2 vols, 602 p., Draws from a variety of fields and methodologies to study the art and ritual of Afro-Cuban religion in New Jersey and New York, as practiced by white and black Cubans from four periods of immigration/exile. It begins, however, by tracing the history of defining Lucumi (Cuban Yoruba) images, symbols, and institutions from the colonial period (ends 1898) through the first half of the 20th century. The balance of the dissertation focuses on the New York Metropolitan Area of the 1980s. The work explores how Afro-Cuban religion has evolved and flourished in relation to particular U.S. urban settings: how it has shaped and has been shaped by those settings, e.g., Union City, New Jersey and Manhattan.
