I asked Belkeys Nerey (pictured above) to say what she was most grateful for and she told me that she was “just grateful for the family and everyone’s health”. She continued to tell me that she feels “fortunate that everyone is together in America”… and that we have the “opportunity to celebrate family first and foremost.” This revealed to me that family connection is extremely important to everyone because of the dangerous immigration background, further emphasizing the appreciation they have for one another.

Belkeys Nerey (pictured) in discussion with author, November 2017

Pictured above are three individuals who are not blood related to the family, but are still considered family. Despite everyone appearing to treat the above individuals as if they were blood-related, the individuals are gathered out front because they were not assigned individual tasks to help contribute towards preparing the meal.  This demonstrates that closeness to “blood-kinship” directly relates to the placement within the political structure of the task assignments.

Lara, Ana-Maurine “How are we related to One Another? ” (Lecture, Introduction to World Cultures, Eugene, OR, November 3, 2017).

Limberto is pictured above with multiple red lipstick marks on his face and several not pictured on the other side of his face. The red lipstick symbolizes the affectionate nature of Cuban culture. Because family is a “key value” that “guides interactions” regardless of whether or not one is blood-related kin, everyone demonstrates their love for one another through kisses and hugs. The love language of touch bonds the kin together and serves as an equalizer for friends and family.

Lara, Ana-Maurine “What is culture? ” (Lecture, Introduction to World Cultures, Eugene, OR, October 10, 2017).

After all the food was consumed, the young women, myself included, were expected, through an unspoken assumption,  to make and serve all the elderly espresso shots. The expectation for the young women to serve the elderly is yet another example of the unique political structure that is somewhat selective to the political  structure at work here. The many unspoken duties that were assigned to different age and “gender roles” reveals the way in which the political structure dictates who does what during family celebrations.

Lara, Ana-Maurine “Gender Roles ” (Lecture, Introduction to World Cultures, Eugene, OR, October 17, 2017).

Tio Julito Sr. sits around a table talking with the others gathered around about how excited they are that all the family is together, despite how far away everyone lives from one another.  Because everyone migrated from Cuba at different times, there were times when they had to celebrate holidays alone, despite how important family is.  When asked, the common sentiments were “gratitude” and “happiness”. The migration background has a direct effect on the kinship prioritization.

Julito Sr. Nerey (pictured) in discussion with author, November 2017

A family friend stands alone as she flips through pictures on her camera. Because she is a family friend, she is not in the kitchen helping the other women prepare the meal, thus revealing that family is a broad term that my family used to describe anyone in attendance. However, blood-family is the unspoken requirement for a significant task within the political structure of the event.

Although the men were seen within the kitchen, none of the females were seen outside by the turkey frying station. This led me to conclude that the political structure pertaining to the gender domains is more strict for females than it is for males. The meat is considered to be a strict “male role”, which exemplifies the infusion of “toxic masculinity” within the Cuban culture, of meat being a demonstration of masculinity, aggression, and even power.

Cox, Nikki “Toxic Masculinity ” (Section, Introduction to World Cultures, Eugene, OR, October 20, 2017).

Dominos, a favorite pastime of those who were unable to help in the meal preparations, serves as an example of the way that the elderly were treated as almost needing to be entertained, similar to the way in which children are looked after. My informant told me that this was the first year that the elderly generation was officially “kicked out of the kitchen”, thus showing a recent shift in the political dynamic within the family.

I was told by my informant that this was the first year that the “younger generation” was organizing and cooking the meal, rather than the “grandparent generation”. The informant pictured above is too young to be one of the organizers, but too old to be considered a child, thus leaving her without a place within the family political system. She is seen pouring a drink for an elder as she was forced to take on the “floater” position of entertaining the youth and catering to the elderly.

Tiana De La Rosa (pictured) in discussion with author, November 2017

The men are gathered around a table smoking cigars before the meal because one of them is too told to participate and the other is somewhat isolated because of his “affinal” relation to the family hosting the meal, rather than “direct descent relation”.  The way in which the politics are structured reveals the isolation of the elderly as well as those who are kin, but not blood-tied.

Lara, Ana-Maurine “How are we Related to One Another? ” (Lecture, Introduction to World Cultures, Eugene, OR, November 3, 2017).