The survival of Argentina’s institutional racism under its Constitution
There is a false narrative that we need to address when it comes to the Afro or Black Latino community: that in Latin America, multiethnic as it is, they are free from systemic racism and racial violence.
Following the death of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, and in striking coincidence with The United Nations International Decade for People of Afro Descent 2015–2024, the world has witnessed a global uprising against structural racism, with many Latin American countries denouncing this practice as well. In the most unequal region in the world, however, racialized bias is nothing new, as Black or people of Afro descent are one of the most marginalized in the Americas.
The hierarchical ethnic structures imposed on Black people, as well as Indigenous peoples, predate the modern Latino society. During the time of colonial slavery, between 1500 and 1867, around 12,5 million enslaved people were forcefully brought to the Americas from Africa. Around 40% of slaves disembarked in Brazil, while the rest were taken to other entry points in Latin America, like Montevideo (Uruguay), Buenos Aires (Argentina), Habana (Cuba), Cartagena (Colombia). European colonialism — or invasion, if you may- established and thrived off a system of slavery that became the very foundation of a long history of systematic and structural racism in the region.
A case in point, Argentina. In Argentina you often hear the statement “there are no black people here”, prompting the question why would the locals even utter such a statement. Is it out of pride, shame, or a simple observation? Buenos Aires is a cosmopolitan city with vibrant cultural life but, unlike other Latin-American countries, there are virtually very few to no Black people.
In 2005, a pilot population census counting Black and Argentinians of Afro descent was conducted for the first time since 1887, in an attempt to collect data on the demographics of the respective ethnicity. Various NGOs estimate that the number of Afro-Argentinians to be between 4% and 6% of the total population of 40 million. However, the official 2010 census, in which for the first time introduced the question of self-recognition and ethnic origin, indicated their number to be a mere 149.400. The data are noticeably inconsistent, revealing an evident lack of information on the exact number of people of Afro descent and their respective socioeconomic conditions. The predicament of racial misrepresentation and invisibility clearly transcends the social sphere of a nation, where attesting to being a descendant of European migrants is a source of pride.
Black people or people of Afro descent in Argentina, as is the case across the region, tend to have low paying jobs with no social benefits, and are more likely to work within the margins of the significantly large informal economy. It comes as no surprise then that, among the top 100 companies in Argentina (32% of which are of local origin- the rest are transnational corporations), there is no one single Black CEO. The absence of inclusive public policies, particularly for the labor market, low school attendance and the lack of quality education among Afro-Argentinians only exacerbates their ongoing poverty levels. The legacy of slavery runs deep into the social compact of a nation that negates racism, and excludes Argentinian citizens of African descent from its official economic, social and political life.
In Latin America, segregation is compound by race and class, with the latter being determined by the former. Social hierarchies and inequities are ethnic and color-based: the darker the skin color, the lower the socioeconomic status, and the fewer opportunities available. This phenomenon is also known as color inequality or “pigmentocracy”, as was coined by Chilean anthropologist Alejandro Lipschutz, in the 1940’s.
A noteworthy ideological precursor to take into account is a racist element inscribed in the Argentinian Constitution. Article 25 explicitly encourages the immigration of European settlers, establishing up to this day a strong Eurocentric national identity. Because of this, Black and Indigenous peoples, in other words black and brown people, are thought and treated as invisible and second-class citizens. There is an evident distinction of ethnicities in the country, which is reinforced through the “cancelling” of Black and Indigenous cultures and their historical contribution. The Eurocentric ideology, as is pronounced in Article 25 of the National Constitution of Argentina, encouraging White-European over non-European migration, with evident legal implications, has notably survived seven constitutional reforms between 1860 and 1994.
This highlights the correlation between the Constitution and the insidious nature of racial disparities in the nation’s social, economic and political life.
A report published by ECLAC (the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean) in 2017, has put in evidence that the Constitutions of countries like Argentina fail to make reference to national communities of African descent, Black populations, race or ethnicity. The undemocratic nature of the Argentinian Constitution, similarly to the US Constitution one could claim, makes one thing clear: the premise of political power from its founding was meant to be circumscribed to the white elite, denying the same constitutional rights to Black and Indigenous people.
There are moments in time when governments recognize that transformative change is critical for the survival of democracy. Revisiting and overhauling national Constitutions to reflect social evolution is a notion that needs to be considered seriously by policymakers. As the tool that provides the legal framework nations need to operate, the Constitution should direct but also reflect the society it organizes politically. In other words, guide firmly and adapt flexibly to the needs of a modern world.
The lack of information caused by systemic statistical invisibility in Argentina, and a political system that disproportionately favors white representation over black and brown communities, underscores the importance of accurate demographics and a more inclusive and aspiring upcoming census. Inter-generational racial disparities and bias are so pervasive in the Argentinian cultural fabric that they perpetuate the cycle of black disadvantage and vulnerability, and this needs to be quantified properly through strong social indicators.
If we are meant to move beyond a dysfunctional democracy and lip service, we need to recognize the need to right past wrongs, and overturn institutional racism derived by a racist constitutional system. As Covid-19 continues to exacerbate the inequalities in the region, it is pivotal for governments to embrace affirmative actions across the board. Democratic public institutions ought to dismantle systems perpetuating racial inequities, implement inclusive policies emphasizing ethno-racial disparities, while empowering marginalized, undermined communities stripped off their humanity and dignity.
