The Geography of Race in Oaxaca’s Costa Chica: Commodities, Culture, and Citizenship During Mexico’s Liberal Economic Transformation

The 1910 Revolution uncovered deep racial divisions among Oaxaca’s residents who lived along the Costa Chica. Afro-Mexicans and Mixtecos had a history of political and military mobilizations dating back to independence, and they served against one another on some occasions. During the revolution, Mixtecos embraced Emiliano Zapata’s radical land reform agenda. Afro-Mexicans, in contrast, aligned with the more conservative wing of Venustiano Carranza’s supporters. Members of both groups had numerous reasons to mobilize militarily, but why did they choose to fight on opposing sides? Using evidence from newspapers, legal cases, and official correspondence this paper analyzes the roots of these divisions. The evidence suggests that Mexico’s Liberal economic transformation essentially compounded the social, economic, and cultural factors that pushed Costa Chica residents in opposite directions. Afro-Mexicans and Mixtecos therefore had divergent experiences during this economic and political transformation that eventually led to violent confrontations during the revolution and beyond.