Jonathan de Oleo Ramos (CUNY Dominican Studies Institute) will present “El Gagá: An Afro-Dominican Cultural and Religious Manifestation” on Tuesday, September 10, 2024, at 12:00pm, at Green Library, Room 220, Florida International University (FIU) Modesto A. Maidique Campus. This event is free and open to the public. It will be held in Spanish.
Description: People in the Dominican Republic have historically neglected Black culture. This neglect has resulted in limited recognition and persecution of the historical and modern manifestations of the legacy of enslaved Africans. El Gagá, a religious cult practiced in the Dominican Republic and other Latin American countries, is a prime example of this dynamic. It takes place during Lent and Holy Week and is known for its dances, music, rituals, hierarchies, religious aspects, and other unique characteristics. Many interpret El Gagá as an expression of folklore and Carnival, but it is more than that. It is a set of rural socio-religious relations linked to sugarcane mills on the island of Santo Domingo. El Gagá is also the synthesis of cults such as Voodoo, spiritualism, Santería, and Catholicism. It additionally functions as a lifestyle and social order for those who can only obtain prestige through contact with spirits, quedés, luá, and the beings of the radá and petró ritual. Moreover, it is a mode of resistance, or a path to catharsis, as understood by the servidores (leaders or mediums). Ultimately, El Gagá is a jewel of Afro-American transculturation.
Made possible in part by funds from the Mellon Foundation. To confirm your in-person attendance, please write cri@fiu.edu or call (305) 348–1991.
For more information, see FIU.
[Shown above: Alfonso Lomba, “Mayores” Dancing in a Gagá in San Luis,
a Rural Community in the Dominican Republic, 2009.]
Jonathan de Oleo Ramos (CUNY Dominican Studies Institute) will present “El Gagá: An Afro-Dominican Cultural and Religious Manifestation” on Tuesday, September 10, 2024, at 12:00pm, at Green Library, Room 220, Florida International University (FIU) Modesto A. Maidique Campus. This event is free and open to the public. It will be held in Spanish. Description: People
