Afro-Mexicans Seek Legal Recognition to Fight Anti-Black Racism teleSUR
go to original November 4, 2015

Mexico is one of only two Latin American nations that does not recognize Afro-descendants as a distinct ethnicity. (teleSUR)

Mexico’s Afro-descendants are pushing for a bill to gain legal recognition in the national constitution as a way to combat anti-Black racism in the country, local media reported Tuesday.

The bill, supported by various senators and deputies, would formally recognize the existence of Mexico’s Afro-descendents so that they can be included in the national census and gain access to social services.

"We are joining senators and deputies to be recognized in the Federal Constitution and the missing federal states, so that the Mexican state pays off its historical debt with Afro-Mexicans,” said Sergio Peñaloza Pérez, leader of the advocacy group Black Mexico (Mexico Negro).

Pérez, whose organization has been fighting for over 15 years to gain legal recognition for Mexico’s half-a-million Afro-descendants, says he hopes this will translate into allocating funds for the “economic, cultural and social development of Afro-Mexican communities."

Read the rest at teleSUR

Related: Blaxican: The Revolutionary Identity of Black Mexicans (teleSUR)

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