“Political Essay on the Kingdom of New Spain” written in 1811 by American, Alexander von Humboldt, explores issues of race from yet another perspective. As an American, and particularly based out of New York, Humboldt has a frame of reference for coexistence (or lack there of) with both free blacks and respective indigenous groups. In this excerpt, Humboldt focuses mostly on the legal implications of the caste system in Mexico and corroborates other primary sources in claiming that the elites perpetuate the degradation of the Indian and mixed-races by consciously exempting them from society. Humboldt remarks on how society works against non-white people and uses the excuse that they are uncivilized, but the incivility they speak of is largely due to the oppression of these groups and “that in the actual state of things the moral improvement of the Indian is impossible, if the obstacles are not removed which oppose the progress.” Similar to Ward, this suggests that there are ulterior motives for the elite European or Creole classes. As the smallest visible group owning the most land, it is beyond evident that they manipulated society in their favour by using propaganda to spread myths of other groups or denying access to unfiltered information in order to marginalize people of colour, ultimately, forcing people of colour to live in the lie the elites created.

He suggests that in the United States and elsewhere, similar power imbalances exist, but suggests that it is more noticeable in Mexico (of which he is speaking on specifically) because of the intermediaries or the people of mixed origin, who do not fit with either group entirely. Because of their more racial fluid identity, mixed-race people may experience inconsistent prejudice from their non-white peers. The manufactured intricacies of the caste system prove to be ineffective when individuals can look like any variation of their racial makeup. In America he describes the fate of an individual as more polarized claiming one is “rich or miserable, noble or degraded, by the laws or the force of opinion.” Discussing the experience of those of African ancestry in New Spain he reveals an imperative admission of the fundamental faults in the system. The mixed races are among the largest obstruction to the system as they “from their colour, their physiognomy, and their cultivation, might be confused with the Spaniards.” Humboldt reflects on the animosity this causes between the groups, understandably, as this most obviously reflects on the triviality of the system.

http://dcc.newberry.org/collections/caste-and-politics-in-mexican-independence

This section of Ward’s text explicitly discusses, with an inherently British bias, the particularly Mexican casta system and general race relations and social motives. The perspective he contributes to this phenomenon is particularly interesting because he is not himself apart of the system by any account and therefore able to offer a more honest analysis. Ward compares the classification of castes before the Revolution in which he identifies the three pure races and remarks that any combination of the three were “sub-divided, ad infinitum, by names expressing the relation borne by each generation.” The language he writes in expresses doubt and possibly mockery of the system. In explaining race from a geographic perspective, Ward is able to indirectly add to the confusion of his audience. In effect, he is able to inject doubt into the merit of a manufactured classification of coloured people under the premise of: who really knows? His skepticism continues in trying to quantify each group, he admits it is truly “impossible to ascertain… [and that of the mixed breeds]… nothing certain is known” which if accepted would illegitimize the system entirely.

An important aspect of this text and this time-period as a whole is the idea that these groups, with “the great mass of the population [having] some mixture of Indian blood,” are completely unique to the colonized New World. Ward explains how the pure races have “multiplied… in an extraordinary manner; by intermarriages… and now form a mixed breed, admirably adapted to the Tierra caliente, but not possessing in appearance, the characteristics of the New World, or the Old;” not entirely Indigenous, European, or African. He emphasizes that anyone in the middle and certainly the lower classes could scarcely exempt themselves from some Indian heritage. Ward remarks that the extensive establishment of racial distinctions was “the policy of Spain to promote a constant rivalry between the different classes on inhabitant in her colonies” in an effort to prevent unity among a outcast group that would together form a social majority. He continues that race became synonymous with status to the extent that the King of Spain used “whiteness” to be appointed as equivalent to decreeing nobility upon a distinguished individual by remarking “let him be considered white.” Ward himself being white, I find it interesting that he places most of his doubt in the Spanish style of governing and colonialism. The trivialness of these classifications is brought to light during the Revolution when the Creoles, as Ward describes “were obliged to court the alliance of the mixed classes” effectively wiping the intricacies of the Casta system entirely.

This chapter illustrates how mass communication brought “power to the people” and effectively unified people, who had always been inherently similar, but lacked access to understand the extent of their similarities. Dawson explains how radio changed the previous dynamic, where crowds were formerly “unable to sustain movements that went much further than the village boundary for any length of time.” Populist movements gained momentum because working-class people were finally able to connect with their peers in other parts of the nation; they could feel familiar with their leaders in a more intimate way; and finally, the working-class had an unprecedented influence on popular culture and therefore mass culture. Music and popular culture quickly became either a platform for politicians, who were able to manipulate it to their advantage, or alternatively, a detriment to those who could not.

Evita stands out as the most intriguing figure through this lens of history of Latin America. President Juan Perón and wife María Eva Duarte de Perón “Evita” unquestionably made use of mass communication in both radio and the loudspeaker and microphone to a new extreme, drawing crowds speculated at up to one million people. In Evita’s “town hall” speech it is evident that she uses “Fatherland” to be synonymous with Argentina (“The Peronist Version of the Speech” includes the phrase 19 times). This is especially interesting as post-colonial nations are rarely so uniquely identifiable that those born there recognize a single identity.  In history, similar titles are more readily attatched to a Republic’s founding “mother country” or a political force, for example; Germany is commonly referred to as The Fatherland and Russia the Motherland. While this title is fluid, it is undoubtedly associated with power and strength. With this perspective, it is evident why Evita was so magnetic to the working-class; she empowered them like never before. Unlike her husband, she really was one of them. The women, men, and children she affectionately referred to as “descamidos” were her people who she addressed from the presidential balcony.

Interestingly for the time, she mentions her gender several times in her speaking, but scarcely mentions how incredible and unique it was, especially considering Argentina’s delay in giving women the vote, that the people were so desperate to her in office. Around the world, a woman in a democratically elected position was extremely rare. As I began to wonder whether or not she appreciated the magnitude of such events, “The Renunciamiento as Compiled from Newsreel and Archival Footage” records her saying, off-script; “that this moment is very important for a woman just as any other citizen.” On the topic of gender, she is also an intriguing figure because for someone with so much power and influence she relies heavily on her traditional role as wife of the President.

The history discussed in this chapter titled as “Commerce, Coercion, and America’s Empire”, provides great insight into the different ways in which the United States’ economic self-interest had sometimes indirect but always significant social, political, and economic impacts on Latin America. The most prominent sentiment in the text and the documents is the justified vilification of the elites from both Americas. However, what seems inconsistent or unfortunate is the disdain Latin Americans have for the average North American, while it seems that the average North American is generally oblivious to the exploits of their elites in these regions, only really being exposed to the region by second or third-hand accounts. Everything targeted at middle class Americans concerning the south illustrates a sort of tropical wonderland, through Disney, Hollywood, and other media; however, this image is far from the reality of the Latin American working class. During a time of such limited access, it is plausible to assume the North Americans were living in ignorant bliss, while their Latin American counterparts were suffering at the hands of the elites.

All four documents similarly share a perspective on the events of this time in history, but definitely do not support the same sentiments. Augusto Sandino’s “Political Manifesto” expresses what it is that separates him and those like him from the Nicaraguan elites who in essence helped exploit their country for financial gain and foreign benefits. Sandino expresses a sense of shame through a metaphor of being a child of his nation. He writes that the “flag hangs idle and humiliated by the ingratitude and indifference of its sons who don’t make the superhuman effort to free it from the claws of the monstrous eagle with the curved beak.” The eagle he refers to being the American investors. “From the Noble Savage to the Third World” debunks a lot of the fantastical US media that is guilty of perpetrating the myths of unity and friendship between the two regions. By attacking Disney, Dorfman and Mattelart are striking American culture at its very core.

While in contrast, I found that both American narrated videos seemed quite fond of Latin American locals. Silent War spoke of the immense teamwork between South and North American scientists and expressed sentiments of unity between military pursuits of all the American nations in the global fight against fascism. Journey to Bananaland similarly remarked on the excellent work of the banana farmers, and makes the transaction seem very cohesive between producer and consumer. Overall, the US media conveys an amicable relationship with Latin America that keeps the average American ignorant of the severe negative impact US investment and presence had on many lives. It would be interesting to see a more authentic document produced by an elite from this time, as to their perspective and how aware they were of the negative impacts.

The documents in “Signs of Crisis in a Gilded Age” all illustrate a common paradox of being secure in and proud of the Latin American identity, but insecure and vulnerable with regard to Latin American sovereignty. It seems that Latin American academics and writers express wanting more for their people, yet face internal conflict that holds the region back from reaching its full potential. Zapata’s “The Plan de Ayala” is probably the best example of frustration with internal conflict halting progress for Mexico, with strong themes of disappointment and frustration. It is obvious that development and sovereignty were not issues in Latin America for a lack of ideas and great minds, but in sense the people could not catch a break in time before they were handed from one colonial overlord to the next with the foreign exploitation of their resources becoming another contributing factor to their lack of autonomy.

“To Roosevelt” stands out particularly because it emphasizes both an admiration for the United States, with North America coming from a common history and able to become so powerful, but simultaneously resents the lack of respect the United States has for Latin American autonomy. Darío, however, identifies what makes Latin America special: “the aromatic America of Columbus, Catholic America, Spanish America…” He is successful in depicting Latin America as something more tangible and living than North America and seeks to suggest that soon Latin America will be strong enough to stand-up to the North, but fails to identify how.

Similarly, in the excerpt from “La raza cosmica” it is evident that Latin Americans of this time, whether in agreement with it or not, use North American models and norms to shed light on their own. Here, he supposes that on the question of inter-racial families, unlike the Northern and European norms that are supported by eugenics and taint the blood of Latin America, the future will move towards the pursuit of beauty no matter what race. While his style of writing is sort of brash and vaguely offensive, in the preface, Dawson prompts the reader to put him in the context of his time. In doing so it is more possible to make associations with the world today, and I would argue to some extent, in places where racism is less predominant, and among younger generations, people are more willing to cross racial barriers for love and it often is the case that people tend to procreate with those of similar subjective attractiveness to themselves. While his general insensitivity is a product of the time, I do not think he is completely in error in his analyses of the faults in a race-based culture.

I am including an article from National Geographic, which I thought of as soon as I read Vasconcelos text. Where it predicts in 2050, the United States will cease to have identifiable race: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2013/10/changing-faces/funderburg-text

The export boom is a familiar story for other post-colonial countries. Once the Europeans were removed from government it was a matter of time before the local people began to optimize their resources for their own benefit and establish social hierarchies of their own – both race and gender based; however, this proved to be much more fluid than previously, as questions of progressiveness and modernity followed relatively quickly after. Dawson suggests that the autonomy of these new-formed countries naturally introduced a larger and more significant middle-class in the form of small business owners, lawyers and bureaucrats. While marginalized populations certainly existed, I think the ability of women to enter the workforce (albeit under many constraints) and the more liberal approach to democracy forced issues of race and gender to come into question very quickly after the effects of the export boom began to take form.

The term “order, then progress” Dawson uses to identify this period aligns closely with President Porfirio Díaz’s intention to first establish institutions and develop national wealth in an effort to have a fully functioning democratic state in the future. President Díaz effectively navigated the Mexican people through this time of rapid development and economic prosperity. Creelman portrays Díaz as having a genuine and thorough understanding of the needs of his country and his people.  He identified poverty and crime as the major obstacles for Mexican development, and during his presidency, instituted tougher law enforcement, more efficient public services, transportation for goods, strict limits to religious influence and made schools more accessible. In this time, a middle-class was established and GDP soared. I was most interested in his admiration for democracy, and ability to justify his position as democratic and in the best interest of the Mexican people. He explained to his American interviewer that the failure in democracy he feared was not the re-election of the same individual so much as the lack of opposition at any point in his leadership, which he attributed to his popularity and large network of supporters. The development of Mexico as a republic is extremely interesting as it offers the closest comparison to the United States and Canada as former colonies of Britain. In studying Latin American history, this evaluation helps to isolate and identify what was distinctly Spanish and what narratives are truly Latin American.

This week’s reading of the Caudillos Versus the Nation State as well as “The Slaughterhouse” by Esteban Echeverría helped me to better understand why post-colonial North America is currently so drastically different than post-colonial Latin America, despite sharing a similar history. In part, the vast geography that composes Latin America makes sense of the staunch difference in indigenous relations and political unrest. Because early conquerors of Latin America recognized the indigenous peoples as having a distinct society (something that was not considered in Canada until the 1990’s), the indigenous peoples had become accustomed to being able to operate in their own communities under the protection of strong leadership from the outside. The makeshift alliances created between the conquerors and the Latin American people were key for dominating forces wishing to gain power. Between the recently landed Europeans, the elites, the mixed-race middle and lower classes, and the rural indigenous peoples, it was abundantly clear that independence meant something different for each different group in each distinct area. Some elites longed for tradition and conservatism while others embraced the new wave of liberalism and change. Since they were equally privileged groups, their success at any given time was dictated by how much support they could respectively gain.

“The Slaughterhouse” was written in a detached and somewhat sarcastic tone that exemplifies how genuinely disassociated people of different castes and classes were from each other. For me the details of this story depict a very unfortunate and disturbing series of events. Echeverría’s illustration portrays the actors as savage and uneducated. The way in which the individuals are able to find enemies among a group of those with whom they are relatively similar depicts the intricacy of the caste system, as well as the instability and subsequent violence that plagued their environment. The group ultimately bands together once it identifies a common enemy in the light-skinned passer-by riding English saddle. This illustrates, what Dawson suggests to be, the “great struggle that confronts Latin America, [being] the battle between civilization (read Europe) and backwardness (read dark skinned people of the countryside)”. This story indirectly explains why Latin America was so fractured in the time of caudillos who, because there was so much disagreement and chaos, could only maintain control over small spheres of influence.

Lieutenant Nun, the memoir of Catalina de Erauso, who escaped the convent she was raised in from a young age and carried out the rest of her life disguised as man and travelling the Americas, I found both surprising and fascinating. Her story is surprising from a current perspective because of the uniqueness of her identity at the time, as a transgendered and by most accounts homosexual person. In addition, the details of what took place during her time living as a male are extraordinary for anyone of the time – regardless of gender. It is fascinating because of how she kept her secret and her life against all odds. During her time as a male she travelled the Americas, which would have been an extremely unique opportunity for anyone of the time. In her travels she also astonishingly encounters several family members while maintaining her disguise.

It seemed clear to me that there had to be more motivation behind her running away from the convent. While another, larger nun attacking her may have been a catalyst; she goes on to fight in battles in the face of so much more pain and danger fearlessly. She seems to fuel off this other kind of violent danger, and she lives a good portion of her life electively fighting battles throughout the Americas under a series of different captains. At one point in battle, after losing men of all ranks, she persists to overtake the indigenous chief, “trampling an killing and slaughtering more men than there are numbers”.  Perhaps her secret was so grand that she fought in battle as though she had nothing to lose, making her an incredibly fearless and savage warrior. Catalina de Erauso lived as such a heroic man that when her identity was ultimately revealed the King and Pope were so impressed they actually awarded her for her efforts. I am curious as to whether she wanted to live as a man, or if that was the only opportunity she could take to escape her circumstances in the convent.

Casta Paintings was a fascinating read, as it showed the discrepancy in values between the Spanish elites, and those living in the Americas of all ethnic combinations including European. The opinion of Dr. Andrés Arce y Miranda, that Spaniards would consider the creoles inferior was not unfounded, but it was unpopular with fellow Mexicans who instead embraced the “no te entiendo” racial blending in the New World. Whether people collected the pieces because they identified with the muses or were amazed by them, the paintings were extremely popular throughout the colonies and Europe, particularly among the elites.

Both pieces show another side of history – one that defied social norms. LGBT, and racial groups are still considered marginalized groups in society today.  I think it is a fairly recent phenomenon that we can absorb this history in its entirety. History with narratives, which were accepting of these kinds of differences, was previously more stigmatized in a way that is not actually reflective of the time it represents and what was possible for different people.

The journal of Christopher Columbus outlines his conquest of the New World as though to update the King and Queen of Spain on his progress. He describes the land as more beautiful than anything he has ever seen, and the people he credits as being “well built, finely bodied and handsome in the face” with varying degrees of civility and intelligence which he measured by their ability to bargain and imitate the new language being exposed to them. While he speaks highly of these places his intentions are obviously to enslave the people as well as convert them to Christianity, as well he evaluates the land for its ability to produce resources to be controlled by Spain.

The notion that he has made this journey in the name of the King and Queen as well as Christianity seems to offer him a degree of disassociation. He deceives his crew by reporting inaccurate distances and times; he essentially kidnaps locals, which is more apparent when he recounts a number of them jumping overboard to escape; he also insults locals by declining certain gifts from the locals he deems not sufficient to impress the King and Queen. In comparing the two texts, it is also apparent that there is a level of misreporting as Columbus reports docile cooperative Indians, while The Conquest of Peru notes violence and cruelty towards the Natives particularly when they refuse to adopt Christianity and were firm in their own traditions.

Columbus’ obvious desire to impress the King and Queen also seems to result in him and other of his peers with similar interests embellishing events and findings. These tall tales are noted in the writings of Guaman Poma de Ayala where Canida “said that the people wore clothes and shoes all of gold and silver that they walked on floors of gold and silver and that on their heads and in their hands they carried gold and silver”. In trying to appeal to the church he he contradicts himself particularly at one point by describing the people as without any notable religion, but also remarks on these same people asking if Columbus and his crew had come from heaven and proceeding to come to them “each bringing something and giving thanks to god”. Similarly, when exposed to the Bible, the Inca Atagualpa insisted he only worshiped the Sun as well as wacas and other gods.

The determination and colonial mindset is well illustrated in Columbus’ journal as he explains that his goal is to conquer every island he passes and to reach as many islands as possible in his time. He also captures people for the specific purpose of educating in the Spanish way to bring it back to their people.

My name is Lindsay Chapman and I am a proud Canadian who has lived in Vancouver my entire life. I am an Arts undergraduate student, planning to major in International Relations. In the past, I have had the pleasure of travelling to various Latin American countries, including Ecuador, Mexico, and most recently, Colombia. I have been incredibly inspired by my travels, which is why I am excited to learn more about this part of the world and eventually return to Latin America for work and more travel.

Monserrate, Bogotá