Sankofa Danzafro’s mission is “to dance to be heard, rather than to be seen.”
Artistic Director Rafael Palacios’ motivation has been to rewrite the history of Black communities through the eyes of those directly involved, Afro-descendants in Colombia and elsewhere. Palacios’ view is that history has always been written by the oppressor, while the oppressed were denied a voice. So, utilizing the voices of the Sankofa dancers and musicians, he has been creating choreographies for over 20 years focused on retelling history from a point of view that has been ignored for centuries.
“Sankofa,” meaning, “to return to the root,” is more than just a word, it’s an African philosophy that proposes that the past is a keyhole through which to view the present, and to be able to consider the future. This thought has guided Sankofa Danzafro since its inception in 1997.
Through various pedagogical projects and creative works, Sankofa Danzafro has sought to build a bridge between Afro-Colombian peoples and the African continent. The company channels ancestral Afro-Colombian roots in the creation of works developed through the framework of the daily, traditional, and contemporary. Sankofa’s works are a combination of poetic dance built on the ideas of social bonding, personal growth, and the positioning of local cultures in the national dynamics.
The company has performed in Brazil, France, Peru, Spain, Jamaica, Burkina Faso, Canada, Uruguay, China, and the United States, and has been awarded with the 2008 National Dance Award by the Ministry of Culture of Colombia for San Pacho…Blessed! In 2010, the company also received mention from United Nations for its contribution to Afro-descendant social inclusion in Latin America, for the company’s project Steps in the Earth.