Studying abroad in Cuba has made me realize cultural misunderstandings are inevitable, even though I’ve been learning Spanish since kindergarten. Sometimes these interactions may be intimidating, but it’s necessary to take risks to build relationships within your host community. I explored this challenge with a Black classmate at the University of Havana who has lived in both the U.S. and Cuba. She explained to me that Cubans sometimes cause misunderstandings by repeating words from American songs that tourists find highly offensive. This exchange made me reflect upon the aspects of my culture that I assume to be a given; in the United States people are more aware of words that have a racist legacy and their role in Hip-hop.
The fear of offending someone can lead students studying abroad to avoid subjects that we feel ill-equipped to address. Indeed, at the beginning of that conversation I was hesitant to speak up. However, as I participated more, we began learning about our different backgrounds. My classmate compared the popularization of hip-hop to the history of “música repartero” in Cuba. Both genres originated in lower-income neighborhoods but are now mainstream within contexts far removed from their original environments. With this comparison as a baseline, we were able to educate our peers about the significance of hip-hop as a part of Black American culture and the place of the n-word within that context. I felt more confident navigating future situations of uncertainty; when I struggled to acclimate to unfamiliar teaching styles, I asked those classmates for help. While it was tempting to retreat to my cohort of American students, I found that being vulnerable with my lack of knowledge was more reassuring than avoidance.
The cover image for this post is a sculpture called “El Monumento al Cimarrón,” by Alberto Lescay, memorializes enslaved people who escaped to freedom in la Sierra Maestra, a mountain range in Cuba.
