Cuban Sacred Musicians in Mexico

My most recent field research project is the continuation of my long term study of Afro-Cuban ritual musicians of Santería living in Mexico City. As Cuban society faces a humanitarian crisis, Cubans are fleeing the island at an unprecedented rate, bringing about a large cultural diaspora. After having spent over ten years as a ritual performer, I followed my teachers to Mexico City to document their immigration into a new country. Thanks to the Tinker Foundation, I spent roughly two weeks conducting ethnographic fieldwork–taking lessons, conducting interviews, and playing ritual music with my teachers, friends, and interlocutors in order to immerse myself in the daily lives of these musicians. This valuable time allowed me to witness the extremely politicized nature of Cuban immigration to Mexico, one that lies at the intersections of race, economics, tradition, and state power. This trip served as the first step towards a larger research project to document where Afro diasporic religion meets state politics and global economics.