Identidades in English No 4, December 2014 | Page 88

Looking from
America to Cuba
Bonita Lee Penn
Journalist
Managing Editor, Soul Pitt Media
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA

I

was honored when Juan A. Alvarado Ramos,
President of Platform for Cuban Integration
and my friend, asked me to write an article for
IDENTIDADES. I knew I wanted to write about
the 2014 AfricAmericas project, especially the
meaningful dialogues - during panel discussions
as well as my interview with two performing artists - between Cubans and Americans.
Before the AfricAmericas events of 2013 & 2014,
what I knew of Cuba derived from old movies,
travel logs, and watered-down history taught in
school fraught with stereotypes and generalizations. Some stories portrayed the beautiful
beaches and an idealistic view of equality among
‘all’ Cubans, including the cigar smoking old
women, people playing music, and the dancing
Cubans (who are always dancing). Movies featured stereotypical criminals (Scarface), illicit
lifestyles (Before Night Falls), betrayal and sexy
women (the animated Chico & Rita), or the romance of music. The truths depended on who was
telling the tale of Cuba; especially when it came
to truths of people of African ancestry
With so many contrasting and conflicting images
of Cuba to sift through, finding the true Cuba has
been an ongoing discovery. A turning point for
me was when a group of Cuban men visited Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 2013 to feature a photo
exhibit in a social documentary about the real and
current living conditions for many Black Cubans

88

in Havana. The photographer, Juan Antonio
Madrazo, a Black Cuban civil rights activist, captured many images of the very poor living and
housing conditions, the lack of resources to live
what we in U.S. would call a dignified life. But I
found those photographs to be a breath of fresh
air: this is what I have been in search of, the real
people who live in Cuba. No whitewash; just everyday lives and the daily struggle. I invited everyone I knew to visit the exhibit and watch the
films to make us more aware of what is really
happening. I was happy to bring my mother and
aunt and introduce them to the visiting group.
All I want is the truth, no matter how ugly or
beautiful it may be. Living as a Black woman in
America and a product of a white education system, I know that tainted truth has always been told
by the oppressor. But I am thankful I was born
with my ancestor spirits inside who kept telling
me to search and discover my own truth. There is
an African proverb “Until lions have their own
historians, tales of the hunt will always glorify
the hunter.” This is one of the two quotes I live
by as a writer, the reason why I write from “my”
point of view, from how my people see their life
in America and the world. That is why I encourage freedom of expression from each person I
meet; the reason why I want to teach our children
to write; the reason I am interested in the history
of others outside of America who look like me. I