Perceptions on Santería: Then and Now 

Glaude, Ludmille, "Perceptions on Santería: Then and Now" (2018). 

Undergraduate Research. 15. http://digitalcommons.lasalle.edu/undergraduateresearch/15

This paper will examine how the Batista and Castro regimes were able to impact the perception of Santería amongst the Cuban public. Santeria is a polytheistic religion practiced in Cuba that combines elements of Yoruba beliefs and Catholicism. Recently, Santeria appears to be experiencing a growth in visibility in Cuba. The syncretic religion and its visibility, has become of interest to examine and report on, amongst many media outlets. According to a Vice News article published as recently as 2014, the author dubs Santería as “Cuba’s New Religion”. The article describes Santería as a dynamic form of worship, with participation and a creation of a shared identity amongst all levels of Cuban society and other societies of practicing Latin American countries. In this paper, I plan to examine the perceptions of Santeria during the twentieth and twenty first centuries, and demonstrate these perceptions of Santeria have affected their visibility--or lack thereof.