Racism and Ethnic Discrimination in Guatemala - Institute of Latin ...

Racism and Ethnic Discrimination in GuatemalaSimilarly, Amilcar Dávila proposes an analysis undergirded bythe forms in which racism gives meaning, structure to daily life inGuatemala, and at the same time frames a socio-economic, politicaland cultural regime based upon racist premises. Dávila arguesthat it is important to broaden our perspectives and the conceptsused to understand them, in order to comprehend racism as themultidimensional and systemic function of racism in contemporaryGuatemala.Finally, Jiménez analyzes the forms through which racism isproduced and perpetuated in the written media in contemporaryGuatemala. He asks specifically: how are Mayan struggles representedin the discourses articulated within the written media? Jiménez analyzesthe relationship between these discourses and the construction, abuseand exercise of power and how such processes frame and constructracial stereotypes and racist perceptions of indigenous peoples. Ofsignificance then to this author is how constructions within thewritten media contribute to the exercise and practice of racism incontemporary Guatemala.The contribution of this issue then, is the tendency of theauthors to recognize contemporary forms of racism, how they areexercised and practiced, and the interests behind such processes andphenomena. Moreover, the key element stressed by all authors is howthe contemporary “multicultural” state masks ongoing systematicracist practices within the country during the so-called “ post-conflict”period, whilst representing itself as the legitimate result of arepresentative political system constructed as a result of Guatemala’speace process.Roddy Brett and Mar ta Elena Casaús Arzú4STOCKHOLM REVIEW OF LATIN AMERICAN STUDIESIssue No. 6, March 2010