Nuestro Tambo
Historically, race has been an unmentionable issue within the Latino community. However, during the past several years, there’s been much talk about the term “Afro-Latino” in the United States. Various organizations such as the National Institute for Latino Policy launched a Census project in 2010 in an effort to inform the community to self identify as Afro-Latino by checking both the Latino and Black/African box. Abroad, in the main countries, the issue of race doesn’t seem to have really changed much. In Puerto Rico, for example, despite a heavy African influence on the Island, identifying as African is still very much taboo.
Since the 1930s tourism has shaped the cultural nationalist discourse of Puerto Rico. In the wake of the Great Depression, tourism came to be seen as the answer to cash-crop dependency and the solution to unemployment. During this time, the magazine Puerto Rico Illustrado launched a massive campaign promoting the tourism sector as a means to overcome the economic downturn. According to Rosa[1], tourism in Puerto Rico was not only a way of making money but also a national and patriotic enterprise that defined and influenced the people’s identity. Culturally, Puerto Rico was being constructed as a peaceful country inhabited by descendants of Spaniards and Corsicans erasing the Afro-Puerto Rican element.
Around this time, famous poets such as Luis Pales Matos, Mario Cox, Neftín García, among others, emerged with what is known today as “Poesia Negra.” In his most notable work, Dinga y Mandiga, Fortunato Vizcarrondo examines the ethnic identification of Puerto Ricans with his poem ¿ y tu abuela, dónde está? Vizcarrondo writes, “You display yourself as white; And your grandma, where is she?” to emphasize that at the end of the day, if you look to your ancestors you’ll find that they are African, even if it’s way deep down the family tree. He notes, “el que no tiene dinga tiene mandinga” meaning, you may have silk hair as the white people you identify with but you also have a broad nose as your Black ancestors and vice versa.
Growing up in Puerto Rico, I can say first hand that while African influence in our culture is instilled in schools across the country and songs are infused with lyrical connotations about Africans, we’d never identify as Afro-Latino. In fact, it’s more commonplace for people to say they are from Spanish decent and to deny completely any association with Africans. That’s not to say we are ignorant of the legacy that Africans brought to the island, rather we are still in denial about our inclusion as part of that legacy. The connection between the two, being African vs being influenced by the African community is lost in translation.
Acording to Miriam Jiménez Román[2], author of The Afro-Latin@ reader, there are millions of Afro Latinos. The problem, it seems, is that while Latinos live in a “Black” context they identify with being white because of the cultural stigmas of being African. In Puerto Rico, this debate seems to be another chicken or the egg problem. So I ask you, wherever you’re from, Puerto Rican or not ¿ y tu abuela, dónde está?
Leslie Pesante, Guest Contributor
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Definitely a topic worth discussing. Not just in the context of PR (which having studied it I could go on for a bit but wont) but Latin America as a whole. Just look at the race census released by every Latin American country. Even if you were to eliminate Brazil and Haiti the Latinos of African descent in Spanish speaking countries outnumber Americans of African descent nearly 2 to 1. When you take in to account that most refuse to categorize themselves as black, then you realize that the ratio could be exponentially higher. Yet, the only time you see any black Latinos is on the baseball field, in the ring, or on stage. They are subjected to a literal blackout from the media. Further, even in countries where there are literally millions of blacks the non-African population refuses to acknowledge they exist or are truly part of the country (Mexico, Ecuador, etc.) Instead, black Latinos are dismissively referred to as “visitors” or immigrants from the Caribbean or Panama.
Even the term Afro-Latino needs to be examined. Why is it they are the only group forced to hyphen themselves in Latin America?
Well I read that 61.8% of Puerto Rico Identifies as White. My question is why identify as White if you are a mixture of 3 races. I am sure it is true that some on the island are completely unmixed as well. Some are full white and some full black. Not enough Spanish women and some Spanish did not want to mix with Africans because they felt they were inferior to them.
Also the reason that the percentage of whites are so high in the island of Puerto Rico 61.8% is because Puerto Rico practiced Hyper-Descent. Meaning if could prove one white relative in last 4 generations of your family tree then you where classified as White.
Great article! I very much believe that Puerto Rican African ancestry needs to be acknowledged, it’s part of their rich history and the beauty of their culture. However, I also think that Americans have a tendency to construe the racial dynamics of other countries and through an Americanized lens that follows a racial hierarchy that is much different then how many Latin American countries conceptualize race. I remember Spike Lee aggressively criticizing a Latina actress for not calling herself Black above all else. She tried to make him understand that Latin America doesn’t necessarily ascribe to the black white binary that Americans ascribe by using a one-drop-rule classification of blackness. Many Latin American countries have ethnic classifications that exceed 20 variations! She, and others in her country of origin regardless of their skin shade identified strongly in solidarity as Latinos above all else- which encompasses their African heritage. “Latin@” does not exclude blackness. It’s when we apply American anti-Black racist rhetoric to the term do do we start breaking it down. Thanks for posting =)
I would not go so far as to say that Latina America does not ascribe to the black and white binary. I think they do more that any one is willing to admit. The simple fact of the matter is that white Hispanics have just as much privilege in Latin America as they do here.
No one wants to be black because of what it implies from a class perspective. Generally Afro Latinos (whether they identify or not) are second class citizens. If that is not ascribing to the binary than I am not sure what you would call that.
I will never understand how some people can deny part of their heritage/ancestry. This is something we have talked about in my own family because we know people who will NEVER acknowledge that they have African blood in their genes no matter what. I have always loved the fact that my family is representative of all the colors of our Puerto Rican heritage! Love this article! Hope to see more from Leslie!
My cousin Dr Georgina Falu teaches Afro Latino history in NYC. Gives lectures through out the states including talking about our family’s Afro Latino history. I wonder if Leslie Pesante is related to us, cos we have some in our family.
To deny that we have African blood and we follow many of their cultural ways, is just plain ignorance to me. What is there to be ashamed of?
“if you look to your ancestors you’ll find that they
are African” No so! Yes there are many that have African blood – but not all. To say that they all do to some extent – is very disingenuous and you are doing what a lot of Latinos unfairly do is try to put everyone in that group into this monolithic sea of color and confusion.
Wow, it IS a small world. I have an aunt in Puerto Rico named Marlyn Falu Pesante, whom as me, was a reporter in the Island for a long time. Who knows, we may be related!!
Mario, whether you want to accept it or not, FACTS don’t LIE. I would bet that if you look at your family tree, you would not have to go too far back to find the african in your family.
Yes, a North African like a Berber – who are Caucasian.
Im african and proud even doe I look white
)
Im african and proud even doe I look white
)
I have a cousin who is white and goes around telling ppl she’s 30% black! I’m like damn don’t you think that a lot! Is she not confused or in denial because she doesn’t want to admit to her self that she is in fact white. I believe I have a little bit Taino, Spanish & African, but that doesn’t make me black; it makes me Puerto Rican! Puerto Rican isn’t a race in the traditional sense, we’re a creed. The majority of us are a mixture of these different races (also Chinese Look it up!) but in some instances PR’s are white or black and still PR, there shouldn’t be any shame in that.
Another thing about PR is the island is very divided. To the west mostly everyone is white or tanned and in the east most ppl are dark. I don’t understand how there can be whole sections of certain types of ppl on such a small island. I remember one time my cousin and I were watching an MTV special on PR and they mentioned Loiza and showed the ppl there. He didn’t even think they were puerto rican!! And this is someone who was born and raised in PR.
Btw I do like that fact that we call ourselves puerto ricans and not Afro Latino or euro Latino. Regardless of color you are puerto rican! We eat the same foods listen to the same music and love the same island and culture. America’s view on race and one drop rule does not apply to most places around the world. Many people who identify as black here would be anything but in another country.