Mexican folks as a whole express outrage at the racist remarks coming from the mouth of Donald Trump and similar feelings held by some of his supporters.

Yet many are blind to the bigotry that permeates their own society, even here among lakeside’s ethnically diverse communities.

The country’s indigenous people have been targets of scorn and discrimination ever since Spanish conquistadores landed on its shores nearly 500 years ago. As light-skinned European invaders and the mestizo offspring they engendered grasped on to political and economic power, pure-blood native people were relegated to the bottom of the social ladder where the majority remain to this day and age. 

An article recently published by two print media outlets reveals deeply ingrained prejudices that prevail in our own area. Penned by local reporter Manuel Jacobo under the title, “Hay un racismo latente en Chapala,” the story opens with an account of a woman descended from a Mezcala family who experienced an ugly confrontation with the proprietress of a Chapala beauty parlor. She had taken her daughter there for a hairdo and make-up appointment in preparation for a photo session to capture her quinceañera (15th birthday) portrait.   

When a discussion over the styling ensued, the salon owner became irate, lambasting her dark-skinned customer in offensive terms with the question, “So what is it you want india?” The exchange escalated in tone until the beautician ran the client and her daughter out of the place. 

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