Incongruencias en las acciones antirracistas del Estado peruano

Structural racism is one of the greatest obstacles to the democratization of Latin America. In this century, citizens from Indigenous peoples and the African diaspora have successfully pushed national and international political institutions to intensify efforts to overcome this issue. This article demonstrates the inconsistencies within the actions of the Peruvian State. To this end, I examine (i) the universalization of higher education through the Beca 18 program, (ii) the prior consultation process concerning Indigenous territories, and (iii) the elimination of discrimination against the Afro-Peruvian population. These inconsistencies lead to cultural assimilation of non-Hispanic groups, denying their recognition in the first case, and to the racialization of social differences, which is in line with the objectives of racism, in the second and third cases. Both the assimilation of non-Hispanic groups and the updating of racial categories within state discourse validate core beliefs rooted in Western colonial racist ideologies. Finally, I discuss the possibilities for overcoming racism through cultural change without losing sight that the official categories of social diversity are also embedded in economic and political structures.