In class we discussed the way a time was seen in the Andes for about a century after the Spanish invasion when things were mostly peaceful and stable. Indigenous people were certainly exploited in many ways, but were given opportunity to be involved in the life and workings of society. The power at the time was decentralized in such a way that things easily remained calm.
As the rulers in Spain began an attempt to form a parallel beaurocracy in the Americas, primarily by Charles III’s initiative, and power was pushed to be centralized, a series of explosions ensued. In terms of Creole identity, one of the first events to occur was their alienation from peninsular Spaniards. Non-Spanish people were excludeed from office and clergy experienced attacks. The Jesuits were even expelled eventually.
The military was formed in the Americas at this point in time. It was an entirely new institutional creation and a source of new privileges. There was now a visible social standing based on military rank and uniform. A census started at this point in time as well, finally ensuring the payment of taxes due to being able to fully account for everyone living in the region. With the census and a new system for taxes, people began to try to prove their ethnicity. Indigenous people wanted to distance themselves from their indigenous roots. The further away from indigenous and the closer to whiteness- the better. Mestisos were half white and half indigenous, a much better situation in terms of social and economic life. This idea of “whitening” is very interesting to me. The greater and greater percentage of Spanish a person had, the higher their status would be. Not only were the higher in society just based on appearance, though, they also had many more opportunities and more money. It is really amazing that this kind of social stratification could all be so precisely based upon this kind of racial makeup.
I was also shocked at how much the Spanish relied on race. It defined not only who they were in a social context but also their innate characteristics. People actually believed your personality and behavior to be the results of your race.
I was also amazed by how many different racial categories existed. It is a real shame that people felt so compelled to turn themselves into something they were not destined to be. All people should want to better themselves, but a person being ashamed of what race they are or what they look like is never a positive situation.