Stories of Latin American Women of African Heritage

María Mercedes Jaramillo Professor Emirita at Fitchburg State University. She was President of the Association of Colombianist (2011-2013). Her research explores Latin American theater, women writers and Colombian literature and culture.Lucía Ortiz is a Professor of Spanish in the Department of Humanities at Regis College in Massachusetts. Her research focuses on Afro-Latin American literature and women’s literature.

"This seminal work features artists, activists and writers from South and Central America, and the Caribbean. The essays explore women’s journeys of resistance and endurance against societal silence. The volume serves as a valuable introduction for researchers and students seeking the authentic stories of Afro-Latin American creatives in the diaspora and invites further exploration and analysis of these often hidden narratives."- Dahlma Llanos-Figueroa"This groundbreaking collection assembles thought-provoking essays on women of African descent from key regions in Latin America. Some of these “daughters of the muntu” are internationally renowned, while others equally deserve recognition. Collectively, their voices illuminate a rich and enduring tradition of the Black female experience, offering an indispensable counter-narrative to prevailing cultural norms."- William Luis, Gertrude Conaway Vanderbilt Chair in the Humanities, Vanderbilt University

• Prologue: Black Women in Cuban Literature of Centuries Past Introduction Argentina 1. White Mothers and Wet Nurses 2. My Beautiful Black Sisters Brazil 3. Watercolor of Brazil: Shades of a Society - From Pigmentocracy towards Democracy 4. Benedita da Silva: From the Favelas of Rio to the Halls of Power 5. The Black Voice of a Favelada: Race, Gender and Nation in the Testimony of Carolina Maria de Jesus Colombia 6. Afro-Colombian Women’s Music: La Negra Grande de Colombia and Totó la Momposina 7. Lolia Pomare Myles: A Bridge Between the Old World and the New 8. Piedad Córdoba: Between Controversy and Conviction 9. The Voice of Edelma Zapata Pérez – Afro-Colombian Poet Interview 10. Afro-Colombian Women Voices from the Margin: Mary Grueso Romero and María Elcina Valencia Córdoba 11. María Teresa Ramírez and María de los Ángeles Popov: Heiresses of Yemayá and Changó 12. Goyo: Driving Chocoano Rap 13. Life Stories of Women from Palenque in ColombiaCosta Rica 14. Emphatically Black. Reading the Poetry of Costa Rica’s Shirley Campbell Barr Cuba 15. An Island for Sara Gómez 16. Hilda Oates: An Afro-descendant Cuban Actress 17. Omara Portuondo: The Diva of Cuban Music from Las D’Aida to Buena Vista Social Club 18. The Poetic World of Nancy Morejón 19. Raise Your Voice, Break the Margins: Rap and Female Discourse 20. Celia Cruz: Live to Sing Ecuador 21. Luz Argentina Chiriboga, “Esmeraldas’ Star” Honduras 22. Ritual Practices of Globalization: Garifuna Women Mexico 23. Luz María Martínez Montiel: “Ambassador of the African Renaissance in Latin America and Mexico” Peru 24. Fortitude and Charisma: Victoria Santa Cruz 25. Woman, Mother, and Leader: María Elena Moyano and the Courage of Commitment Puerto Rico 26. Ruth Fernández: The Soul of Puerto Rico in Song 27. Breaking Paradigms and Creating New Archetypes: The Black Character in the Works of Mayra Santos Febres 28. Queeriqueña Futures and Black Liberation in the Work of Yolanda Arroyo Dominican Republic 29. Salomé Ureña de Henríquez (1850-1897) 30. The Triple Marginality: Florinda Soriano (Mamá Tingó) 31. Sherezada Vicioso and the Construction of Her Own Caribbean Uruguay 32. Stars in the South: Martha Gularte, Lágrima Ríos and Rosa Luna 33. Alba Roballo: “Nevertheless, I am alive” 34. An Interview with Cristina Rodríguez Cabral: The Continuous Process of Identity and Its Poetic Projection Venezuela 35. Carmen Verde Arocha: “I believe being a poet is a destiny”