The Legacies of ‘Race’ Science, Anti‐Chinese Racism, and COVID‐19 in Mexico

Abstract

In Mexico, links have been made between the COVID‐19 pandemic and China that point to the continuing deprecation of the Chinese and the perpetuation of anti‐Chinese logics reflecting the legacies of ‘race’ science. This short article argues that these dynamics reflect a systemic and collective anti‐Chinese sentiment that stems from Mexican eugenics and the modern conceptions of mestizaje . The purpose of this piece is to observe how discourses of ‘race’ link with the COVID‐19 pandemic in order to explore how these ostensibly natural occurrences exacerbate pre‐existing social inequalities.