Ernestina and Mariana Andrade

The following is our first coastal interview, which we conducted in the City of Veracruz on August 6, 2004. Ernestina Andrade (31 y/o) and her sister Mariana Andrade (33 y/o) were forthcoming as they responded to our questions. Not only did they proudly state that they and the members of their family have long been residents of Veracruz; they proudly identified themselves as Afromestizo. Unlike the thousands and thousands of Mexicans who deny their African ancestry but whose phenotype and, frequently, whose color obviously suggests their African kinship, the Andrade sisters willingly told us that they that they descend from Africans. As we conducted our research on Afromestizo life, history, and culture throughout the State of Veracruz, what I found odd at first was the Afromestizos' claiming Cuban ancestry, as if "Cuban" refers to one race. The Andrade sisters were not different: "Without a doubt," said Ernestina Andrade, "we have mixed roots. Cuban roots, African roots, and many more . . . ." I now understand what they are referring to: the black people from Cuba they see visiting or performing music and dance in Mexico. Cuba to these Mexicans—and rightly so—is a black nation. In fact, most of the majority of the people in Cuba are of African ancestry. Then, too, one needs to think back on the long relationship Cuba has had—and continue to have—with Mexico, a relationship that dates back to the seventeenth century when the ports at Havana and Veracruz served as vital centers for the Spanish transportation and purchase of enslaved Africans into Mexico and other points south in Latin America. I have no doubt that Mariana Andrade and Ernestina Andrade are descendents of those Africans, as well as their European enslavers.

ROWELL: We are traveling in the state of Veracruz and conducting research on the Afromestizo people and their culture in the villages south of the city of Veracruz. What does the term "Afromestizo" mean to you?

MARIANA ANDRADE: The word "Afromestizo" refers to a mixture of the different roots of the various races we have in our blood here in Mexico: the indigenous race, the Spanish race, and the black race, which is from Africa. That is what "Afromestizo" is: the mixture of those races.

ERNESTINA ANDRADE: I think that in Veracruz, "Afromestizo" means that we have a mixture of different cultures that are African obvious, and then the Mexican mixture of Indian and also of African people. Cuban people were the first ones to come here, and we know that we are a mixture of them, of Cubans and Indians. We are proud that we are Afromestizo. We are proud.

ROWELL: Are there many Afromestizos in this city or in this part of the State of Veracruz?

MARIANA ANDRADE: Yes, as a matter of fact, here in Veracruz there are many Afromestizos, especially in the south. The Negroid characteristics are dominant in the Afromestizos, especially in the southern part of the State of Veracruz. The city of Veracruz is a seaport, and it has a large population of people with such physical characteristics. But Negroid characteristics continue to be erased as a result of "racial mixing"—that is, people of African descent mixing with white people and with Indians.

ROWELL: What kind of work do people of African descent do? Do many of them attend universities? Do many, as you, work in art centers? What kind of work do they do?

E. ANDRADE: Well there is something happening in Veracruz, especially among Afromestizo people. It's something we have been seeing lately. Most of us, Afromestizos, are getting lost a little bit. White people generally take chances and go to universities and develop stable livelihoods. It is very difficult for Afromestizos do that.

M. ANDRADE: The Afromestizo people in Veracruz, at least at the seaport, are easier to identify than those in the colonies or in the outskirts of La Cruz. Afromestizos are not given many opportunities to advance...