Bigotry Quote by Amalia Mesa-Bains
““When you were talking about the caste system, I was thinking about how Mexicans still have to come to terms with this in our own culture. We spoke earlier about the castas paintings that were made during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries in Mexico. The Spanish, establishing a form of racial apartheid, delineate the fifty-three categories of racial mixtures between Africans, Indians, and the Spanish. And they have names, like tiente en el aire, which means stain in the air; and salta otras, which means jump back; or mulatto, a word that comes from mula, the unnatural mating between the horse and the donkey. “Sambo” is now a racial epithet in the US, but it was first used as one of the fifty-three racial categories in the castas paintings.””
About This Quote
Source Book: The Art of the Castas Paintings, Amalia Mesa-Bains, 2015
The quote highlights how historical racial classifications in Mexico echo modern racial issues, showing how colonial caste systems persist in cultural memory.
In simple terms: Historical caste labels still affect modern views on race.
Key Takeaway
Recognize and challenge lingering colonial racial categories.
Themes
colonial
race
history
culture
memory
Mood
reflective
critical
inquisitive
Type
historical
social commentary
When to use this quote
- museum curation
- academic research
- public education
- social activism
Key Concepts
caste system
colonialism
racial classification
Questions to Reflect On
- How do we dismantle inherited racial categories?
- What role can art play in confronting historical racism?
A Different Perspective
These classifications can oversimplify complex identities and may be resisted by those they label.
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