Irresolute Blackness

Abstract

This chapter examines how the showcasing of black folklore in San Antón requires work and ideological maneuvering. Dynamics of representation of “community” varied a great deal depending on whether such public events were organized for residents or for a broader national audience. Local events such as Christmas dinners, Mother's Day celebrations, and Father's Day celebrations were mostly organized around religious activities, family oriented or preestablished holidays. In contrast, public events targeted to an outside audience centered on Afro-Puerto Rican or Afro-Antillean music and predominantly bomba and plena. The chapter then illustrates that far from being “in the blood” or neutral and carefree or an externally motivated process, the marking and celebration of San Antón as place of black folklore is driven by the community itself in a way that requires a great deal of work and the assertive leadership of community members from within.