Accuracy, size of Afro Peruvian population, relations with other Peruvians, etc.
There were some aspects I would have clarified. For example, one of the earliest cases of a Black person going to college was in La Catolica of Peru. But, with classism, most did not have that opportunity. Nowadays the entrance is purely by exam, so a Black person has equal possiblity to get in to the university, but there are Academies after school that prepare you for the exam that most poor people do not have access to. Then you have class and job opportunities. Many businesses which are controled by higher castes where racism is the most prevalent will not hire the more indigenous or African looking people. The 90% discrimination claim was correct. The majority of opportunities and control is in the hands of a tiny minority. I would correct the claim that they are Whites though. There are many poor Whites that do not belong to that hegemony. Also that inner hegemony is actually composed of European, Asian, Middle Eastern decent people as well as people of mixed ancestry but with less marked features by majority, and to the Afro and Indigenous population, many just become White faces, while the Europeans who live in humbler conditions and actually look like many mestizos in their short height and what not are seen as just part of the criollo masses, not the white elite. Even though many would still probably check blanco in their auto description (as do many mestizos).
An example is on my father's side of the family some are lighter skinned European decent and are called blancos, but they are also considered Shilicos that are seen as serranos, another term applied to indigenous people. In Lima, when Shilicos migrate to the coast, you don't see them hanging out with the Ladino descent mostly European people who are the elite, they hang out with the rest of the masses of creoles.
My abuela (middle) was a Shilica, while the wife of my uncle (second to the left) was a White poor Limeña:
Even in Celendin, which most people call "White Serranos", the lines have blurred a lot.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIhkWknOdlw http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNaTacJmtCw
(Second one is a group of kids from Celendin goofing off)
These people probably identify as White. Yet, for most it would be hard to draw the line between them and a mestizo. Yet, when someone pops up light skinned, not part of the hegemony, they assume Shilico, Oxapampeño, or any of the other enclaves that have poor Eurodescent people who are lightskinned.
What are some of the cultural differences between Pervians and Mexicans from your experiences?
Except for the Veracruz and Guerrero regions, there is a lot more denial of the Afro roots. In a lot of things I found them culturally very similar. They even adpted an Afroperuvian dance called Zamacueca, but they call it Chilena.
What are some of the cultural differences between Pervians and Mexicans from your experiences?
Except for the Veracruz and Guerrero regions, there is a lot more denial of the Afro roots. In a lot of things I found them culturally very similar. They even adpted an Afroperuvian dance called Zamacueca, but they call it Chilena.
Could this denial be due to, among other things, the size of the Afro-Mexican population and the lack of wide-spread African cultural influences in Mexico? Correct me if I'm wrong, but it appears that a sizeable amount of mainstream Peruvian culture is African or Afro-Peruvian influenced in terms of music and dance. I assume the Afro-Peruvian population is a larger percentage of the Peruvian population compared to the Afro-Mexican population in Mexico. Are Afro-Peruvians just as geographically isolated as in Mexico and Ecuador? Is there substantial out marriage in that population?
What are some of the cultural differences between Pervians and Mexicans from your experiences?
Except for the Veracruz and Guerrero regions, there is a lot more denial of the Afro roots. In a lot of things I found them culturally very similar. They even adpted an Afroperuvian dance called Zamacueca, but they call it Chilena.
Could this denial be due to, among other things, the size of the Afro-Mexican population and the lack of wide-spread African cultural influences in Mexico? Correct me if I'm wrong, but it appears that a sizeable amount of mainstream Peruvian culture is African or Afro-Peruvian influenced in terms of music and dance. I assume the Afro-Peruvian population is a larger percentage of the Peruvian population compared to the Afro-Mexican population in Mexico. Are Afro-Peruvians just as geographically isolated as in Mexico and Ecuador? Is there substantial out marriage in that population?
Well, it's debated. CIA states less than 1% Other sources I have seen state about 5% Afrodescent. An investigative book called Los Afroperuanos states as high as 10 to 15% ala Ecuador. I definitely think the Stats of of self identified Afrodescent are lower, but I'm not sure how much it's true genetically. Mexico has had a large cultural influence that is Afro but much more diffused and forgotten, from the Marimbas, to the Chilena, to the Son Jarocho/Jaropo (Of which la Bamba is a member of the genre). Peru also has regional areas that have been more influenced. COuld be, as you say, the size of Mexico.
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