At the beginning of 1925, South America was eagerly awaiting the arrival of Albert Einstein. He had a scheduled trip to Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil. The German, on the other hand, did not share the enthusiasm of his hosts. In a letter to a friend, he complained: "I have no desire to meet semi-acculturated Indians wearing tuxedos."
Later, in Rio de Janeiro, Einstein met with Aloysio de Castro, head of the Faculty of Medicine. We can imagine what it meant for the Brazilian to meet the father of the theory of relativity at that moment. About Castro, however, the scientist wrote: "a real monkey."
The accounts collected in the book "The Travel Diaries of Albert Einstein: South America" are not flattering. The texts reveal some of the racist thoughts of this celebrated figure. They also expose something else, says Ze’ev Rosenkranz, who edited the volume: his humanity.
"These writings present a more complete picture of Einstein, highlighting his limitations," he says. The German was capable of revolutionizing physics. But he also adopted some ideas of scientific racism. "This encourages us to rethink our own prejudices."