Politics and Civil Society in Cuba

Rumba Performance and the Politics of Place in the Era of Cultural Tourism 415

remittances sent by relatives living abroad or foreign aijados (religious

godchildren), or private enterprise. As rumba and folkloric events

generally happen during the day and in public spaces, the age range of

spectators is quite wide, very often including young children who

attend either with their parents in the audience or as children of per-

formers. Due to rumba’s long history in and association with Matan-

zas, many elderly Afro-Cubans attend these events—they remember

the times when rumba was played spontaneously in the streets of

Simpson, Pueblo Nuevo, and La Marina when there were no profes-

sional rumberos.^8 Finally, in terms of gender dynamics, female specta-

tors tend to be more numerous than male ones if I take my evidence

from the monthly Tarde de Cabildo event performed by Afrocuba. This

is probably because it is a mid-afternoon event during the week and

women are more likely to be working part-time jobs that allow them

to pick up their children after classes are over in the afternoon.

The politics of place vis-à-vis the tourism industry

As has been illustrated by my discussion of the different and contrast-

ing contexts, venues and audiences in Havana and Matanzas, the

micro-practices of rumba performance are very much informed by

the politics of place vis-à-vis the tourism industry in contemporary

Cuba. These two cities have very different statuses within the tourist

sector on the island: Havana is the capital, an enormous city by Cuban

standards—its residents number roughly two million—and the pri-

mary destination for a majority of foreigners who travel to the island,

whether they be tourists, researchers, artists, or journalists. Matanzas,

on the other hand, is a small city of about 100,000 residents with no

tourist infrastructure to speak of.

Although Matanzas folkloric musicians do not enjoy the same pos-

sibilities for material gain as their Havana counterparts, many of them

8. Los Muñequitos de Matanzas was formed in 1952 and constituted the first group to
   attain professional status after the Revolution (Grasso González 1989). Gaining national
   fame in the 1950s, Los Muñequitos was also the first rumba group to enjoy widespread
   radio dissemination and have access to professional recording opportunities.