Space, region and racialization in Colombia

I propose that, to understand the reproduction of racialized inequality and the operation of racism, we must appreciate how the intersection of society and space historically accumulates racialized dimensions. In Colombia, the racialized differences that emerged and took shape in the colonial order simultaneously acquired spatial dimensions. In this article, I first address the theoretical relationship between society and space and then describe the historical processes by which racialized differences acquired regional dimensions in Colombia. I show how these racialized structures of region influence racialized social relations, through frontier colonization and urban migration. The conclusion reflects on the Colombian nation seen as an entity constituted by relational dynamics that have both spatialized and racialized dimensions.