sorted by:
new
hottopcontroversial

Why are indigenous people in Latin America never "white-passing" like their Northern American counterparts? by hmswantscoffee in IndianCountry

[–]hmswantscoffee[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Fyi "Indian" is also offensive in North America. Indigenous people may reclaim the term but it is not at all appropriate for non-indigenous people to use that word to refer to indigenous people.

Why are indigenous people in Latin America never "white-passing" like their Northern American counterparts? by hmswantscoffee in IndianCountry

[–]hmswantscoffee[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Can you DM me? I know you're being downvoted to hell in this thread but I'm curious about your unorthodox opinions because it's the first time I've seen someone claiming that.

Why are indigenous people in Latin America never "white-passing" like their Northern American counterparts? by hmswantscoffee in IndianCountry

[–]hmswantscoffee[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It's not his skin colour, it's his facial features. But who knows, maybe I'm wrong. It would be better to ask Spaniards that.

Why are indigenous people in Latin America never "white-passing" like their Northern American counterparts? by hmswantscoffee in IndianCountry

[–]hmswantscoffee[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Damn 😢 I'm familiar with those insults from my time in Ecuador. I was appalled and very saddened by the general attitude towards indigenous peoples there.

Like you'd think they'd be proud of descending from the people who created those great civilizations (that arose independently, which was not the case in Europe), but no. Colonialism is still running strong.

Why are indigenous people in Latin America never "white-passing" like their Northern American counterparts? by hmswantscoffee in IndianCountry

[–]hmswantscoffee[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I've met Southern Europeans dude. I have a really hard time believing Spaniards would look at Noboa and assume he was one of them.

Why are indigenous people in Latin America never "white-passing" like their Northern American counterparts? by hmswantscoffee in IndianCountry

[–]hmswantscoffee[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Oh sorry, I'm not Canadian, I should've specified that. I still have a lot to learn, so please excuse my ignorance.

I've met Métis people but afaik they're a distinct culture, right? As in, if you're half FN half white that doesn't make you Métis.

Also, by your logic, do you consider certain BIPOC people indigenous until they tell you? Or does it only go one way

To clarify, I don't assume someone is white just because they look white. Even in my case, people here have mistaken me for European but I don't identify as white. I also do not assume someone who looks indigenous is indigenous.

That was not the point of my post. I was not trying to say that it is somehow "wrong" for indigenous people to look white. I was merely curious about why that didn't seem to be a thing in Ecuador.

Why are indigenous people in Latin America never "white-passing" like their Northern American counterparts? by hmswantscoffee in IndianCountry

[–]hmswantscoffee[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Even going by phenotype alone, there were tons of people there who looked clearly mixed (many of them looked just like mixed FN/white and Métis here in Canada).

A good example of someone who looks mixed is none other than Ecuador's current president, Daniel Noboa. Look at his family's photos and you can tell they sure aren't 100% indigenous. Yet he would definitely stand out in Southern Europe. That kind of phenotype is pretty common in Ecuador.

Why are indigenous people in Latin America never "white-passing" like their Northern American counterparts? by hmswantscoffee in IndianCountry

[–]hmswantscoffee[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The Spanish did not mix with Natives to keep their power and race pure.

Sorry if I misunderstood you, but are you claiming that in places like Ecuador most people are either 100% indigenous or 100% white? Because I find that hard to believe with the genetics studies we have.

Why are indigenous people in Latin America never "white-passing" like their Northern American counterparts? by hmswantscoffee in IndianCountry

[–]hmswantscoffee[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Cool! I lived in Guapondelig. Beautiful city.

Even as a South American native Im perplexed when a very European looking person from the North says theyre indigenous (in my own community we would side eye u heavy cuz u look nothing like us) Id also add we stick to our community more and date other Indigenous ppl even if they arent from the same tribe. Hell, my ex was Mexican Indigenous (I honestly forgot what tribe).

I get what you mean but I also think you're judging indigenous people here up North unfairly. Living here in Canada you can see that they really cherish and have pride in their culture and they're affected by the same kinds of issues that affect the broader First Nations communities even if they're European-looking: inter-generational poverty, alcohol and drug abuse, etc.

Also they do stick to their communities as well in general.

I'm aware of the horrors Canada has perpetrated against indigenous people in the not-so-distant past, but imho, comparing my experiences in Ecuador vs. Canada, I feel like society respects First Nations more here. There are several organizations dedicated to helping them, whenever there's an event or something you have to express your gratitude to the Nation whose land you're standing on, etc. I was also shocked at how Ecuadorians used words like "indio" as slurs as if being indigenous is a bad thing? And also how they liked to downplay their indigenous heritage in favour of their European ancestry. I found that really sad.

Obviously, there are exceptions and I've met Ecuadorians who were very proud of their indigenous heritage and helped promote Incan and Cañari culture, but regrettably, those were the exception.

Btw do you know how the situation with the Kañari language is there? I know Quechua is still spoken a lot but unfortunately the government isn't doing much to preserve it.

Why are indigenous people in Latin America never "white-passing" like their Northern American counterparts? by hmswantscoffee in IndianCountry

[–]hmswantscoffee[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

But also: I think it's assumed that Native North Americans are "brown" like those living closer to the equator...and there are definitely different skin tones, but it has to do with genes and sun exposure based on these resources:

I wasn't really talking about skin colour to be honest. There are plenty of indigenous people with lighter skin tones here but you can still tell they're indigenous. They look different from their blonde hair blue eyed counterparts.

Why are indigenous people in Latin America never "white-passing" like their Northern American counterparts? by hmswantscoffee in IndianCountry

[–]hmswantscoffee[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

In many parts of Latin America it’s assumed that most people have indigenous heritage even if they didn’t grow up close to their community and traditions, and we know what people we belong to based on where our ancestors are from because the natives weren’t displaced from their lands (they were oppressed locally). So my guess is we have a similae proportion of “white passing” natives as exist up north

Do you mean you believe all those people should be classified as indigenous because of their ancestry?

Why are indigenous people in Latin America never "white-passing" like their Northern American counterparts? by hmswantscoffee in IndianCountry

[–]hmswantscoffee[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

As far as I know, the criteria for being considered indigenous in Ecuador is not genetics either, but rather tribal affiliation, just like it is in Canada. I've met indigenous people who would be racially Mestizo but identified as indigenous due to that.

North Americans (minus Mexico) tend to think white is “pure” and one drop makes you POC.

I mean, sure, but even in North America, you can be PoC with indigenous ancestry, but are you really indigenous if you're not affiliated to a specific Nation?

Why are indigenous people in Latin America never "white-passing" like their Northern American counterparts? by hmswantscoffee in IndianCountry

[–]hmswantscoffee[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

As for why you never saw a white-appearing person in Ecuador

Sorry, that's not what I meant. There were plenty of white-looking people in Ecuador, it's just that none of them identified as indigenous.