Cuba and Africa, a long history

Audio 48:30

Every December 4, Cubans honor the Catholic martyr Saint Barbara and the African deity Chango by offering them flowers, fruits, lighted candles and dancing and beating drums.

(Photo: at the Africa House in Havana, in 2008).

© Javier Galeano / AP

By: Valérie Nivelon

51 min

The history of relations between Cuba and Africa cannot be summed up in Che Guevara and Fidel Castro's support for the struggles for independence.

From the fight against slavery to medical cooperation through cultural exchanges, it is in the light of long history that we must appreciate Afro-Cuban destinies.

Publicity

With Kali Argyriadis, anthropologist (IRD, URMIS), coordinator of the book “

Cuba and Africa, 1959–1994,

 Writing an Alternative Atlantic History”, at Wits University Press (South Africa).

To the sound of the sound and musical archives of LMDM and RFI.

To read:

-

Cuba and Africa (1959/1994)

, collective work edited by Kali Argyriadis, Giulia Bonacci and Adrien Delmas

-

Notebook of an art of living (Journal de Cuba, 1964-1978)

by René Depestre, published by Actes Sud

-

Las Maravillas de Mali in Cuba and the Orquesta Aragón in Africa

.

By Elina Djebbari.

“Cuba and Africa, 1959–1994, Writing an Alternative Atlantic History”, at Wits University Press (South Africa).

© Wits University Press

To listen:

- "Africa Mia", an Afro-Cuban epic by Joe Farmer

- "René Depestre" by Yasmine Chouaki 

(1st part) and 

(2nd part)

- “From Ebola to Covid-19: Cuban medical missions” by Caroline Paré.

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  • Cuba

  • Africa

On the same subject

Health priority

From Ebola to Covid-19: Cuban medical missions

Culture meeting

"Africa Mia", a documentary on Las Maravillas de Mali

In G major

René Depestre (1st part)