While the history of Halloween is still subject to debate it is believed to have been derived in part from Christian customs some of which have Pagan roots. The origin of trick-or-treating for instance is believed to have come from a custom called souling where groups of predominantly poor people would go from house to house collecting cakes in exchange for praying for the dead in the Christian triduum of Allhallowtide which is a time to remember the dead. The modern world usually celebrates Halloween in the way it has become common place in the U.S. with some small variations locally.
However, what seems like an innocent holiday that is celebrated internationally is in fact often perceived as the epidemy of American cultural and commercial imperialism destroying local customs in the process. Customs that seemed closely related on the surface such as the German tradition of Ruebengeistern or the Mexican Día de los Muertos have already been mixed with Halloween to the point where many people believe it is one and the same thing perpetuating a process that swallows some of the traditional customs. In countries where there were no similar customs traditionally, Halloween has often been incorporated “straight from TV” and is often linked to the arrival of American troops like in Italy.
It is therefore no surprise that a country which has had rather difficult relations with the U.S. and has no problem with engaging in interventionism to protect its culture is watching the spread of American style Halloween with horror. There have been reports in recent years where salsa clubs and other touristic venues in Cuba were made to close on 31st October or had to make it a policy to not admit anyone wearing a costume. The official view in Cuba is that the holiday is something strange, alien and inappropriate that has no place in Cuban culture. Of course, the reality is that the more something is being suppressed the more interesting it becomes so inevitably there are universities in Cuba where people are starting to celebrate this American import not to mention the hotels that try to cater to the increasing amount of tourists who want to go abroad to receive the exact same thing they left behind at home.
That being said, it is maybe not as big a deal as many people fear. Cuba has a remarkable history for developing their own culture and many customs and traditions in Cuba may have influences from several countries at its core while being adapted and changed to suit the Cuban spirit. Even tourists who come to Cuba go there predominantly for the uniqueness of the Cuban culture. The very idea that things like Halloween may become a common celebration in the future after Cuban and U.S. relations are starting to ease has had many tourists come to the island over the last few years in an attempt to see the uncompromised country one last time before it becomes contaminated with globalised products such as Halloween. It is therefore questionable whether there is indeed any significant interest in Cuba to simply copy a piece of culture without any modification or whether the holiday will simply be ignored on the island in the long run. Given Cuba’s history, chances are they will take some influences from Halloween and create their own unique customs and cultures that will not be an exact copy of what everybody else does. Instead of Halloween swallowing Cuba, Cuba may just swallow Halloween.
