents new opportunities for thinking about racism and anti-racism in a 'post-racial' world. Understanding how racism and anti-racism are conceived and practised in Latin America - in contexts in which mixture is pervasive - can help us to understand how to think about racism and anti-racism in other regions of the world, where notions of race have been changing in some respects towards Latin American patterns. It is also crucial to show the variety of ways in which mixture operates and co-exists with racism in Latin America - a region that is far from homogeneous.Research teams in each country, working with a range of organisations concerned with racism and discrimination, will explore how the organisations conceptualise and address key problems, which are becoming more salient in other regions, which confront similar scenarios. First, how to practice anti-racism when most people are mixed and when they may deny the importance of race and racism and themselves be both victims and the perpetrators of racism. Second, how to conceptualise and practice anti-racism when "culture" seems to be the dominant discourse for talking about difference, but when physical difference (skin colour, hair type, etc.) remain powerful but often unacknowledged signs that move people to discriminate. Third, how to understand racism and combat it when race and class coincide to a great extent and make it easy to deny that race and racism are important factors. Fourth, how to make sure anti-racism addresses gender difference effectively, in a context in which mixture between white men and non-white women has been seen as the founding act of the nation. Fifth, how to pursue anti-racism when it is often claimed that there is little overt racist violence and that this is evidence of racial tolerance. We will explore how these elements structure - and may constrain - ideas about (anti-)racism within institutions, organisations and everyday practice. Our project will work with organisations in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia and Mexico - countries that capture a good range of the region's diversity - to explore how racism and anti-racism are conceptualised and addressed in state and non-state circles, in legislation and the media, and in a variety of campaigns and projects. We aim to strengthen anti-racist practice in Latin America by feeding back our findings and by helping build networks; and to provide useful insights for understanding racism and anti-racism within and outside the region.