This spring, Professor [Henry Louis Gates Jr.] returns to PBS with "Black in Latin America," a new four-part, four hour series. Focusing on six Latin American countries - Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Brazil, Mexico and Peru - the series explores the influence of the African diaspora on Latin America. On his journey. Gates discovers a shared legacy of colonialism, slavery and people marked by African roots. In his new series. Gates sets out on a quest to discover how Latin Americans of African descent live now, and how their countries acknowledge - or deny - their African past.
Gates notes the striking difference between the numerous statues of European colonists, and even the whitening of the image of Dominicans who have any African heritage in the Dominican Republic, and the statues of Black Haitian independence leaders throughout Haiti.
African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Notes:
videorecording; 1 videodisc (75 min.), Provides a portrait of rural communities in Brazil that were either founded by runaway slaves or began from abandoned plantations. This type of community is known as a quilombo, from an Angolan word that means "encampment." As many as 2,000 quilombos exist today.
Rise Up channels the spirit of the elders with cameos by Fred Locks, Sly Dunbar. Robbie Shakespeare, Lee 'Scratch' Perry, Toots Hibberts and Brushy One String among others. Industry stalwarts like producers Mikey Bennett and Carlo Less are among those narrating the story which highlights the unique musical quality of Jamaicans.
It's against this backdrop that filmmaker Roger Boisrond will screen SAK PASE? In the heart of the Haitian community, me grande premiere of his latest unedited documentary on the Haitian community. A Centre Mandela-King Production, the film will give viewers a better understanding of the Haitian presence in Quebec society, and the longtime solidarity that exists between Quebec and Haiti. A discussion will follow the screening.
African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Notes:
1 videocassette (ca. 20 min.), Employing footage shot between December 5 and 9, 2003, this documentary looks at the history, life, traditions, and celebrations of the black population of the municipalities of Baião and Mocajuba, located in the Brazilian state of Pará.
Leland,Andrea E. (Director) and Berger,Kathy L. (Director)
Format:
Video/DVD
Publication Date:
1998
Published:
Hohokus, NJ: New Day Films
Location:
African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Notes:
1 videocassette (46 min., 30 sec.) + 1 study guide (49 p.), Genocide, exile, Diaspora and persecution did not break the spirit of the Garifuna people. Descendants of African and Carib-Indian ancestors, the Garifuna fought to maintain their homeland on the island of St. Vincent in the Caribbean. The Garifuna resisted slavery. For this love of freedom, they were exiled from St. Vincent to Roatan in Honduras by the British in 1797. Despite exile and subsequent Diaspora, their traditional culture survives today. It is a little known story that deserves its place in the annals of the African Diaspora. In first person Garifuna voices, this documentary presents the history, the language, food, music, dance and spirituality of the Garifuna culture. It is a celebratory documentary, with engaging scenes of fishing, cooking, dancing, cassava preparation, thatching a temple, spiritual ritual, ritual music and dance all demonstrating the Garifuna link to the Carib-African past.
African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Notes:
1 videodisc (205 min.), A documentary on the life and career of Jamaica's fourth Prime Minister Michael Manley. Over 3 hours of historical footage and interviews. Its cast is a "who's who" list of persons who were closest to Manley during his lifetime, from members of his cabinet to members of his family.
Black In Latin America, premiering nationally Tuesdays April 19, 26 and May 3, 10, 2011, at 8 p.m. (ET) on PBS (check local listings), examines how Africa and Europe came together to create the rich cultures of Latin America and the Caribbean. Latin America is often associated with music, monuments and sun, but each of the six countries featured in Black in Latin America including Brazil, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Mexico and Peru, has a secret history. On his journey, Professor Gates discovers, behind a shared legacy of colonialism and slavery, vivid stories and people marked by African roots.
Human Rights in Haiti: A Work in Progress" is a 22-minute abridged Cliffs Notes version of the history of Haitian unrest. Though it is beautifully edited and has some rather moving imagery, the film ends suddenly, which quite frankly took the audience off guard. During the Q&A session following the films, the un-packed audience of 10 people (which included the filmmakers) had a few burning questions, some of which were not completely answered. "Who's the opponent? Who's the evil person here?" "It doesn't make that clear," "There are things that aren't really clear here" were just a few questions the audience members asked.
