Colorism Biases in Mexican Telenovelas

Colorism

Colorism in Latin America is an issue that plagues the community, particularly in Mexico. The cultural and economic contributions of Afro-Mexicans are under-appreciated because of the discrimination based on skin tone. Colorism, or skin color stratification, is a process that privileges light-skinned people of color over dark in areas such as income, education, housing, and the marriage market. [1] Between 1576 and 1650, 200,00 to 250,000 Africans were brought as slaves to Mexico. The Africans slaves mixed with the native population and created a racial mix. After Mexico’s independence, there was procreation between the indigenous people and the Spanish. The procreation between the Africans and Mexicans is far less recognized than the ethnic makeup resulting from the procreation between the Spanish and Mexican.

Statistics

In the United States, according to the 2010 census, Black Hispanics account for 2.5 percent of the 54 million Hispanics in the United States. Scholars and political organizations have complained saying those numbers are inaccurate and signed petitions for a new racial category of Afro-Latinos.[3]

Colorism in Mexico Today

Afro-Mexicans are still unrecognized in Mexico. They face daily racism and are treated as outcasts from society. According to an article on the seattleglobalist.com by senior reporter Maya Sanchez et al., In Cuernavaca, Mexico, people of black African descent make up a significant minority group in Mexico, yet some Mexicans report that their society does not acknowledge this fact. 81-year-old Luz Maria Martinez, who lives in Cuernavaca, is a specialist in African Languages and culture and works to promote the recognition of Afro-descendants in Mexico. She points out that nobody wants to claim the relationship between their black descendants. She remembers that as a 9-year-old, there were people in her family who were dark skinned and did not identify as descendants of Africans. [4] Dark skin Mexicans still remain at the bottom of the social ladder. CNN states “on television, in politics, and in academia, you see light-skinned people. On construction sites, in police forces and in restaurant kitchens, you're more likely to find those who are dark-skinned. In the priciest neighborhoods, the homeowners have light skin, and the housekeepers are dark. Everyone knows this, and yet no one talks about it, at least not in elite circles.”[5] In the study Racial Identity and Racial Treatment of Mexican Americans, researchers Vilma Ortiz and Edward Telles explores how racial barriers play a role in the lives of Mexican Americans by looking at how social interactions, education, racial characteristics, etc. relate to social outcomes. They found that darker Mexican Americans report more experiences of discrimination, darker men report a lot more discrimination than lighter men and than women overall. The study also found that more educated Mexicans reported more discrimination and stereotyping than the less educated Mexicans due to their greater contact with Whites.[6]

Biases in Mexican Telenovelas

By simply turning on popular Latin TV networks such as Univision or Telemundo we come face to face with the scarcity of Black and Brown leading TV show characters. The more Eurocentric they look, the more chances they have to advance in their media careers. Some people with brown complexion might be allowed, but the rest are outcasts. Hence, lighter skin tones are given privileges over darker skins- resulting in on going colorism biases. Latin TV networks play huge roles in reproducing and carrying on the racial hierarchies that exist in Latin America. [3] Case in point, Univision- which is the largest Spanish language broadcaster in the U.S. Which is why when Univision anchor Rodner Figueroa uttered deeply racist and discriminatory comment comparing our prior First Lady Michelle Obama to ‘Planet of the Apes’ cast it was not a surprise. The incident simply reflected norms that even in this day and age continues to dominate Hispanic television. However, as a response, Univision acted quickly and fired the anchor due to the networks’ involvement in several projects with the Obama Administration, as well as, to avoid extended negative media coverage and its effect on networks’ already battered finances.[3]

Univision's portrayal of social class exploitation, racist ideologies, and colorism biases are repetitive for guaranteed TV ratings.[6] Let’s look at old time Telenovelas such as MariMar, Soñadoras, and Luz Clarita- all consisted light skinned Latinos as leading characters. If we google top Telenovela stars it becomes evident that an overwhelming number of them resembles European actors/actresses. For example, Cristina Campuzano from Colombia’s Telenovela “La Niña” looks a lot like Sarah Paulson from “American Horror Story.” [7] These whitewashed media shows perpetuate the message that lighter features are superior, whereas, dark, black, and indigenous features are inferior or nonexistent. White passing Latinos exist, but so does other Latinos. The preferred and privileged representation of White Latinos in Telenovelas makes it seem like they are the only Latinos that exist, which erases the afro and indigenous Latinos as a whole. Even when they (Afro and indigenous Latinos) are represented on Telenovelas, they are cast for inferior roles of servants, gardeners, maids, thieves, etc. Thus, darker skin toned people are continued to be portrayed as ‘bad’ or ‘less.’

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