Cuban schoolchildren hail Spain: is Hispanism still alive in Latin America?

Cuban schoolchildren cheer the Spanish flag: a last trace of Hispanism on the island?

Cuba is the Latin American country where the phrase "Motherland" comes most naturally when referring to Spain. A viral riddle confirms it: a video of schoolchildren walking past the Spanish Embassy in Havana, pointing at the flag and chanting "That is the flag of the Motherland." The scene, filmed by a passer-by, became a guessing game about which South American country was behind the gesture. The answer, against all geographic odds, was Cuba.

Why Cuba and not somewhere else?

Cuba's role as the epicenter of popular Hispanism is no accident. For decades, the official narrative of the Revolution downplayed the colonial legacy to emphasize resistance to the United States. That has left room for the bond with Spain to endure as a cultural counterweight, especially among the educated elite. While the Black Legend took deep root in school curricula in Mexico or Argentina, the anti-Spanish narrative was never a priority on the island. As one participant in the debate noted, "I don't recall any Cuban asking us to give the gold back."

The deeper debate: heritage versus resentment

The riddle has peine an old discussion: which Spanish-speaking American countries keep the most affection for Spain? Opinions split between those who point to majority-white, Europeanized countries (Argentina, Uruguay, Chile) and those who argue that Hispanism is stronger where opposition to US imperialism is the priority. The former cite ethnic makeup; the latter, geopolitics. The Cuban case shows that affinity can grow out of a shared rejection of another power rather than colonial nostalgia. Indeed, in countries like Peru or Bolivia, where indigenous people are the majority, the relationship with Spain tends to be more fraught.

How much does the "Black Legend" weigh?

Anglo-American influence on Latin American education is another factor. In countries with a strong US university presence or elites trained in the English-speaking world, the critical narrative of Spanish colonization is reinforced. Cuba, cut off from that circuit, has preserved a less hostile view. Still, any political change on the island could rewrite that narrative. The emergence of figures like Marco Rubio in the debate over Cuba's future suggests that, if the regime falls, the "Black Legend" could become the new catechism.

For now, the video of the Cuban schoolchildren is a curiosity that dismantles stereotypes: sometimes affection for the former colonial power survives where it is least expected. But it should not be extrapolated: a symbolic gesture does not erase centuries of shared history, nor the wounds that still fester. Hispanism in Latin America does endure, yes, but as an undercurrent that surfaces in the most unexpected places.