Granma, Oct. 11 (RHC)-- The national campaign leading up to October 20th –Cuban Culture Day—began Sunday October 10th with activities all across the country.
Activities in Granma began at the La Demajagua National Park and Museum, located in the same site when on October 10th, 1868, Carlos Manuel de Céspedes freed his slaves and urged them to join the war for Cuba’s independence.
It featured performances by some local groups that will be present at the Cuban Nationality Festival, set for October 17th through the 20th and which will be dedicated to the 60th anniversary of Fidel’s iconic speech ‘Palabras a los intelectuales’ (Words to Intellectuals), the 120th anniversary of the José Martí National Library, the 200th birthday anniversary of Independence hero Francisco Vicente Aguilera, the 100th birthday anniversary of poet, essayist and literary critic Cintio Vitier and to son –declared intangible cultural heritage of the Cuban nation.
In Santiago de Cuba, activities began with a ceremony at the Céspedes Park. Members of the Association of Writers and Artists and of the Association of Combatants of the Cuban Revolution laid a wreath and sang the National Anthem before the monument built in honor of the Father of the Cuban Homeland. Nearby, a wreath was laid before the monument to race on the 135th anniversary of the abolition of slavery in Cuba.
The folk dance group of Santiago de Cuba also performed at Céspedes Park in homage also to Cuban artists, who have contributed to the fight against covid-19, working alongside health professionals in red zones.
Meanwhile, in Havana, the campaign began with an activity at the Camilo Cienfuegos Special School in the municipality of Diez de Octubre.
Organized by the provincial and municipal cultural offices in coordination with the national councils on performing arts and cultural centers, it included a call on Cuban video makers to participate in the national audiovisual contest ‘Mi comunidad’ (my community), which seeks to encourage artistic creation and appreciation in the neighborhoods.
As traditional, activities in the framework of the campaign leading up to October 20th include album and book presentations, exhibitions, mucial recitals, literary events in digital platforms, as well as in cultural centers with reduced audience in compliance with measures in place to stop the spread of covid-19.
Cuba’s record and musical editions Company Egrem is organizing a series of virtual conferences on Cuban culture and the African influence with the participation of renowned Cuban and foreign experts. The event is in the framework of the Slave Route Project sponsored by UNESCO.
On October 19th, Baseball will be officially declared Intangible Heritage of the Cuban Nation at a solemn ceremony at the Palmar del Junco stadium in Matanzas province.
