¡No poner brujerías en esta esquina, por favor! Prácticas religiosas y uso de los espacios públicos

Abstract

The territorialization and transculturation movements are vital for the analysis of the religious phenomenon from a global and transnational perspective. These processes of appropriation, transformation and symbolic redefinition of the spaces, resources and knowledge create conflicts among the traditional usage, values, interest, perspectives, and worldviews of the societies involved. This is the case of the Regla Ocha – an Afro-Cuban religion highly present within the Canary Islands’ Archipelago – whose practice implies the use of public and private spaces, the appropriation of the resources and local symbology, as well as the adaptation of their rituals and festivities – by means of their creativity and innovation. In this context of movement – which is also virtual nowadays – the imagery and identity reinforce their nexuses, nonetheless, sometimes also suggest ruptures due to the influence of the media to confront stereotypes, stigmas and prejudices that lead to marginalization and exclusion of their practices.