Guatemala City - Post Report Question and Answers
Are there problems with ethnic, race/racial minorities or religious prejudices? Gender equality?
Yes, though on the whole Guatemalan people are polite. White privilege is easily identifiable and in play. "Light" privilege is also in play. I have noticed that indigenous people tend to be viewed and held in a place in society that's lower than others. - Oct 2022
There are definitely major ethnic and socioeconomic disparities between people of indigenous vs European heritage. It's a very Catholic country and politically conservative on social issues. We live a pretty sheltered life as expats, though. Nearly every Guatemalan I've interacted with has been kind, gracious, and happy (although annoyed with and critical of rampant government corruption). - Oct 2022
None. - Jul 2021
Racism is a huge concern. Overt racism against the large indigenous community is a fact of life, and there were lots of incidents in the past of landlords refusing to rent to African Americans (though now that we're moving to a housing pool that should no longer be an issue). Typically, you can pick out the person in charge in any situation by figuring out who is whitest, and there's a lot of history to back up these trends. Again, Guatemalans tend to be very polite, especially to foreigners, so I'm not clear how much this racism would affect an expat on a day-to-day level. Gender prejudices are pernicious for those from here but haven't affected me as an expat on a two-year assignment, and religion has never come up. - Jun 2015
There are serious racial and gender issues within Guatemalan society as a whole but prejudices against foreigners are not common at all. - Jan 2014
Indigenous folks are generally poor and not treated as well. - May 2010
It is Latin America so there is some macho attitude among the guys. - Mar 2008
