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In the mid-20th century Caribbean, cinema became a powerful tool for nation-building, education, and political messaging through two remarkable organizations with surprisingly parallel methods but divergent ideologies. Dr. Pedro Noel Doreste Rodríguez joins us for this enchanting history in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month.

The story begins in 1949 when Puerto Rico established the Division of Community Education (DIVEDCO), creating films that taught rural communities practical skills while reinforcing cultural identity within the island's complicated relationship with the United States. Ten years later, revolutionary Cuba founded the Instituto Cubano del Arte e Industria Cinematográficos (ICAIC), similarly using cinema to educate citizens but through an explicitly socialist lens. Both organizations deployed mobile cinema units, bringing film to remote villages alongside community discussions and educational programs. These weren't Hollywood productions seeking profit, but state-sponsored projects with clear political objectives.

Perhaps most surprising is Cuba's relationship with American cinema despite the US embargo. The ICAIC organized pirated screenings of films like The Godfather, viewing them as critiques of American capitalism rather than threats to revolutionary values. This openness to global cinema influences, filtered through a revolutionary perspective, helped shape Cuba's enduring film tradition. What can these remarkable cultural experiments teach us about the power of cinema as both art and political instrument? The answer lies in understanding how these films didn't just entertain audiences—they helped shape Caribbean identities during one of the region's most transformative periods.

Pedro Noel Doreste Rodríguez is Assistant Professor in Film Studies at Michigan State University and Co-Director of the Manchineel Project. He is a historian of Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx film and media whose research surveys cinematic encounters between the global North and South, diasporic and exile filmmaking, and avant-garde film cultures in and of the Hispanic Caribbean. He is coeditor of the anthology "Vivirse la película: Methods in Puerto Rican Film Studies," forthcoming from Centro Press.

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Storytelling lies at the heart of Caribbean identity. Award-winning filmmaker Alyscia Cunningham joins us to unravel the power of Caribbean folklore through the lens of modern cinema. As a first-generation Trinidadian-American, Cunningham's childhood was filled with spine-tingling tales from her parents' homeland in southern Trinidad. Today, she channels those experiences into her documentary and narrative horror films, creating what she calls "impact art" – creative works designed to educate audiences and spark meaningful conversation.

We dive deep into Cunningham's filmmaking journey with Douen and Douen II, exploring why this particular folklore figure – a mischievous childlike spirit who died before baptism – resonated so strongly with her. The conversation reveals fascinating insights about the challenges Caribbean filmmakers. Beyond entertainment, Cunningham's work serves as a crucial bridge between generations, preserving cultural knowledge while making it accessible to contemporary audiences who might otherwise never encounter these traditional tales. Her approach demonstrates how Caribbean horror folklore can evolve without losing its essence, honoring ancestral wisdom while ensuring its survival. Discover how ancient Caribbean folklore finds new life on screen, and why these stories matter now more than ever.

Alyscia Cunningham is an award-winning impact artist, author, filmmaker, tactile artist, and photographer who has contributed to the Smithsonian, National Geographic, Discovery Channel and AOL. Her work focuses on women discovering their strengths and surviving challenging circumstances. Rooted in her identity as a first-generation Trinidadian American, Alyscia’s early fascination with storytelling was sparked by the tales of resilience, folklore, and life lessons shared by her Caribbean elders. These narratives of triumph over adversity and cultural heritage fuel her creative passion, driving her work in both documentary and narrative filmmaking. Alyscia is also the Founder and Executive Director of Her House Media LLC, focusing on production of documentary and horror films written and directed by women of color.

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When we lose a loved one, the stories they carried often disappear with them—unless we find ways to preserve them. This powerful truth drives creative consultant Calvin Walker's experimental audio project "Daylight Come," which traces his family's migration from Jamaica to the United Kingdom and connects deeply personal narratives to broader historical movements. Calvin walks us through his creative process, from attempts at writing and filmmaking to his eureka moment when discovering AI-generated voices could provide the emotional distance needed to tell difficult stories. What unfolds is a masterclass in cultural preservation that weaves individual experiences with pivotal historical contexts like Windrush, colonial legacies, and the formation of Caribbean communities in postwar Britain.

Most compelling is Calvin's passionate defense of documenting seemingly "ordinary" family histories: "The more stories, even if they're banal, that get put down with dates and times and facts, the harder it is to sweep them away and say it didn't really happen like that." In an era when historical narratives are contested and sometimes erased, these personal archives become powerful acts of resistance and remembrance. Have you considered documenting your own family's journey? Calvin offers practical advice for getting started with modern tools that make preservation more accessible than ever. Recording these histories builds bridges across generations and oceans, ensuring cultural legacies endure beyond individual lifetimes.

Calvin Walker is a Jamaican-born creative consultant with British and French nationalities. His work bridges visual arts, storytelling, and cultural advocacy, shaped by a background in photography and technology. After starting out as an independent photographer, Calvin moved into multimedia development and later spent twenty years at Film France, where he developed international partnerships and promoted France as a global hub for film and post-production. He collaborates with artists, filmmakers, and institutions around the world, and has contributed to major industry events such as the Cannes Film Market, FOCUS London, and Berlinale EFM. Calvin also advises art and design schools and is the creator of Daylight Come, an experimental audio project exploring ancestry, migration, and memory.

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What drives someone to pick up a camera and document untold Caribbean history with no formal training? For Richard Vaughn, it was a simple realization: the political stories that shaped the modern Caribbean were either missing from film archives or told through a heavily biased lens. Vaughn takes us on his remarkable journey from curious Jamaican-American to award-winning documentary filmmaker. With us, he describes what would become "The Love Trilogy" – three powerful documentaries examining pivotal Caribbean political figures: Michael Manley of Jamaica, the Grenada Revolution, and Cheddi Jagan of Guyana. The trilogy's name emerged organically from Manley's own words about his political movement: "The word is love."

The conversation weaves together reflections on Caribbean self-determination, the connection between political movements and cultural expressions like reggae music, and practical advice for aspiring documentarians. Vaughn's simple guidance resonates beyond filmmaking: identify what needs preserving in your community's history, start with whatever resources you have, and persist despite obstacles. Listen now to discover how documentary film serves as both historical preservation and a tool for balanced understanding of the Caribbean's complex political landscape. What stories in your community deserve similar documentation?

Richard Vaughan born in New York to Jamaican immigrants in 1980. Driven by a passion for his culture and determination to educate and tell stores that history often forgets. Winner of the Madrid International Filmmaker Festival 2017 for Best Editing of a Documentary and the 2017 Van Gogh Award: Prodigy Auteur at the 2017 Amsterdam Film Festival for his second documentary Rolling Along: An Inline Movement. Previous credits include The Word is Love: Jamaica's Michael Manley (2012), Rolling Along: An Inline Movement (2017), Four Years of Love: The Grenada Revolution (2021), The Price of Love: Cheddi Jagan (2024). Films available here.

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Thirty-five years ago on July 27, 1990, Trinidad and Tobago experienced a shocking violation of its democratic foundations when Yasin Abu Bakr and the Jamaat al-Muslimeen stormed Parliament and the national television station, holding the Prime Minister hostage and declaring the government overthrown. This episode delves into a Caribbean coup that rarely makes the history books but lives on in the memory of Trinidadians who witnessed it. Writer Esker David Johnson joins us to share his personal connection to the event. Together, we uncover the economic and social conditions that fertilized the ground for this uprising, from Trinidad's oil-dependent economy to the marginalization of Afro-Trinidadian communities that Abu Bakr claimed to champion.

But the most fascinating aspect of this coup isn't just that it happened—it's what didn't happen afterward. Despite the violence, the hostage-taking, and approximately 30 deaths, the perpetrators walked free due to amnesty agreements signed under duress. This extraordinary lack of consequences created what Johnson describes as a "recalibration" of Trinidad's national identity, a wound in the country's relationship with justice that shapes crime and politics to this day. Through calypso, cultural memory, and comparative history, we trace the echoes of this event through Trinidad's later struggles and are reminded that memory, justice, and national identity are inextricably linked.

Eskor David Johnson is a writer from Trinidad and Tobago and the United States. His debut novel Pay As You Go was a finalist for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize as well as the the New York Public Library Young Lions Fiction Award. A professor of Fiction Writing at Stony Brook University, he lives in New York City. Also check out Johnson's recent piece on the coup, "Sisyphus in the Capital."

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Freedom wasn't granted—it was seized through blood, sweat, and unwavering resistance. Across the Dutch and Danish Caribbean colonies, enslaved Africans fought against brutal systems of oppression that are often overshadowed in mainstream historical narratives focused on British, Spanish, and French colonial powers.

When thousands gathered in St. Croix on July 2nd, 1848, led by freedom fighter General Buddhoe (Moses Gottlieb), they weren't asking politely for their liberation. They threatened to burn Frederiksted to the ground, forcing the Danish governor to declare immediate emancipation. This powerful act of collective resistance is why July 3rd remains sacred in the U.S. Virgin Islands, commemorated through Freedom Week celebrations that honor ancestral sacrifice and triumph.

Meanwhile, in the Dutch Caribbean territories like Suriname, Curaçao, and Aruba, emancipation arrived decades later in 1863—and even then with the cruel stipulation that the formerly enslaved would be required to work an additional decade on the plantations where they had suffered. This delayed freedom, finally realized in 1873, is now celebrated as "Keti Koti" (the chain is broken), a powerful testament to resilience against Dutch colonial brutality.

The colonial footprints of the Netherlands and Denmark—alongside brief periods of Swedish and Portuguese occupation—remain etched in Caribbean legal systems, languages, demographics, and collective consciousness. By amplifying these overlooked histories, we honor the full spectrum of Caribbean resistance and recognize that every Emancipation Day represents a hard-won victory by those who refused to accept bondage as their fate. Our ancestors' struggle for dignity continues to illuminate our path forward.

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When we picture World War I and II, we rarely envision Caribbean soldiers in RAF uniforms flying bombing missions over Nazi Germany or Trinidad's oil refineries fueling the Battle of Britain. Yet these overlooked contributions not only helped defeat fascism but transformed the Caribbean's political landscape forever. In this eye-opening episode, historian John Concagh joins Strictly Facts to uncover how over 15,000 Caribbean volunteers served in WWI and 6,000 more in WWII, despite facing what Concagh calls a "shadow color bar" within British forces. We explore the complex motivations driving Caribbean people to fight in these global conflicts – from colonial loyalty to active anti-fascism – and the bitter disappointment many faced upon being relegated to labor battalions rather than combat roles.

The conversation highlights remarkable individuals whose war service shaped their later political careers, including Errol Barrow, who flew 48 bomber missions before becoming Barbados' first Prime Minister, and Ulric Cross, whose 80 missions with the elite Pathfinder force preceded his influential legal career across the post-colonial Caribbean. As Concagh powerfully observes, "When you've been shot at over Germany at 20,000 feet in the middle of the night, the British aren't very scary anymore" – explaining how military service emboldened veterans to demand independence upon their return. Beyond military service, we discover how the Caribbean's strategic position and resources – from Trinidad's aviation fuel to Jamaica's bauxite – proved crucial to Allied victory. From wartime calypso songs mocking Hitler to today's memorial sites across the region, this episode reveals how the Caribbean's war experiences continue to shape cultural memory and national identity. Listen now to understand how fighting fascism abroad inspired the fight for freedom at home.

John Concagh is a historian from London whose work focuses on the relationship between Britain’s African and Caribbean colonies and the challenges of the Second World War. Follow John online.

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Caribbean American Heritage Month invites us to explore the rich tapestry of identities that shape our diaspora experience. In this episode, we uncover the fascinating yet often overlooked story of "The Merikins" – formerly enslaved Black people who joined British forces during the War of 1812 and later established thriving communities in southern Trinidad. After gaining their freedom through military service, these remarkable individuals received land grants from the British in 1815-1816. In Trinidad, they built productive agricultural settlements, but their contribution extends far beyond farming. They maintained powerful cultural and religious traditions that are still recognized today.

Discover more about this remarkable chapter in Caribbean history with us. And while you celebrate Caribbean American Heritage Month, don't forget to check out our first-ever merch drop, curated playlist, and reading list on our website!

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