Costa Rican Exceptionalism

By Corrin Mccullough and Hannah Garcia

Our first presentation by Lauren and Isabella was a general overview of the foundations of Costa Rica and how it came to stand out among Latin American countries. They described the cultural history of Costa Rica pre- and post-Spanish conquest and how the Costa Ricans evolved with their changing culture. When the Spaniards began to invade and conquer, the indigenous populations diminished from three different richly cultured population centers with hundreds of thousands to a mere 500 individuals. As Mexico defeated Spain in other parts of the world, the Spaniards retreated and the remaining people led to a melting pot of indigenous Costa Ricans and Spaniards. The lack of racism that ensued is a great example of Costa Rica’s exceptionalism. While class level mattered, blood did not in daily life; individuals were not locked into a social hierarchy based on their race, although religion played a larger part in social conflict. Spanish Catholicism was originally resisted by indigenous people, but it became a uniting point despite economic and social class in the country.

This topic evoked questions about changes in religion, the social structures of the indigenous populations, how there may be parallels between race and economic status both in Costa Rica and others countries such as the US, as well as what actually it means to be truly exceptional.