One of the exciting aspects about living in a city such as Buenos Aires is encountering the unexpected. Walking home at night along Defensa through San Telmo is always an experience worth savoring – the cobblestone streets, the old facades, the sounds of tango around Plaza Dorrego.

Last night I came across something entirely different. As I walked under the highway overpass I noticed a protest march further down Defensa, banners and flags waving in the air accompanied by the sound of drums. An odd location for a march, I thought. Getting closer, I could tell that the rhythm was not the usual snare drums of the piqueteros but an entirely other beat.

Crossing Garay I then saw two tremendously large flags – red, yellow, and green – dominating a group of about thirty dancers and musicians heading down Defensa towards La Boca. They carried banners protesting the forced closure of the Movimiento Afro Cultural located in Barracas at Herrera 313, .

It was a reminder that I should always carry a camera with me in Buenos Aires, but I didn’t have mine. It was certainly the most colorful protest I’ve seen in Buenos Aires, almost like a carnival parade. The women dressed in flowing skirts, bare midriff, and silky tops danced exuberantly while the men played all sizes of drums.

The march was halted by police at the corner of Defensa and Brasil, just in front of El Hipopotamo café. The police would not let them march any further down Defensa. After a while of dancing and playing, the group picked up their instruments and crossed Av Brasil to gather once more in Parque Lezama where they continued playing and dancing.