RevistaIslasEnglishSept09 11/10/09 8:44 PM Page 66 Art and Literature Two Nineteenth-Century Black Cuban Poets To Plácido’s Memory (1809-2009)

Víctor Manuel Domínguez Writer and journalist Havana, Cuba

he contribution of black people to the The importance of this tacit acknowledg- birth, consolidation, and development ment of a black slave rests not only in this Tof the Cuban nationality has been con- man’s act of heroism in killing French pirate stant. Blacks were present in the earliest liter- Gilberto Girón in battle, but also in its incipi- ary attempts that began to shape the contours ent bestowal of a sense of Cuban belonging on of the anguished pilgrimage that would bring the slave, when Balboa writes: Oh, Salvador us closer to a concept of nationhood. criollo, negro honrado [Oh criollo Salvador, All too often, on account of their slave honorable black]. condition, they were considered inferior mem- Despite this seemingly unprejudiced bers of the human species, or as folkloric sub- assessment, which might appear to promote jects who offered their African customs to our the integration of blacks during a time as long identity until they fused, through miscegena- ago as the seventeenth century, the only road tion, with other groups on the island. In either for blacks was extremely difficult or humiliat- example, their actions made them seem like ing regarding any one of the economic, politi- beings precursory to the historical advent of cal, and social situations that successively pre- Cubanness. vailed in Cuba as it worked towards the idea of When in his epic poem Espejo de Paciencia an independent nation. [Mirror of Patience] (1608) Silvestre de Yet, despite the fact that this idea does not Balboa Troyas y Quesada calls black slave emerge and begin to take shape until what in Salvador Golomón, who was not born in Cuba is referred to as the Transformation Africa but in Cuba, a criollo, he establishes his (1790-1868)—when the island goes from right to be a legitimate son of the island. being a flowering colony to seeking a national

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identity—as groups like La Sociedad writing. Their talent and the attendance of Económica de Amigos del País [Economic other writers at these sorts of meetings made it Society of the Country’s Friends], the San so. Yet, there is more. This kind of gathering in Ambrosio and San Basilio seminars, and the Cuba, under del Monte’s tutelage, made possi- University of Havana, and other economic and ble works that for the first time ever revealed cultural spaces, it was no longer possible to the inhumane nature of slavery, its humiliating erase the indelible imprint of black people consequences, and the mercilessly offensive from the creation of our national identity. actions that whites imposed on people of color. In light of the undeniable fact that black Del Monte takes his fellow writers’com- cultural elements took root in the nation’s positions about the lives of slaves and gives racial milieu, and began to mix with others to them to Richard Madden, Judge Arbitrator to create the human characteristics that have the International Mixed Commission Court for defined the country throughout history, I want the Suppression of the Slave Trade in Havana. to somewhat emphasize the role that slave and He publishes an anti-slavery album containing free mulatto poets played during the first half several Cuban works in London, among the of the Cuban nineteenth century. most significant of which is poetry by Juan Francisco Manzano and Gabriel de la Blacks as literary authors in Concepción Valdés (Plácido). the first half of the nineteenth Juan Francisco Manzano century (1797-1854)

The very first steps that were taken to Manzano, who was born in Havana, him- reveal the ignominious social context with self, suffered the vicissitudes of slavery. After which blacks had to deal were taken via litera- having been spiritually touched by having ture, through a call to reflect upon reality, in attended operas, masses, and sermons with his all its forms. This originated in the conversa- owners, he began primary schooling in 1818 tions initiated by Domingo del Monte between and begins to publish his poems. By 1821, his 1829 and 1843. book Cantos a Lesbia [Songs to Lesbia] is pub- Del Monte criticized the asocial character lished; Flores pasajeras [Passing Flowers] by of the popular romantic literature that served 1830. He also publishes “Romances cubanos” as a model to island writers. He demanded that [Cuban Poems] in El pasatiempo [The his interlocutors assist brethren who came Passtime] (Matanzas). Yet, it was not till 1836, from their very same society through their when patron and critic Domingo del Monte writing. heard the sonnet “Mis treinta años”[My Thirty Acknowledged as one of the founders of Years], that a collection effort for 500 pesos Cuban national identity, and as having the was started to procure him his freedom. The greatest influence on Cuban literature of the surprise brought about by this slave’s ability to first half of the nineteenth century, José Martí versify, and del Monte having found the “pro- considered del Monte “the most useful and real foundest native human feelings”in his sonnet, Cuban of his time.” were enough to stimulate enthusiasm among Blacks who participated in del Monte’s those who could see in the poem’s first-hand literary gatherings achieved not only celebrity testimony a denouncement, and a path towards but also their freedom, by dint of their literary the elimination of slavery.

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Despite the fact that in his book Historia Regardless the reaction to this work, de la Literatura Cubana [History of Cuban interest in Juan Francisco Manzano’s poetry Literature], Salvador Bueno considers “My was directly tied to the anti-slavery campaign. Thirty Years”only a notable work, the sonnet’s In fact, its value as something that documented perfectible verses erased any intellectual limita- the horrors of slavery and the colonial period tion blacks were said to suffer. surpassed its literary importance. Cuban liter- ary history looks similarly upon his “Mis treinta años” Autobiografía [Autobiography], written at the [My Thirty Years] behest of Domingo del Monte, and his tragedy “Zafira,” which did not necessarily make Cuando miro al espacio que he corrido Manzano more famous, but did reveal his pos- [When I think of the course I have run sibilities as an author. It wouldn’t be right to Desde la cuna hasta el presente día, fail to point out the limitations he faced in his From my childhood itself to this day, incursions into various literary genres—he Tiemblo y saludo a la fortuna mía was born a slave and raised as such till an I tremble, and fain would I shun advanced age. This disadvantage prevented him Más de terror que de atención movido. from traveling and studying the same way The remembrance its terrors would array. those who used a highly sharpened critical Sorpréndeme la lucha que he podido scalpel to dissect his own poetry did—even in I marvel at struggles endured posterity. Sostener contra suerte tan impía, With a destiny frightful as mine. Gabriel de la Concepción Si tal llamarse puede la porfía Valdés (1809-1844) At the strength for such efforts —assured De mi infelice ser al mal nacido. Plácido is another relevant black author Tho’I am, (tis in vain to repine). for this time period (he also attended the del Monte gatherings). This mulatto poet was Treinta años ha que conocí la tierra; born in Havana and shot in the back (like a I’ve known this sad life thirty years traitor) on June 28th, 1844, the victim of a Treinta años ha que en gemidor estado persecution set into motion by Captain And to me, thirty years it has been General O’Donnell against liberal Cubans and Triste infortunio por doquier me asalta: people of color. Of suff ’ring, of sorrow and tears Plácido’s case is unique because of the his- Más nada es para mí la cruda guerra torical importance of his life and work, and Ev’ry day of its bondage I’ve seen. because it inspired passion both for and Que en vano suspirar he soportado against his cause among prominent contempo- But ‘tis nothing the past -or the pains, raries. Born of a mestizo Havana hairstylist Si la comparo ¡Oh, Dios! Con la que falta. and a Spanish-born ballerina, the boy was Hitherto I have struggled to bear, commited to the Casa Cuna de Maternidad [an When I think, Oh my God! on the chains orphanage home for illegitimate children], and That I yet know I’m destined to wear.] given the surname Valdés, the same as all the other orphans.

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A few days later, his paternal grandmoth- Tornad a México, esclavos; er got him out, yet the child knew no peace [Return to Mexico, slaves; regarding the ability to help support his fami- Nadie vuestra marcha turba, ly until he found one of the few jobs open to Not one of yours to the crowd, free mulattoes and blacks. He became a typeset- Y decid a vuestro amo, ter’s apprentice at the Boloña Printing House, Say to your master, the most important in early nineteenth-centu- Vencido ya veces muchas, ry Cuba. His salary at the job was barely Already many times conquered, enough for him to survive on, but it did allow Que el joven Jiconténcatl him to broaden his horizons through reading, That the young Jicontencatl enrich himself culturally, and complement his Crueldades como él no usa, poetic talent. Does not use cruelty as he does, Despite the fact his successes were marked Ni con sangre de cautivos by a society that would not stop viewing the Not with the blood of captives color of his skin as affecting the development Asesino el suelo inunda: of his intellect, Plácido burst onto the literary Does the flooded ground murder; scene with his poem “La siempreviva” [The Que el cacique de Tlaxcala Always Living] in nothing less than the Aureola That the chief of Tlaxcala poética por las Musas Almendares [an 1834 Ni batir ni quemar gusta. poetry anthology] published by the Musas Neither likes to break or burn…] Almendares containing work by Cuban poets in honor of poet and Spanish Royal Minister The transfer of scenes in this excerpt does Martínez de la Rosa. not keep one from being able to imagine Despite the fact that it would take only Plácido behind that young chief, who upon one of his poems, “Jicotencatl,”to be included being victorious, through his heroic deed, in this collection, which Marcelino Menéndez y throws the Spanish authorities and the propo- Pelayo praised as “a magisterial and exquisite nents of slavery out of Cuba, and abolishes the poem that Góngora [himself] would not dis- cruelties and captivity to which Cubans of that dain as one of his own,”the mulatto’s life and time period were subjected to differing degrees work was attacked—both then and later—by according to their skin color and social posi- bitter adversaries. So, while Menéndez y tion. Pelayo was praising the poem “Jicontencatl,” However, Plácido’s misfortune is so great and his poem “Plegaria a Dios” [Prayer to that even his sonnets in La fatalidad [Fatality] God] was translated into numerous languages, and Despedida a mi madre [Farewell to My including English, by famous U.S. poet Henry Mother], and odes like Adiós a mi lira [Farewell Wadsworth Longfellow, the rest of his ouevre to my Lyre] and Plegaria a Dios [Prayer to was considered superficial, unfocused, incor- God], all written in prison, before he died, rect, in Cuba. were challenged by Manuel Sanguily, who Yet, in examining just one excerpt of strongly insinuated they were not the author’s “Jicontencatl,”we can see that Plácido is indi- original work. rectly attacking slavery, even if he places the Plácido wrote his famous although action not in Cuba but in Tlaxcala, Mexico. polemical “Plegaria a Dios” as a response to being called a vile and treasonous poet, for sell-

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ing poems about parties, baptisms, and birth- ‘Negrophobia,’ and a non-acceptance of days, and for snitching on various Cubans who Africans and their descendants as Cubans, purportedly participated in the Escalera which explains why Francisco de Arango y Conspiracy (for which he was shot by a firing Parreño and José Antonio Saco always squad). Tired of fighting human jealousy, vile- dreamed of whitening the island. Phrases like ness, and incredulity, all that was left for him “Blanquear, blanquear y después hacernos was to clear his conscience by loudly reciting respetar” [Whiten, whiten and then make them his poems on his way to the firing squad wall. respect us], “Cuba sería blanca y podría comen- zar a ser Cuba” [Cuba would be white and then “Plegaria a Dios”(Fragmento) could start being Cuban] exluded blacks from [Prayer to God] (Excerpt) any possible national project. Nevertheless, once slavery was abolished, during the early Mas si cuadra a tu suma Omnipotencia years of the Republic, many white leaders [But if this lot thy love ordains to me, demanded gratitude from blacks because of Que yo perezca cual malvado impío the generous favors they did for them. The elite To yield to foes most cruel and unjust, published statements like “Many eminent white Y que los hombres mi cadáver frío men struggled and died so that blacks could be To die, and leave my poor and senseless dust free”and “Blacks could not have become free on Ultrajen con maligna complacencia… their own.” The scoff and sport of their weak emnity, Blacks got their freedom thanks to the Suene tu voz, acabe mi existencia… “colossal”efforts, generosity, and dedication of Speak, thou! And then thy purposes fulfill; a dignified group of white Cubans who had ¡Cúmplase en mí tu voluntad, Dios mío. raised their voices in the Spanish parliament to Lord of my life, work thou thy perfect will!] force the aboltion of slavery. Leader of the Cuban Conservative Party, intellectual His clamor for respect for his life and Enrique José Varona, said of this that he “did- work was not only directed at God but also at n’t think this action on the part of whites in slanderous men, and the slave system that inhu- Cuba was unparalleled.”White patriot Manuel manely ruled, and a despotic colonial regime Sanguily, from the ranks of the Liberal Party, that washed the Cuban nation’s first birth argued that whites had “bankrupted them- pangs with blood. Two hundred years after his selves”to free blacks, that whites had suffered birth, and amidst criticism and praise, Plácido as much and even more than they had to continued being a happy transgressor of a achieve freedom and abolish slavery.” society imposed, designed and controled by In light of supremacist statements such as whites. these, Juan Francisco Manzano was so right in Anyone who doubts this should consult being skeptical in his sonnet “Mis treinta the problematic definition of nationality that años,”just as Gabriel de la Concepción Valdés was being designed by important thinkers of (Plácido) was in raising his “Prayer to God” that time. They emphasized “fear of blacks,”or and not to men.

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