Mexican singer María Cristina Acosta—known as the “Pearl of the Caribbean”—stated in an interview this Friday with international news agencies, during the opening of the fifth Pachanga Antirracista festival in Mexico City, that she intends to speak out against the racist practices that prevented her from writing and producing her own tropical music in the 1960s.
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Acosta, a native of the Veracruz port, of Mexican-Cuban descent, told EFE that her Afro-Mexican identity was systematically denied by the recording industry of that era.
“I faced many obstacles because they said my voice was too similar to Celia Cruz’s, and they gave her preference—even though she wasn’t Mexican,” the artist explained.
Acosta, whose career spanning nearly seven decades has been dedicated to creating and championing Latin rhythms, noted that her great dream was to break through as an artist in her home country; however, she encountered racism that went so far as having her vocal volume lowered on recordings.
The performer founded her first group, María Cristina y su Charanga, in 1964 and lamented the creative censorship she endured. Record labels would not let her record her own songs; tracks like “Las canicas” were historically sidelined due to these discriminatory practices.
Her voice will open the Pachanga Antirracista, an event featuring over one hundred activities from October 3 to 22 across 17 venues in the capital, with the participation of 1,950 people from various anti-racist collectives.
La quinta edición del Festival Pachanga Antirracista está por llegar a #CDMX con música, danza, cine y más
Del 3 al 22 de octubre, el festival llegará a 17 sedes de la capital para celebrar la diversidad y promover una sociedad libre de racismo y discriminación
pic.twitter.com/y6KuEHYjnf
— Diario CDMX (@cdmx_diario) September 9, 2026
The text reads, “The fifth edition of the Pachanga Antirracista Festival is coming to Mexico City with music, dance, film, and more. From October 3 to 22, the festival will visit 17 venues across the capital to celebrate diversity and promote a society free from racism and discrimination.”
Festival director Talía Loaria highlighted that Acosta had to live through systemic racist barriers, noting, “It is deeply meaningful for her to kick off the Pachanga, because all of Mexico ought to know her and her talent.” Loaria emphasized that stories like that of the ‘Perla del Caribe’ justify the festival’s existence in the face of classism, racism, and xenophobia.
“We need to create our own space—one that accommodates all of us who have been left out,” she said, criticizing the exclusionary attitude of Mexican elite academies and festivals.
The program features Diablas—a dance and resistance group comprising 100 women from Oaxaca, Guerrero, and Mexico City—as well as Musas Sonideras and a photography exhibition at the Chapultepec Park gates. A discussion aimed at championing Afro-cinema will also be held with Afro-Mexican filmmaker Balam Toscano, who will premiere the film We aren’t she-devils (in spanish No somos diablas).
The festival emerges against a backdrop where 40% of people of African descent in Mexico City feel their rights are not respected, according to a survey published in September 2026 by the capital’s government.
The survey reveals that these individuals experience discomfort in their neighborhoods, on public transport, in restaurants, and in the workplace, highlighting the persistence of social barriers and the need for such spaces of expression.
Dual citizenship is fueling a growing debate in Mexico over political loyalty, national identity, and foreign influence.
As ties between Mexico and the United States continue to shape political and social life, questions over dual nationality are increasingly coming under… pic.twitter.com/uaJFI7vXw1
— teleSUR English (@telesurenglish) September 9, 2026
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