Black in Latin America looks at Cuba tonight - on PBS at 8pm nt

[flamingdem]

[EFerrari]

1. Thanks for the reminder!

[EFerrari]

2. So, what did you think, flamingdem?

I thought it was a little superficial but was only watching with one eye so that might be just me.

[flamingdem]

3. I thought it was very well done

if a little unsurprising. I liked his choices for interviews, Tomas Robaina was a bit risky, he's black and gay, has had his issues there, and he did immediately jump into the religion and something I hadn't quite connected ... the reason there are so many retentions, well one reason for them, is that slavery lasted longer there.

I'm not a big fan of Cuban hip-hop. So big Fail there although they do address racial issues more than popular music. Still a tiny percent listens to them vs. the masses that listen to salsa/timba and he failed to show contemporary Cuban music, which is great and very much the black art form that has mass acceptance. You cannot discuss Cuban music without mentioning Los Van Van or at least Chucho Valdes, so fail.

Mostly a great treatment of history and that was a safe way to enter into the contemporary issues. One lie. The General claimed that no one would say "I don't want my kid to marry a black person". No way, white Cubans say that all the time to another white person anyway. It takes a long time to know when you're hearing double speak and what's really going on, it's very layered.

[EFerrari]

4. I don't think I understand how you're using "retention". n/t

[flamingdem]

5. In the sense that they retained cultural practices -much more than in the USA

but I might have forgotten the correct academic phrase

[flamingdem]

6. Another term is survivals

African Retentions
Aug 11, 2008 ... African Retentions & Black Contributions ... But many argue the existence of African survivals, an argument which is less convincing for the ...
www.nathanielturner.com/africanretentions.htm -

[EFerrari]

7. Thanks, I've never heard the term in this context before. n/t

[Billy Burnett]

8. PBS streaming link here.

Full Episode: Cuba: The Next Revolution

In Cuba Professor Gates finds out how the culture, religion, politics and music of this island are inextricably
linked to the huge amount of slave labor imported to produce its enormously profitable 19th century sugar
industry, and how race and racism have fared since Fidel Castro’s Communist revolution in 1959.

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/black-in-latin-america/video/black-in-latin-america-full-episode-cuba-the-next-revolution/219/

[Judi Lynn]

9. Thanks for posting that link for those of us who didn't get there in time.

Really looking forward to the chance to see it also. :hi:

[dipsydoodle]

10. Hey Billy - thanks for that.

Even works in here in England !

:hi:

[flamingdem]

11. Oh, you're in England!

Easier to travel to Cuba from there, especially on those nice Virgin Airlines planes.

Will you return again to la isla anytime soon?