The reopening of US-Cuban diplomatic relations brought to mind a little known chapter in Cuban history (Photo of “Hotel nacional habana“. Licensed under CC BY 2.5 via Wikimedia Commons).
In a story in Northwest Asian Weekly, author Cindy Domingo recalls her trip to Cuba and venturing into the small Chinese community there.
According to Domingo, Chinese laborers were brought to Cuba after the end of African slavery in the mid-1800s. By 1873, there were 130,000 Chinese laborers in Cuba, mostly from Guangzhou. There were also smaller numbers of Japanese and Filipino laborers.
Today many of Chinese descent in Cuba are referred to as Chinos. They are of mixed race and no longer speak any Chinese dialects. To learn more about Chinese culture in Cuba and the Chinos of today, you can read Domingo’s fascinating story in Northwest Asian Weekly.
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