Benefits Brought By The cabildos
Spanish legislation supported the cabildos as means of entertainment for the slave population, and as social control alleviating the tensions between the masters and the slaves. Slaves were allowed to gather on holidays so that they could dance according to the customs of their African nations...
For the slaves, the cabildo had many uses. They were able to collect money or pool resources to assist members in times of illness or death. Cabildos also had a religious purpose, they were the place where slaves could consult their deities and ancestors. For those slaves who clung to the religious traditions of Africa, a cabildo was one of the few means of succor at their disposal. The cabildo represented Africa in foreign territory that would help slaves keep alive their faith. Cabildos were institutions that made possible the conservation of the idiosyncrasy, religion and culture of the African nations in Cuba. The songs, dances, and drum rhythms that were played for African deities in a land that was so hostile to the Africans slaves were the mechanism by which slaves were able to keep alive their Africanness and resist Spanish cultural hegemony.
Read more about this topic: Cabildo (Cuba)
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