Nigerian Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka was honored with two prestigious awards in Cuba. Soyinka, who recently turned 90th birthday, was awarded both the Haydee Santamaria Medal and the Dulce María Loynaz International Prize—two honors that reflect his lifelong fight for justice.

The Haydee Santamaria Medal was conferred by Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel at the celebrated Cuban organization Casa de las Americas during a ceremony held in Havana on August 23, 2024.

The award is named after Haydee Santamaria whose activism helped overthrow the Batista dictatorship in 1959. She also founded Casa de las Americas, an organization that helped forge global connections among Latin American, African, and Caribbean arts and culture.

AriseTV reports that President Diaz-Canel referred to Soyinka as “a brother who has always fought for just causes.” Soyinka’s acceptance speech highlights his life-long connection to Cuban culture.

Our ties with Cuba are not limited to art and literature, but also to liberation…I grew up listening to Cuban music, in those days when there were gramophones, when there was no electricity. This has been a wonderful way to bring me back and remind me that Cuba is also my home. And it is proof that Yoruba is everywhere here, and that completes the spiritual aspect of people like me.

Soyinka receiving this prize honors his life-long work at the intersection of literature, politics, and social justice.

The Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba presented Soyinka with the Dulce María Loynaz International Prize. The prize recognizes the impact of Soyinka’s work on Cuban literature and culture. Soyinka has always drawn inspiration from the Cuban revolution and its significance as a powerful anti-colonial gesture as well as a defiant resistance to oppression. This prize indicates that his work, particularly his work on Yoruba literature and culture, has also made an impact in Cuba.

Soyinka first visited Cuba 60 years ago. We imagine that these awards mean a lot to him, coming from a country that has been an inspiration for his own revolutionary practice.

Congrats to Soyinka!

 

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Photo by Frankie Fouganthin  via wikipedia.