SOAS Research Online

Abstract

This thesis exposes and analyses ongoing intersectional discrimination – through a focus on gender, race/ethnicity, and class – that exists at societal, academic, and musical levels in Puerto Rico, where bias includes ‘subtle racism’ and similar practices mostly unspoken and rarely theorized or addressed. My investigation identifies interconnections between socioeconomic inequality, biased educational practices, Western-centred academic institutions, and demonstrates the effects of colonialism, in which Puerto Rico, considered by many as the oldest colony (in the world), has endured a double occupancy, first by Spain and then, continuing today, by the United States. I begin by posing a seemingly simple research question, asking whether there is an academic degree in autochthonous music in Puerto Rico.1 The straightforward answer is “No”, but this opens the door to my interdisciplinary study, in which I examine the connections between social groups and how they create and perform a musical style, the issues of discrimination these communities have historically faced in their colonized society, and the absence or lack of recognition their genres have in formal education and in academic discourse. Among Puerto Rico’s autochthonous genres this thesis turns a spotlight on the oldest, and most African in derivation, music and dance style, bomba, and on its community, providing a case study of discriminatory practices affecting both people and artistic and cultural expressions. My research was carried out between 2015 and 2022 and it draws on a variety of primary and secondary data, including interviews, participant observation, and personal training in bomba. The thesis begins with an analysis of issues of colonialism and intersectional discrimination at the societal level in Puerto Rico, and how these are manifested across its educational systems. Subsequently I investigate musical practices, analyzing sexism, racism, classism, identity issues, and current efforts to decolonize academic institutions, highlighting parallels between Puerto Rico and global realities. Drawing on ethnography, I also discuss experiences of resistance faced by Puerto Rican academics and musicians who have battled to introduce autochthonous music into mainstream programmes.