Scarce More than Apes
In considering the racism and discrimination of the American Southwest in the 19th and 20th centuries, the major negative stereotype was that the Mexican people were considered inferior to Anglo-Americans. In the essay entitled, “Scarce More than Apes: Historical Roots of Anglo-American Stereotypes of Mexicans in the Border Region” by David Weber, the author offers an explanation to this stereotype that has “larger dimensions” than the answer usually suggested by writers. Weber’s explanation, or his thesis, says that a belief in the Black Legend, along with the belief in the inferiority of mixed-bloods, enabled Anglo-Americans to form a negative stereotype about the Mexicans before they ever came into contact with them.