African Diaspora Series: Afro-LatinX pt. 1

Our Somewhat Problematic Cousins: Understanding Afro-Latino culture. 

My first time hearing someone identify as Afro-Latino ( and even Afro-Asian) was back at debate camp in 2016. Back then, I didn't quite understand what it meant for somebody to identify as such. So Val ( who was a part of the same debate league)  had explained to me that their mother was traditional Mexican, but their Dad was originally from Cuba. They proceeded to show me a picture of their Dad and I saw this rich-chocolate brown man posing with his children. But then, Val looked at me in anguish. They proceeded to talk about how they were was always discouraged from embracing any of their African or Black heritage. Keep in mind, Val looks like a typical Latinx, so you would never assume that they had African ancestry. Long story, Val is in a constant battle of wanting to embrace the heritage and even teaching the younger siblings, but dealing with family/elders who want nothing to do with the Blackness. (The term They/Their is used instead of she/he because Val identifies as non-binary or non-conforming)

Fast forward to now, I constantly hear about this same discouragement or even how people will claim their Blackness out of convenience, but then turn around to disown (and even mock at times) those same Black/African roots.  So, why does this happen?

Well, let's first begin as to what makes a person Afro-Latino:
      "They are people of African descent in Mexico, Central and South America, and the Spanish-speaking Caribbean, and by extension those of African descent in the United States whose origins are in Latin America and the Caribbean." 

Now that we have the definition, when and why is anti-blackness such a big issue? Various articles all agree that it's a complicated matter trying to understand anti-blackness in Latin culture. History has a huge significance when looking into the different hierarchies created between race, color, and class. White supremacy is prevalent in this culture and people have a difficult time deconstructing the ideas that it bred into the culture.
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In the next blog, I shall discuss further as to what is being done about this anti-blackness and the beauty that has come out of it.


Source 1
Source 2