Gabriel Macpherson

LAS 363

December 10, 2021

Educational Inequalities for Afro-Colombians in Colombia

I chose to write about the racial inequalities in Colombia with focus on the inequalities of

education in the Afro-Colombian communities. Colombia has the second highest number of POC

compared to all other Latin American countries (Minority Rights Group International, this

creates a lot of racial divide within the country. When researching I found that Colombia has one

of the highest black populations in South America. This was an incentive for me to write about

Colombia because I would likely have a lot of evidence to support my claims. Another reason I

chose Colombia is because Colombia has always been a place that I have been intrigued by. I

love the culture that Colombia offers and it is also a beautiful country that I would like to visit

some day. The racial hierarchy seen in Colombia can be seen all throughout Latin America and

even the world. Fairer skinned Colombians are usually seen as higher class and are more likely

to become successful due to their skin color. This topic is seen throughout our studies in this

class. Many of the readings show that while Latin America isn’t a very racist place in terms of

hatred and violence, it is still very racist when it comes to the economy and opportunities for

dark skinned people. Due to the social and regional inequalities, Columbia's schooling and

education systems are underdeveloped and awareness on the issue should be more well-known.

Racialization, the political process of ascribing ethnic or racial identities to a relationship,

or group that did not identify itself as much. Columbia is a country of regions, each with a
supposedly often racialized identity. When researching, I found that Colombia has one of the

highest black populations in South America. This population is stereotypically associated with

the Pacific and Caribbean lowland regions while white and people of mixed descent are often

associated in the highlands. Since Colombia is known to have the second largest population of

Afro-Descendants compared to most Latin American countries, this creates a lot of racial divide

within the country. Due to the social and regional inequalities, Columbia's schooling and

education systems are underdeveloped and awareness on the issue should be more well-known. I

chose Colombia because Colombia has always been a place that I have been intrigued by. I love

the culture that Colombia offers and it is also a beautiful country that I would like to visit some

day. The racial hierarchy seen in Colombia can be seen all throughout Latin America and even

the world. Fairer skinned Colombians are usually seen as higher class and are more likely to

become successful due to their skin color. This topic is seen throughout our studies in this class.

Many of the readings show that while Latin America isn’t a very racist place in terms of hatred

and violence, it is still very racist when it comes to the economy and opportunities for dark

skinned people such as education.

To begin, in the article “Latin American Anti-Racism in a ‘Post-Racial’ Age (Colombia)”

by Andrew Batey, he talks about Latin American anti-racism and touches upon the country's

educational history and how they have changed today. Before the 1990’s, Afro-Colombian social

mobilization was not well developed, “many academics and activists bemoaned the fact that

Afro-Columbians were ‘invisible’ in the eyes of the state and academic disciplines.” (Batey) This

lack of representation for the Afro-Colombian community only started to become recognized by

1991, when the country built up a comprehensive array of legislation aimed at Afro-Descendant
peoples. Where ethno-education programs were placed in schools, universities also placed

reserves for candidates from black communities, and reforms that put indigenous students into

university places with funding reserved for them.

In the article, “Education in Colombia” by Leanna Carroll, she states, “Social inequalities

are omnipresent at all levels of Colombian education. Consider that only 25 percent of the

poorest Colombians went to university in 2016, while 61 percent of the richest Colombians did.”

(Carroll). From my research, I have learned that the socioeconomic status of most

Afro-Colombians are on the lower end of the other Colombian groups, “The UN's CERD states

that Afro-Colombians face "persistent structural and historical discrimination" which results in

"high levels of poverty and social exclusion," when compared to the rest of the population” (UN

22 Jan. 2020, para. 16). The racial hierarchy in Colombia gives an unfair advantage, when it

comes to education, for the Afro-Colombian groups due to their socioeconomic status. Leanna

goes into another issue on the country’s education. She states, “The OECD PISA study, a

standardized test of secondary students in which Colombia has been partaking since 2006,

reflects relatively poor learning outcomes in comparison to other nations. In the latest study,

from 2018, Colombia ranked second to last among 37 OECD countries” (Carroll). The results of

these studies show the poor education that most Colombians receive.

Young people in Colombia, specifically ethnic young people in lower socioeconomic

areas, find it extremely difficult to find higher education in Colombia. They score lower on the

Saber test which puts them at a high disadvantage when applying for higher education. In the

paper, “Aspirations of Higher Education: young Afro-Colombians’ narratives” by García

Córdoba, Córdoba talks about the research that he conducted in Colombia. He conducted

primary research on four young ethnic Colombian men that have gone through the process of
finding higher education while coming from a low socioeconomic background. The most

pertinent similarities with these men when it came to higher education was their difficulty

obtaining the knowledge needed in order to attend college. “Although two of the participants had

an outstanding high school performance, none of them got the necessary Saber test score to

receive a scholarship. However, two of them had benefited from affirmative action programs:

Paula received a discount in the tuition fee of her first semester at university, but she lost it

because she could not maintain the minimum academic average grades.” (Córdoba). In this quote

the other big problem was the Saber test. While no definite evidence has been found, the biggest

theory is that in the lower economic regions the schools do not do well in teaching their students

the proper knowledge in order to excel in this test.

The education system in Colombia, for the lower socioeconomic class and

Afro-Colombians, is not sufficient in order for these groups to receive higher education. Due to

the social and regional inequalities, Columbia's schooling and education systems are

underdeveloped and awareness on the issue should be more well-known. My first source

explained the racial inequalities that Afro-Colombians face in day to day life. My last two

sources discuss the disadvantages that Afro- Colombians face when it comes to youth education

and seeking higher education.

The first data piece I am presenting is a line graph representing the higher education

statistics among the different economic classes of the Colombian people. As my research focuses

on the social and regional inequalities for education in Colombia. I want to show people with this

data piece that the lower classes are disproportionately attending University compared to the

Upper class.
From this graph you can see that the Poor, Lower class, Middle class and Upper middle class are

not attending University nearly as much compared to the Upper class. This has not changed very

much since 2001.

My second data piece is the map of the Multidimensional Poverty Index on the urban

level. This graph is necessary to support my thesis by showing the poverty index in different

regions of Colombia. I will be tying this information into my third data piece further supporting

my thesis.
From this map illustration you can see how the Pacific region of Colombia is densely populated

by Afro-Colombians, approximately 69,70 - 100,00 Afro-Colombians. The Pacific region of

Colombia is also illustrated to have the most poverty.

My last data piece is a map of the ethnic groups' geographic distributions for mestizo,

afro-colombian, and indigenous people. This map further supports my thesis by illustrating how

densely populated the Pacific region of Colombia is by the Afro-colombian people, the Pacific

being where most poverty is found in Colombia.

From this map illustration you can see the individual distributions of ethnic groups in Colombia

and visually have a better understanding of their locations.

I compiled three quotes from the document, World Directory of Minorities and

Indigenous Peoples - Colombia : Afro-Colombians. “Afro-Colombians are approximately a

quarter of the entire population, but represent well over three quarters of the poor. On average

Afro-Colombians earn $500 a year compared to $1,500 dollars for their white/mestizo

counterparts” (Dollars & Sense 2007). “Afro-Colombians attend primary schools at a level
higher than the national average, with 42 percent of blacks in school compared to 32 percent of

all Colombians, but black students are less likely to attend high school, because secondary

education is available to only 62 percent of Afro-Colombians compared to 75 percent of all

Colombians.” (Minority Groups International). “65 percent of schools in Afro-Colombian

communities are identified as poor quality or very poor quality. Only 14 percent of blacks pursue

higher education compared to 26 percent of all adults in the nation, although blacks and whites

have roughly the same high literacy rates” (Minority Groups International).

The quotes that I included show the lack of opportunities the Afro-Colombian

communities have. Afro-Colombians are not given as much opportunity to go to highschool due

to the fact that in the communities, highschools are not as provided compared to the rest of

Colombia. With years of systemic racism the schools that are provided lack the funds for a good

education and for other resources.

To conclude, from the data that I have collected on the social and regional stands in

Colombia. There is an evident distinction between Afro-Colombian geographic location and

poverty location, resulting in lack of educational opportunities and for higher education.

Afro-colombians are at a disadvantage for higher education just due to the location that they live

in Colombia. The research I have conducted on Colombia has made me better understand the

country as well as its regions and different geographical ethnicities. I have also learned how

underdeveloped and scarce Colombia's educational institutions are based on geographical

poverty locations.
 Work Cited

“Education in Colombia.” WENR, 2 Nov. 2021,

https://wenr.wes.org/2020/06/education-in-colombia-2.

Multidimensional Poverty in Colombia ... - Home Page - OECD.

https://www.oecd.org/sdd/Session%201%20DANE.pdf.

Chande, Aroon T., et al. “The Impact of Ethnicity and Genetic Ancestry on Disease

Prevalence and Risk in Colombia.” Frontiers, Frontiers, 1 Jan. 1AD,

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fgene.2021.690366/full.

Batey, Andrew. “Colombia.” LAPORA, April 20, 2017.

https://www.lapora.sociology.cam.ac.uk/countries/colombia.
Carroll, Leanna. “Education in Colombia.” WENR, July 20, 2021.

https://wenr.wes.org/2020/06/education-in-colombia-2.

Córdoba, García. “Aspirations of Higher Education: Young Afro-Colombians’ Narratives,”

December 2016.

https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/37151/AGarcia_moodledata_temp_turnitintool_1357799807._935

_1478661593_3633.pdf.

“Responses to Information Requests - Justice,” June 25, 2018.

https://www.justice.gov/eoir/page/file/1277501/download.