“They Are Not Truly Indigenous People”: Social Representations and Prejudice against Indigenous People in Argentina

  • Alicia Barreiro FLACSO-Argentina; Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET); Universidad de Buenos Aires
  • Joaquín Ungaretti Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET); Universidad de Buenos Aires
  • Edgardo Etchezahar Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET); Universidad de Buenos Aires; Centro Interdisciplinario de Investigaciones en Psicología Matemática y Experimental (CIIPMECONICET)
  • Cecilia Wainryb University of Utah
Keywords: indigenous, social representations, subtle prejudice, blatant prejudice, collective memory

Abstract

In Argentina, as well as in many countries, indigenous people have been the target of prejudice for centuries. This situation mostly dates to the “Conquest of the Desert”, a military campaign waged by the Argentine government against the indigenous population during the late 19th century. Although in the last three decades, indigenous groups’ claims for reparation and equal social rights have increased in visibility, most are still victims of cultural segregation and poverty. This study analyzes the relations among social representations and prejudice against indigenous people in a small city, where the descendants of both military people and the European immigrants who arrived at the  beginning of the 20th century to settle in the “conquered” lands, live alongside descendants of the Mapuche indigenous groups who originally inhabited that same territory. Our analyses suggest a contradiction in the attempts to vindicate the indigenous people while maintaining their subordinated and segregated status in the community. That opposition is reinforced by imaginary frontiers created by the organization of urban spaces and representations of the relations between past and present that relegate indigenous people to the past and place them into the poorest and most violent neighborhood, implicitly marking them as criminals. Hence, social representations may be at the basis of the subtle expressions of prejudice that are very frequent. However, when the inhabitants of the city have to actually face indigenous people who are not clearly very different from them and when these indigenous people’s claims become more visible, more blatant forms of prejudice become manifest.

Author Biographies

Alicia Barreiro, FLACSO-Argentina; Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET); Universidad de Buenos Aires

ALICIA BARREIRO, PhD is Professor of Developmental Psychology at the University of Buenos Aires and at the Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences (FLACSO-Argentina), and researcher at the National Scientific and Technological Research Council (CONICET-Argentina). Her research interests are focused on the construction of social knowledge and moral development of children, adolescents and adults. Also, her current work explores how social  injustices, collective memory and moral judgements constrain intergroup relations and social reasoning. email: abarreiro@flacso.org.ar

Joaquín Ungaretti, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET); Universidad de Buenos Aires

JOAQUÍN UNGARETTI, PhD is Professor of Social Psychology at the University of Buenos Aires and National University of Lomas de Zamora. He is also researcher at the National Scientific and Technological Research Council (CONICET-Argentina). His work explores how prejudice influences on how people think about, feel about, and behave towards others based on group membership. He is actually researching on subtle and blatant forms of prejudice toward different minority outgroups, and on the efficacy of techniques for reducing prejudice and discrimination. His research further explores how members of traditionally disadvantaged groups justify and legitimize the status-quo. email: jungaretti@psi.uba.ar

Edgardo Etchezahar, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET); Universidad de Buenos Aires; Centro Interdisciplinario de Investigaciones en Psicología Matemática y Experimental (CIIPMECONICET)

EDGARDO ETCHEZAHAR, PhD is Professor of Social Psychology at the University of Buenos Aires and National University of Lomas de Zamora. He also is also researcher at the National Scientific and Technological Research Council (CONICET-Argentina). His research focuses on the study of stereotypes, prejudice and discrimination towards different social groups. In particular, he studies how different psychosocial variables affect the emergence and maintenance of prejudice. email: edgardoetchezahar@psi.uba.ar

Cecilia Wainryb, University of Utah

CECILIA WAINRYB, PhD is Professor of Developmental Psychology at the Department of Psychology, University of Utah. Her areas of research interest are social and moral development, especially among youth exposed to political conflict and war. email: wainryb@psych.utah.edu

Published
2020-06-10