Brazil's Enduring Shadow: How Anglo-Saxon Racial Ideas Still Shape a Nation

Anglo-Saxon racial hierarchy shapes Brazil's culture & economy, challenging the myth of racial democracy and revealing deep-seated inequalities.

Brazil, a land celebrated for its vibrant cultural mix and often touted as a "racial democracy," finds itself grappling with a more complex reality beneath the surface of its multicultural image. A recent policy brief from the BRICS Policy Center, authored by Linjie Chou Zanadu, delves into the intricate ways in which the dominant Anglo-Saxon racial hierarchy has profoundly impacted the cultural and economic fabric of Brazilian society. This insightful document, "The Political Economy of the Anglo-Saxon Racial Hegemony in Brazil," argues that despite Brazil's historical ties to the Luso-Colonial world and its narratives of miscegenation, North American and British racial ideals have taken root, shaping everything from beauty standards to economic disparities.

The BRICS Policy Center, an independent think tank linked to the Institute of International Relations of PUC-Rio, aims to contribute to the advancement of development, rights, and equality in the Global South through critical knowledge production. This policy brief, published in February 2024, offers a compelling analysis that challenges conventional understandings of race relations in Brazil. It posits that the adoption of racial categorizations derived from Anglo-Saxon thought has become a significant force in shaping modern Brazilian cultural and economic dynamics. Furthermore, the brief connects this phenomenon to the Neo-Marxist concept of the core-periphery structure, traditionally used to analyze the economic divide between the Global North and South.

The Lingering Myth of Racial Democracy

For decades, the idea of "racial democracy" has been presented as Brazil's unique approach to navigating racial differences, suggesting a society where racial discrimination is absent. However, Zanadu's analysis, drawing on a wealth of existing scholarship, argues that this concept is largely a myth, serving as a "hypocritic disguise to cover up everyday reality". Authors like Vargas (2004), Pinho (2009), Dennison (2013), and Silva and Paixão (2014) are cited to support the claim that racial democracy obscures the persistent racial inequalities in Brazil.

The policy brief highlights how this myth was built on the notion that miscegenation would improve and "whiten" the Brazilian population. This idea, while seemingly promoting integration, inadvertently contributed to a process of "de-Africanization". Moreover, the historical context of Latin America's engagement with European and North American narratives of scientific racism, which posited the inferiority of non-white populations, further complicates the picture. While Latin American nations developed their own narratives around mestizaje or mestiçagem as evidence of a "cosmic race," this often masked underlying hierarchies and the recontextualization of "racial inferiority" associated with darker skin.

The Lusophone perspective on race, centered on mestiçagem, emerged within a colonial context where sexual control was exerted over both colonizers and the colonized. Beneath the rhetoric of democratic mixing lay a hierarchical discourse on "whitening". Even Gilberto Freyre's influential narrative of Brazilian identity, while celebrating miscegenation, drew from Portuguese exceptionalism and obscured the racialized social and economic inequalities. The idea that skin color does not hinder identity or social integration, a cornerstone of the racial democracy myth, is contradicted by the persistent social hierarchies, class divisions, and economic disparities that are deeply intertwined with race in Brazil.

Furthermore, Brazilian liberals historically shared a desire to transform their society to become whiter, driven in part by the allure of belonging to the "free world" and the popularity of liberal thought. This led to a "colonization of the mind," where Brazilian elites often measured societal success against Euro-American parameters. The consequence of promoting racial democracy in this context was the confinement of racial discussions largely to the public administrative sphere, potentially restricting research on the oppressors and the mechanisms of oppression. In everyday life, the concept of "whiteness" continues to justify socio-economic and cultural advantages, with racial hierarchy and structural racism manifesting in subtle and explicit ways. The "measure of whiteness" in Brazil extends beyond skin color to include hair texture and even nasal structure, demonstrating a preference for phenotypical features closer to Northern Europeans.

The Enduring Influence of Anglo-Saxon Racial Thought

The policy brief argues that despite the Luso-Brazilian history, modern Brazilian society's cultural mode relies more on North American discourse, particularly concerning race. This influence is deeply rooted in the historical development of "scientific racism" in the 19th century, which, similar to commercial globalization, transcended national boundaries and accompanied the spread of goods and popular cultures. This framework created a dichotomy between the "developed" and "undeveloped," "modern" and "primitive," often aligning with racial categorizations. These ideas, along with dominant development studies, originated predominantly in North American and British academia.

The rise of scientific racism is linked to 19th-century colonization, with much of its discourse building on earlier cultural geography centered on ethnic nationalism. While figures like Carl Linnaeus and Arthur de Gobineau (who even served as a French diplomat in Brazil) contributed to the theoretical underpinnings, Anglo-Saxon nations played a crucial role in the indoctrinatory introduction of these ideas, shaping the prevailing mindset. The Darwinian theory of human evolution further energized scientific racism, providing a seemingly biological justification for British colonial agendas and the idea that certain races were more "fit" or evolved.

The early 20th-century eugenic movement, a trans-Atlantic endeavor between Britain and the United States, aimed to "improve" the human race through selective breeding. In this context, American zoologist Madison Grant developed a theory positioning Anglo-Saxon groups as central to the Nordic and Germanic races, embodying values like democracy, liberty, and individualism. Grant's ideas influenced American immigration policy, advocating for restrictions on immigrants from Eastern and Southern Europe and Asia to preserve the perceived Anglo-Saxon heritage. Notably, even after World War I, Iberians (a significant part of the Brazilian elite) and the Irish were not always considered "White" within this framework, highlighting the hierarchical nature of these racial ideologies.

This idealization of Nordic descent as a preferred type of whiteness extended to other Anglo-Saxon nations like Australia and New Zealand, where discriminatory immigration policies favored Nordic immigrants until the 1960s. Even within these hierarchies, Scandinavians were sometimes viewed as superior to British immigrants. This historical context underscores the pervasive influence of Nordicism, the belief in the superiority of Nordic peoples, within the broader Anglo-Saxon racial framework.

Nordicism as a Tool of Anglo-Saxon Racial Hegemony

The policy brief argues that "Scientific racism and the fascination of the North are the main engines for the Anglo-Saxon narratives of racial hegemony". Nordicism, in the Anglo-Saxon interpretation, became linked to the fundamental cultural and kinship roots of the British, particularly through the Viking era. The Victorian era even utilized Nordic narratives to bolster the Royal legacies, viewing Nordic heritage as "whiter and purer" than Anglo-Saxon heritage. This self-identification with Nordic culture marked a departure from the usual Anglo-Saxon claims of superiority under "Manifested Destiny". Simultaneously, a similar concept of Nordic racial primacy developed in America, particularly in New England, where Vinland became an "imagined space" of racial purity. The appropriation of the "Viking spirit" served to justify Anglo-Saxon colonization projects under the guise of social Darwinism and the notion of a "master race".

Nordic whiteness, the brief suggests, can even be converted into cultural and financial capital. Research on Swedish women migrants in the United States indicates that "Swedishness" holds value in social upward mobility within marriages to upper-middle-class white American men. Furthermore, Nordic whiteness is sometimes perceived as a superior form of whiteness, offering certain advantages.

Manifestations in Brazilian Beauty and Identity

The impact of this Anglo-Saxon-influenced Nordicism is evident in Brazilian beauty standards. The overwhelming majority of top Brazilian models are light-skinned with European features, like Gisele Bündchen and Alessandra Ambrosio, demonstrating the persistent racism in contemporary visual media. This is not a recent phenomenon, as the Brazilian media has long showcased fair-skinned, blond figures like Vera Fischer and Xuxa, whose "ultra-whiteness" was crucial to her success, though it did not translate equally in the American market. Xuxa's career, according to Travae (2019), was built on the overvaluation of pure whiteness in Brazilian society. Gisele Bündchen, with her Germanic background, embodies a Southern Brazilian ideal of whiteness that aligns with historically constructed European ideals, allowing her to represent a seemingly "multicultural" Brazil on transnational stages.

The preference for Northern European phenotypes is further illustrated by the dramatic increase in imported sperm in Brazil since the 2010s, with 95% of the demand being for Caucasian donors, preferably with blue eyes. This desire for "blond babies" reflects a deep-seated valorization of Northern phenotypes. Brazilians with Icelandic ancestry even perceive a strong connection between their heritage and Nordic identity, associating it with positive socio-economic status and motivation for advancement.

In a striking example of the internalization of these ideals, the Northeast state of Ceará, despite its predominantly native and Black population, saw a state-sponsored research study that controversially claimed Nordic genes surpassed those of indigenous and Black populations, seemingly to legitimize the region's whiteness. This "racial colonization of the mind" is further exemplified by a Black mother's comment about her light-skinned son, stating that his "genetic compatibility is more on the Nordic side" and playfully referring to his "Danish" side at home, attributing his connection to the sea to his "Viking" ancestors.

Brazilian elites, who often set social values, have historically looked upon Northern European phenotypes as superior. While Brazilian "tropicality" is valued, there's a desire to "tame and domesticate" it, with the ideal representation being through blond-haired, blue-eyed archetypes. This "blonde beauty" is seen as a foreign import, untouchable and purely to be admired. Even within the white population, a hierarchy exists, with Anglo-Saxons historically perceived as having a higher racial position than Iberian Portuguese, while Anglo-Saxons themselves often look up to Scandinavians for their "purer" whiteness and Viking mythology.

Brazilian ideologies of whiteness are undeniably linked to European and North American theories of scientific racism, particularly Eugenics and Darwinism. Gilberto Freyre himself described Brazilians' beauty standard as a "yankee" influenced "North Europeanization or Albinization". Much of Brazilian race literature implicitly and explicitly compares Brazil to Northern European countries, drawing from the American tradition of scientific racism.

The Economic Dimensions of Racial Hierarchy

The policy brief underscores that racial subjugation functions as a mechanism for economic dominance, subtly implying a racial hierarchy where Northern phenotypical traits are more valued. This hierarchy is not merely social but plays a crucial role in sustaining global and regional economic systems. Drawing on Baum (2015), the document notes that modern racism is based on a political-economic order involving the distribution of recognition and misrecognition among racialized groups. Wallerstein's (1979, 2004) core-periphery model is invoked to explain how racial hierarchies are not just byproducts but deliberate strategies for dividing labor forces to benefit core regions.

David Landes (1998) argued that British colonies, particularly in North America, had more favorable conditions for economic growth compared to Iberian colonies due to factors like the rule of law and property rights. This perspective, though not explicitly stated, is seen as influenced by 19th-century scientific racism, where "northern" traits are associated with progress and "southern" traits with backwardness, correlating with skin tone. In the Latin American context, colonial history itself established divisions based on shades, with Peninsular Europeans holding social and economic superiority over those born in the Americas, despite all being considered white. Even the independence movements were primarily economic struggles among white elites, with the inclusion of non-whites not being a central aim.

The expansion of the United States into the Caribbean Basin in the early 20th century further influenced racial hierarchies and labor management practices to align with American imperial ambitions, driven by the prevailing belief in white supremacy.

In contemporary Brazil, racial identity significantly influences economic development and represents a form of global labor division. Studies have consistently shown that Black and brown Brazilians earn significantly less than their white counterparts. Skin color is a strong predictor of educational attainment and occupational status, even after accounting for socio-demographic factors. This wage gap is more pronounced in the predominantly white Southeast and South regions. Even within the white population, an internalized hierarchy exists, where "very white" individuals in São Paulo have greater access to wealth and resources compared to "mixed whites" or "dirty whites".

Furthermore, research indicates that Brazil's middle and elite classes in the Northeast city of Fortaleza maintain stronger connections with Europe and the United States than with the majority of the non-white, working-class Brazilian population. This elite group actively seeks to emulate European and North American lifestyles, with its composition being predominantly white males often served by Black and Indigenous individuals, reflecting a modern iteration of colonial power dynamics.

The policy brief concludes that socio-economic achievements in Brazil are intricately linked to individuals' racial demographics, with varying degrees of whiteness acting as a critical determinant for accessing economic opportunities and resources. This dynamic is heavily shaped by an Anglo-Saxon racial hierarchy that valorizes Northern European supremacy, perpetuating a cycle of privilege and marginalization. The historical legacy of colonialism and the importation of these racial ideologies have deeply ingrained this interplay between race and economic status in Brazilian society.

Conclusion: Unmasking the Enduring Hegemony

"The Political Economy of the Anglo-Saxon Racial Hegemony in Brazil" offers a crucial lens through which to understand the persistent racial inequalities in Brazil. By highlighting the often-overlooked influence of Anglo-Saxon racial thought, the policy brief challenges the narrative of racial democracy and exposes the subtle yet powerful ways in which a global racial hierarchy shapes Brazilian society. From the aspiration for Nordic beauty ideals to the deeply entrenched economic disparities along racial lines, the legacy of scientific racism and the valorization of whiteness continue to cast a long shadow over Brazil's cultural and socio-economic landscape. Understanding these nuanced power dynamics is essential for dismantling the deeply ingrained racial hierarchies and striving for a more equitable and inclusive future for all Brazilians. The work of the BRICS Policy Center in bringing these critical issues to light contributes significantly to fostering a deeper understanding of the complexities of race and power in the Global South.