IDENTIDADES 1 ENGLISH IDENTIDADES 9 ENGLISH | Page 26

Race, Class and Gender

Cuba speaks from its
depths (II)
Citizens Committee for Racial Integration
Havana, Cuba

I

n late 2009, the Committee
Citizens for Racial Integration
(Spanish acronym CIR) published
Cuba speaks from its depths (I) * in
response to the message that eight
Cuban intellectuals sent to 59 AfricanAmerican leaders who had criticized the
persistence of racism in the Isle.
Today the government is more
discursive and symbolic fluent within
the society regarding the racial issue,
but the narrative, the approach and the
lack of political, institutional and
constitutional tools remain intact. At
least two key processes could have been
instituted for fighting racism: a public
discussion open to the citizens and a
series of specific and proactive legal
reforms.
Six years later, what actual changes
have been implemented by the State
regarding the fight against racism and
racial discrimination?
Firstly, there is a fundamental change:
the denial of both phenomena by the
State is a thing of the past. Whether in
reaction to the diverse but constant

pressures by circles of cultural, civic
and intellectual discussion, or due to
greater exposure to the global public
opinion and the public nudity of the
Cuban nation appearing in the new
sociological field, the government
acknowledged the problem. Now a
mental and psychological thaw impacts
the small but resilient social sectors
educated under the notion that the socalled revolution was synonymous with
anti-racism. This impact results in the
State authorizing a structured —
although very sporadic— conversation
on racial issues within the setting of the
cultural
and
intellectual
spaces
recognized by the State itself.
Secondly, there is a timid attempt or
purpose to turn some old but important
demands into public policies seeking to
balance the historical and cultural
asymmetries in educational matters.
Although they are still in standby, the
promises to reform the learning
materials and to conform them more
closely to our cultural history have
created specific links between some
cultural spaces and the State. These
links go beyond the formal institutional
ties through the Ministry of Culture.
The learning materials in primary and
secondary school levels have not been
renovated yet, but there is certain
institutional perception that a reform is
necessary.
Thirdly, the previously regarded
subaltern symbolic presences, aesthetic
autonomies and co-opted visions of

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