Abstract
As with most Latin American nations, Venezuela has traditionally embraced the exceptionalist myth that it is a racial democracy. That does not mean racism is absent in that country. A combination of paternalist attitudes and pernicious stereotypes towards Afro-Venezuelans permeates throughout pop culture products. This article explores the attitudes towards AfroVenezuelans in gaita zuliana, a popular music genre in Zulia state. To do so, I rely on analysis of lyrics of some popular gaita songs, composed during the golden age of gaita, 1965–1985. I conclude that, although gaita zuliana draws upon many tropes from the history of racism, it nevertheless has potential for activism in favor of liberation from racial oppression.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 85-98 |
| Number of pages | 14 |
| Journal | African and Black Diaspora |
| Volume | 14 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2021 |
Keywords
- Afro-Venezuelans
- Gaita zuliana
- race
- racism
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