Among Latins with darker skin, about 41% said they had been discriminated against or mistreated by another Latino, and 42% said they had been discriminated against by non-Latins, according to the survey. Latins with lighter skin said they experienced discrimination, but not as much as Latins with darker skin. The researchers found that about 25% of those surveyed said the discrimination came from other Latins, while 29% said they were non-Latins, the report said. Although there was no comprehensive analysis of how respondents identified their heritage, the survey showed that Latinos’s country of influence affects their experience of discrimination. About a third of Latins born outside the United States or in Puerto Rico said they had been discriminated against or treated unfairly by another Latino, the survey found. In a previous report, Pew researchers said that 40% of respondents said that discrimination based on race or skin color is about the same in both their country of birth and the United States. Ana Gonzalez-Barrera, a senior fellow at the Pew Research Center, said the report highlights an aspect of Latin American discrimination that has not been widely studied in the past. “The experiences of Latins who are discriminated against within the group are not discussed much,” said Gonzalez-Barrera. “There is not much research, at least not something you can point out.” Overall, Latins said they were criticized for speaking Spanish in public (23%), calling them offensive names (20%), and almost all said they occasionally or often heard Latin friends and family members make racist, indiscriminate comments or jokes. Gonzalez-Barrera said researchers had found that younger Latins were more likely to report hearing these comments or being discriminated against than those aged 65 and over. The survey shows that half of Latins aged 18 to 29 reported hearing these racist indiscriminate comments addressed to Latins and non-Latins. About 38% of Latinos aged 65 and over said they had heard other Latins make similar comments. Latinos with college experience were more likely to say the same than those with a lower level of education, the researchers said. The coloration is deep in Spanish and social mobility in parts of Latin America depends heavily on a person’s skin tone for generations, experts say. “There is still a belief in popular culture – whether it is subconscious or not – that if you marry someone lighter than you, you are more likely to move upward,” Maria Peña, a spokeswoman for the Library of Congress, told CNN. In the wake of the assassination of George Floyd, activists across the United States and top Latin American leaders said it was time for Latins to look into and fight racism and color. “We were silent when our tins encouraged us to work with people who have lighter skin than us, so that we could improve the breed. “We have hated ourselves for the color of our skin, the texture of our hair, our curves and our tones,” the leaders of prominent organizations wrote in a letter published in The Miami Herald. Months later, an incident between a Latina and a black teenager in New York showed how anti-black sentiment is embedded in the Latino community. Miya Ponsetto was seen on video attacking a 14-year-old boy who was with his father at the Arlo Hotel and accusing the boy of stealing her mobile phone, the Manhattan Prosecutor’s Office said. Investigators later found that the teenager did not answer her phone. Ponceto insisted that the tribe did not play a role in the incident. Earlier this year, she pleaded guilty to second-degree unlawful imprisonment as a hate crime.
