Un mito republicano de armonía racial:raza y patriotismo en Colombia, 1820-1812

• Main Author: Marixa Lasso
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Universidad de los Andes 2007-08-01
• Series: Revista de Estudios Sociales
• Subjects: Wars of Independence; Cartagena; Cádiz constitutions; race; republicanism; racial democracy.
• Online Access: http://res.uniandes.edu.co/view.php/357/1.php

This article argues that the nationalist ideology of racial harmony and equality—which contemporary academics have called the "myth of racial harmony"—emerged during the anti-colonial Hispano-American warsof early nineteenth century. Factorssuch as the participation of blacksand mulattos in the patriot army, the elite's fear of a racial war, and the powerful nationalist ideology that appeared during those wars compelled the the intellectual and ideological aspects of this process. It discusses how citizenship was denied to people of African descent during Constitutional debates in Cadiz, and how patriot discourse, as a result of such debates and the mobilization of blacks and mulattos for the patriots, started to equate the rights of pardos with the fight against the colonial system, and patriotism with racial harmony. A new and powerful nationalist ideology was thus created, influencing race relations over the next two centuries.