1950s Brazilianists declared no race problem despite documenting rampant racism

Evidence

Paradoxically, given these findings, many of these scholars argued that there was “no race problem” in the towns and regions they studied … It almost might be said that “race relations” do not exist in Brazilian society. This nation of people born of marriages between three racial stocks, and formed out of slaves and their masters, has developed a society in which in the relationships between people “race” is subordinate to human and social values. — David Theo Goldberg, John Solomos, A Companion to Racial and Ethnic Studies, 3573

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the documented gap between data and conclusion found in other social science episodes, e.g. research paradigm blind spots.
• DEEPTHINKING: The paradox is genuinely dense: scholars simultaneously document caste-like white aristocracy and dehumanizing stereotypes yet pronounce race relations ‘subordinate to human values’ — a striking case study in how measurement frames produce opposite conclusions.