In Argentina, there are and have been cases of discrimination based on ethnic characteristics or national origin. In turn, racial discrimination tends to be closely related to discriminatory behavior for socio-economic and political reasons.
In an effort to combat racism in Argentine society, the National Institute Against Discrimination, Xenophobia and Racism (INADI) was created in 1995 by Federal Law 24515.
Different terms and behaviors have spread to discriminate against certain portions of the population, in particular against those who are referred to as (blacks), a group that is not particularly well-defined in Argentina but which is associated, although not exclusively, with people of dark skin or hair; members of the working class or lower class (similar to the American term redneck); the poor; and more recently with crime.
Today, words such as , , and constitute derogatory terms to refer to certain immigrants of other Latin American origin, mostly from neighboring countries like Bolivia and Paraguay.
An older xenophobic slur was the use of the name ('Goths', in the sense of barbaric people) for Spaniards or royalists during the Argentine War of Independence.
Anti-Semitism also exists in Argentina, in a context influenced by the large population of Jewish immigrants and a relatively high level of intermarriage between these immigrants and other communities.
In many cases, "social relations have become racialized"; for example, the term is used to describe people who are considered uneducated, lazy or poor.
There is an active debate about the depth of racist conduct in Argentina. While some groups maintain that it is only a question of inoffensive or marginal behavior that is rejected by the vast majority of the population, other groups contend that racism is a widespread phenomenon that manifests itself in many different ways. Some groups also assert that racism in Argentina is no different from that which is present in any other country in the world, while other groups claim that Argentina's brand of racism manifests itself in a number of unique ways that are related to the country's history, culture, and the different ethnic groups that interact in the country.
Racial terms
A series of terms are used in Argentina that have a certain discriminatory intention and constitute a particular form of racism.
and
In Spanish, and literally mean 'black'. and are widely used terms in Argentina, across all social classes, including in those classes which are referred to as and by other social groups. is also one of the most common nicknames, with no intended offensive meaning.
Paradoxically, the same racist ideology in Argentina that maintains that "there are no (of African ancestry) in Argentina" uses the word to designate a vaguely defined population made up of workers, poor people, internal migrants, Latin-American immigrants, and natives, without any further distinction.
Víctor Ramos, the president of SOS Internacional, responded in the following manner when asked by a journalist what were the most common manifestations of racism in Argentina:
An example of this type of racism is the response given by a high-level official of the municipality of Escobar to two businessmen who wanted to set up a nightclub next to the rail station:
There is such close identification between poverty, race, slums and marginalization in Argentina that philosopher José Pablo Feinmann compares these circumstances with the "Muslim question" in France.
In 1996, during a diplomatic trip to the United States, when asked about the black population of Argentina, President Carlos Menem remarked:
It is also important to note that there is widespread use of the terms and that has a fraternal meaning totally devoid of discriminatory intention. Between friends and family they are common nicknames. For example, the famous late singer Mercedes Sosa is affectionately known as "Negra Sosa".