Interviews from Havana - Blacks in Cuba 

You cannot have cuban culture without africans. They gave so much to our culture. Our spanish ancestors didnt deserve it but im so thankful to be a beneficiary. There is unbelievable pain in the past that should be recognized and talked about. Im trying to learn everything i can. Thank you Gloria for everything you do.

My Grandma was a proud Afro-Cuban, I miss her dearly.

No one believes me when I tell them I am Cuban because they don't understand Cuban isn't a race.

I brought my black buddy to Cuba a couple of years ago. We had so much fun, he looked right at home

remember Latino people,when you dance,your dancing to my African ancestors rhythms...ok by..

Cuba is the BEST country i have been to. I hope to go back again. Love from🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺

Beautiful accents

It's the same history all over the diaspora! Great video!

I'd love to see more interviews like this about the Cuban culture and the people in Cuba. I'm Cuban myself but left when I was little and feel like a huge piece of me is missing because I'm not there or am closely connected. Thank you!

Ms Gloria Rolando is a class act. May she continue to render fruits from her much undervalued scholarly work and ever continuing studies. I would count it as a privilege to one day have an opportunity to personally meet her. The interviewer Ms Escobar wss very engaged and showed a demonstrably sincere interest on this subject.

Great interview. Gloria Rolando is certainly a culturally iconic figure. The history of African survival in the Caribbean and the Americas is vitally important.

Love Gloria she's gifted and great historian and loves black people

My Grandfather was an Afro-Cuban and proud to be a Black man, I was born in the United States, So I am African-American, but I often tell people, I am American of African decent, but I am also proud to be a Black woman.. How come Black people in Latin America always negatively criticize Black people in the U.S. for saying we are African Americans? No one reacts negatively when Italians say they are Italian American, or Irish say they are Irish American, or Germans say they are German American. Let me clear this up for all the Black people around the world. We are proud to be Americans, we have a strong national identity and we believe even with all its problems that the U.S., is still one of the greatest countries in the world. So, when you ask us what we are, why do we say we are Black first, (Black, meaning a descendant of Africa), then American, we do this because it is what is commonly done all across America, no matter what ethnic group you belong to, because America is a melting pot of many nations. People came from other countries to help form and shape what the U.S. is today, so when you ask anyone what they are in America, it is a very common practice to say the country your forefathers came from first, then American. If you study our history, our history books and the people in the books refer to the country they, or the grandparents or forefathers came from then America. I went to school with many Italian Americans and Irish Americans. In the city I live in, German Americans settled in one part of the city, and it is called Germantown. People of all ethnic groups live there, but it is an historic part of the city, and definitely spot to go visit. So when you come to the United States, ask any White person what they are, and the will tell you, I'm Irish, Italian, German, Polish, Greek, Russian, etc., they will even tell you what they are mixed with, so please stop bashing us for saying that we are Black, telling people what you ethnic group you belong to is commonly done here.

She is right alot of our jamaican people went to Panama canal. This lady is exceptionally well informed.

I’m Nigerian and just learned about our cousins in Cuba. I love you all and you’re always welcome to your other home

I love this. 💯 respect 🇨🇺 🇬🇾 🇨🇺 🇬🇾

Lots of Black people don't know who they are they don't know that we are a special and we have contributed our intelgent and sweat and blood though out the world. We are the chosen ones.

This video was from 6 years ago and it is a very good video. Gloria is a queen. (Reina)

Who is this smart cuban genius being interviewed

¡Saludos! Primero, Soy Cubano Segundo, Soy African Gracias ~ Thank You Gloria Rolando for an excellent interview on our home,Cuba. The island of Cuba was first inhabited by indigenous tribe of the Arawak and Tiano Indians long before the Europeans set sail for the Americas and created the fusion of Native Americans,Europeans and African. Yet, while we have come a log way in race relations, we still have a long way to go for total equality in Cuba.

love from sierra leone

Such a good interview, i'll never forget this woman. She is extremely culturally informed.

Thank you TeleSur English, for this excellent documentary.

Thank You, Muchos Gracias Director Gloria Rolando !!!! Thank You for Posting !

This woman is brilliant, a great roll model blessed.

Amazing. Thank you!♥️ Embrace our African culture.

this lady is so insightful - thank you for your work Ms. Rolando

What's the contribution of blacks??? Everything!

Love your video. appreciate it, thanks for posting.

My Dear Sister Gloria, Thank U 4 speaking thecTRUTH! Much Respect 4 U my Sister!Medase'Ashe O '🌴😌💜🌞🌙⭐️🌍🌊🐚✊🏾👍🏾🇨🇺🌹

Very good interview. I found this to be informative.

Trinidad and Tobago 😍😍

She's spot on; gender is being used to change the subject. Not just in Cuba.

Good interview!

The documentary and discussion was done well. Many times over not just 'other' Cubans are unaware of their full history; but other people from Latin american countries of African descent tend to forget that there were others like the Afro-Cubans who also contributed to their African cause. Of all Latin and Caribbean countries, most will identify themselves as personnel from the their countries. This I think is very important. At least the director is making some strides in her country. I wish it could be the same here in northern america.

Lovely interview, but when she says Cubans of African descent call themselves Cubans without any qualifier, this is problematic. Her own evidence in the interview shows this: she is fluent on the history of racism from the forced labor camps [slavery] to the republic and to the current times. Their relation to the state is the same as her brothers and sisters throughout the diaspora, including the US. Our social exclusion and dealing with institutional racism is the same. We might be raised to react to it differently - ie. like Blacks in the Dominican Republic refuse to acknowledge their Blackness or African heritage. It comes down to me agreeing with the Pan-Africans, who are from all over the diaspora, who say we are, simply, Africans.

I'm a PROUD AFRO-CUBANO!!!

Love this Lady great interview.

I don't really care for the reference to the Yorubas as .." a bunch of people." The Yorubas are a Nation. Some time ago, members of that nation were kidnapped and sold into slavery. Some ended up in Cuba. My ancestors ended up in Jamaica.

I really wish blacks in America understood that America is as much theirs as it is whites. Our forefathers fought in every major war and have been here since its founding. I love that she has so much pride as a Cuban and disples the "Black Cuban" label.

shout out to my cuban cousin

What a brilliant and humble soul. Please post a link to where we can find her films.

Am I the only one who noticed the interviewer's fecklessness with her questions? She continuously made a distinction between 'black' people and 'Cuban' people, so much so that she had to be corrected at the 23:50 mark.

LOVE this video, best on YOU Tube

Gracias Hermana por todos los esfuerzos. Palante necesitamos nuestra historia siempre.

Good to hear that the history of people from other Caribbean islands is being put together and saved. I am from St. Vincent, never went to Cuba but my father's side of the family has members who still reside in Cuba. As a matter of fact the great Cuban boxer Theophilus Stephenson's father was cousin of my father, and during WW2, my father briefly migrated to Cuba but found it quite difficult and soon returned.

I learned a lot from this interview

Excelente interview

Really interesting.

This lady is a great interviewer.

You forgot the natives that were already there.

Hello there I am black and Cuba myself my grandma told me that my great great auntie and my great great uncle is Cuba one day I want to go to Cuba I love it

Great video viva cuba

Powerful thAnkh U Goddess 💯

Definitly, I will visit this place

My Dad's uncle left Jamaica as a young man to cut cane in Cuba in the 1940s. He never came back. I must have some Cuban relatives.

Cuba is a very special place.

Cubans in Miami love this content

She’s very interesting to listen to. Gloria Rolando knows a lot about her background

Oh my God I just found out the most wonderful news my great great grandfather was Cuban this is exciting news

Afro Americans do feel we are a part of the nation we have black president. We just want to be proud of our history. We must know where we come from (not slavery but Africa) to know where we can go.We are finding out more about ourselves very generation.

Nice interview but the reason blacks in America say African Americans instead of Americans is so people won’t write us off saying we don’t have a racial problem we’re all Americans like they do in Cuba.

Respect to my auntie Gloria.

I have always wondered why Cuba, which is our closer neighbor but has never been apart of caribbean community

She is Deep!!

I really love her necklace. I wonder if her ancestors were from Haiti.

get up stand up don't give up the fight BOB MARLEY SAID THAT THANKS YOU FOR THIS VEDEO

She spoke about Cuban's as one, but you can sense the racial divide between the two women.

that's not a true statement it was people here before the slaves of West Africa came here the indigenous people was here and they wasn't from Spain

My great grandfather Thomas who was from Jamaica, moved to Cuba and had several children with a woman there, I wonder if she was Afro-Cuban?

Respeito, respeito para video. Muito obrigado

61 looking 45 wow

Beautiful black people with Spanish accent something hard to believe Eropean whites devastated our continent and world they have to be responsible for what they did on Africa but still Cuba I respect Cuba just forget about past let's work together on future please

Que honor ...to have come across this video well done,i had heard about the treatment of Haitian sugar wokers in the camps of Cuba run by the private companies ,History Black History needs to be discoverd and told.

And What is the name of the lovely journalist?

remember when Yugoslavia started to break up and people could talk about their differences. this could also happen in cuba. hope it will be peaceful....

At 24:07 the reporter said neither of us are white. What?

I am puerto rican .my grandma was black n my other india .

We have so many ignored people's around. Take notes brothers and sisters, you might lean some if you have a spiritual mind to understand.

My dad iz from Cuba!

Looks alot like my mom!

My grandfather was born in Cuba & lived there until is was 10 years old. Then he & and my greatgrandmother where deported to Haïti.

This host is hearing what she wants to hear and putting words in Ms. Rolando's mouth, which she seems happy to repeat! Most of the conversation seemed to be about how discriminated against and left out, Blacks are in Cuba, yet the host wants to make sure Ms. Rolando still sees herself as only Cuban? Why can't she do both? If you wanted Blacks to feel all Cuban you should have treated them as such!

The Blacks of Cuba who have English and French surnames (last names) are the descendants of Afro Caribbean migrants from the British West Indies and the French Caribbean. Also, Sugar and Fruit companies from North America, specifically the USA, traveled to the Caribbean (Cuba, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic) and Central America (Costa Rica, Panama, Honduras, and Belize). Upon establishing themselves and their in these countries they contracted Caribbean Blacks from the British West Indies and to a lesser extent the French Caribbean (this was due to what I believe was the American businessmen getting into contact with businessmen from France). Third, these Caribbean workers suffered an immense amount of racism, prejudice, low payment, and just plain mistreatment. For instance, many the Caribbean migrant workers who constructed the Panama Canal have died in numerous accidents. There are I think two videos here on RU-vid that discuss that particular topic.

I dont thinks blacks in America want to separate from the U.S. so I disagree with that thesis! Black in the U.S. historically have fought for human rights and civil rights and are still struggling as a people to be treated fairly in that society. Other than that, I love this video!

What about the Taíno people?

Blacks in Cuba? Cuba is Black! Cuba is like a little Africa. In fact, the caribe, South America, the South Pacific, Central America, etc...all of these areas origins are based in Africa

Primero:Humanos Segundo:Cubans Tercero: Religiosos cual escojamos practicar.Cuarto:Principalmente La Cubania no se debe dividir ni por politica ni religion ni sociologias ni por indisincracias.;ni psicologias;ni complejos;ni preferencias

I think the issue is that Afro-Cubans wants to be known as Cubans and not separate but African-Americans want to the be separate. that is not a true statement about African-Americans. We hyphenate just like Irish-Americans, Jewish-Americans, Italian-Americans, etc. We hyphenate to be inclusive of our historical culture the way others do but when black people in America do it it seems to be a problem and obvious even amongst others in the African Diaspora. We would love to be viewed as a real part of the prevailing culture but as we know the was and is resistance to us being viewed as "real" Americans. So we unashamedly hyphenate to our identity recognition of a culture, religion, people, language that was literally and physically taken from us. Maybe someday America will be there. But it does appear that Cuba is there yet either.

Almost Everywhere I went in Havana I saw family

Wow

how am I half afro Cuban but pale I don't get it

she speak good English. for an Cuban

"....beautiful. (I don't know anything about them either...whatever you say.)

What an excellent and brilliant interview... How much still has to be uncovered about the true abuses the "colonialists " perpetuated over so many, to the benefit of so few.. Its time to wipe out all the ignorance on our history, so full of misconceptions , lies and hidden truths... This woman interviewed is in an intelectual class of her own...God bless her.!!!

todos somos *CUBANOS* ... no importa la carrera

Are there no Taianos left in Cuba? Even inside some of the Mestizos? The lady said Cubans are an African & Spanish mix. No mention of the people the Spanish found there when they arrived.

I don't know why, but I am annoyed that this young girl is calling this elder by her first name. Maybe it is just an American southern thing, but it is getting on my nerve.

yoruba...eko bi o baja

My My that is a short skirt and I like it too much!