An exploration of the cultural legacy left by African slaves in the Caribbean and Latin America
"Gates expands his focus on the black experience in Latin America...While Gates' tour reveals a burgeoning brown (mixed-race) pride, it also reveals lingering valuation of lighter skin." Booklist
"Black in Latin America would be an interesting companion to any guidebook for the Caribbean and Latin America, as it reveals not just a hidden history but also an evolving sense of identity." Associated Press
"An amazing travelogue that swiftly transports the reader from the sixteenth to the twentieth centuries through the racial histories of Brazil, Mexico, Peru, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti. Henry Louis Gates, Jr., brilliantly describes the formation of these New World societies as they evolved from colonialism and slavery into complex national communities with rich and vibrant Creole cultures. This is an essential book that helps us understand the similarities and differences between post-slavery societies in the Americas today." Frank Moya Pons, author of History of the Caribbean: Plantations, Trade, and War in the Atlantic World
"A fascinating and engaging journey through past and present, this book offers us a rich portrait of the complexities of race as it is lived in contemporary Latin America. Gates is the perfect guide, sharing his insights, emotions and surprises with eloquence and candor." Laurent Dubois, Duke University, and author of Avengers of the New World: The Story of the Haitian Revolution
Of the 12.5 million Africans were shipped to the New World during the Middle Passage over ten and a half million-were taken to the Caribbean and Latin America. This astonishing fact changes our entire picture of the history of slavery in the Western hemisphere, and of its lasting cultural impact. These millions of Africans created new and vibrant cultures, magnificently compelling syntheses of various African, English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish influences.
Starting with the slave experience and extending to the present, Gates unveils the history of the African presence in six Latin American countries through art, music, cuisine, dance, politics, and religion, but also the very palpable presence of anti-black racism that has sometimes sought to keep the black cultural presence from view.
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