The Caste system that the Spanish imposed centuries ago still influences Mexicans today. Images of skin color have always mattered. While the "Las Castas" paintings were intended to create social order, the appearance of the Virgin Mary with brown skin helped the Europeans to control indigenous people and convert them to Catholicism. Nonetheless, modern images and art remind us of how Mexican people still grapple with a hurtful legacy of racist ideals and social inequality.

https://www.artesmexut.org/part6