Community and Self-Esteem in Cuba
Bria Harper
One of the greatest lessons that a person can learn is to truly embrace and accept themselves. In this article I want to discuss the ways Cubans’ definition of self-esteem, sex education, and feminism has created great strides in their movement toward equality. One of the first things that struck me during my first days in Cuba was the sense of pride that the people carried about themselves. The pride extended into every area of their lives. They have pride in their family, their country, and their culture. Clothing was one of the first areas that I noticed that the Cuban people expressed their pride and love for themselves. Typically, you can find a Cuban man modeling a freshly ironed, all white outfit, looking as if they stepped right out of heaven. Cuban women know no barriers.
One of the major differences between Cuba and the United States is that there is not a specific standard of beauty. All shapes and sizes are deemed beautiful. Women are able to wear anything they want and they rock it with such confidence that you believe in them too. I was greatly inspired by the way children learn to accept themselves and their bodies at an early age. In America, we often teach our children that only certain standards are deemed beautiful and that they might change their appearance to align with that standard instead of learning to love and accept themselves. During our trip, we went to Regla to a Hip Hop concert in the community where the famous Obsession was performing. The concert was an open mic with poets, singers, and dancers. During the concert, a group of little girls performed a fashion show. The whole community rallied behind them and cheered them on as they strutted down the “runway”. In that instance, the girls were taught that the community is behind them to protect and support them and that no matter what difference exists in their appearance, they are all beautiful. I wish that this message could be translated to American culture.
Music and dance are vital parts of Cuban culture not only for their ability to bring the people together but also for the freedom of expression that they create. One of the first lessons we learned in Cuba was that Cubans are sensual, expressive people. They have no qualms about showing affection in public and they express their sexuality through their dancing. During our dance lesson with the dance teacher Jose Del Pilar Suarez, he taught us the difference between Rumba in the city and the Rumba in the countryside. Unlike the countryside, The Rumba in the city is a dance of couples and is usually at a faster pace. The Rumba can be used as a dance of flirtation. In the dance, a person choses someone that they are interested in and begin to dance with them. It is like entering a seduction game. The dance goes on for a while with each person flirting with the other. At certain points, one person will grab at the body of the other person, or what is called “jabbing” in the language of Rumba and it is the other person’s job to avoid “being jabbed”. Jose taught us how to deflect in Rumba if we were not interested in the person.
At the Reggae and Rumba parties in havana, I learned that personal space is different in Cuba. Dancing is about the closeness of bodies and the language that is communicated through movement. Because the music is sensual, sexuality is expressed through the way people move. Dancing is about seducing the other person with your movements. So there were often times when we would go out and see couples engaged only with each other while they were dancing because they were concentrating on each other. The ability to communicate and express oneself through movement is very important to the esteem because it allows one to not be suppressed and to be open about their sexuality without feeling condemned for it. Positive self-esteem has also been beneficial to the fight for race, gender, and sexual equality because it allows people to be able to better empathize with the suffering of others because they are not weighed down with their own insecurities. The revolution of the 1950s was beneficial in that it introduced a new standard of education that liberated most of the people by providing social acceptance and education.
Bria Harper
One of the greatest lessons that a person can learn is to truly embrace and accept themselves. In this article I want to discuss the ways Cubans’ definition of self-esteem, sex education, and feminism has created great strides in their movement toward equality. One of the first things that struck me during my first days in Cuba was the sense of pride that the people carried about themselves. The pride extended into every area of their lives. They have pride in their family, their country, and their culture. Clothing was one of the first areas that I noticed that the Cuban people expressed their pride and love for themselves. Typically, you can find a Cuban man modeling a freshly ironed, all white outfit, looking as if they stepped right out of heaven. Cuban women know no barriers.
One of the major differences between Cuba and the United States is that there is not a specific standard of beauty. All shapes and sizes are deemed beautiful. Women are able to wear anything they want and they rock it with such confidence that you believe in them too. I was greatly inspired by the way children learn to accept themselves and their bodies at an early age. In America, we often teach our children that only certain standards are deemed beautiful and that they might change their appearance to align with that standard instead of learning to love and accept themselves. During our trip, we went to Regla to a Hip Hop concert in the community where the famous Obsession was performing. The concert was an open mic with poets, singers, and dancers. During the concert, a group of little girls performed a fashion show. The whole community rallied behind them and cheered them on as they strutted down the “runway”. In that instance, the girls were taught that the community is behind them to protect and support them and that no matter what difference exists in their appearance, they are all beautiful. I wish that this message could be translated to American culture.
Music and dance are vital parts of Cuban culture not only for their ability to bring the people together but also for the freedom of expression that they create. One of the first lessons we learned in Cuba was that Cubans are sensual, expressive people. They have no qualms about showing affection in public and they express their sexuality through their dancing. During our dance lesson with the dance teacher Jose Del Pilar Suarez, he taught us the difference between Rumba in the city and the Rumba in the countryside. Unlike the countryside, The Rumba in the city is a dance of couples and is usually at a faster pace. The Rumba can be used as a dance of flirtation. In the dance, a person choses someone that they are interested in and begin to dance with them. It is like entering a seduction game. The dance goes on for a while with each person flirting with the other. At certain points, one person will grab at the body of the other person, or what is called “jabbing” in the language of Rumba and it is the other person’s job to avoid “being jabbed”. Jose taught us how to deflect in Rumba if we were not interested in the person.
At the Reggae and Rumba parties in havana, I learned that personal space is different in Cuba. Dancing is about the closeness of bodies and the language that is communicated through movement. Because the music is sensual, sexuality is expressed through the way people move. Dancing is about seducing the other person with your movements. So there were often times when we would go out and see couples engaged only with each other while they were dancing because they were concentrating on each other. The ability to communicate and express oneself through movement is very important to the esteem because it allows one to not be suppressed and to be open about their sexuality without feeling condemned for it. Positive self-esteem has also been beneficial to the fight for race, gender, and sexual equality because it allows people to be able to better empathize with the suffering of others because they are not weighed down with their own insecurities. The revolution of the 1950s was beneficial in that it introduced a new standard of education that liberated most of the people by providing social acceptance and education.