The last masters of Afro-Colombian machete fencing

Summary

Maestro Porfirio spars with a student, practicing defensive techniques. Photo by Rowan Glass, used with permission. This story by Rowan Glass was originally published on April 3, 2025 in Lazo Magazine. An edited version is republished on Global Voices with their permission. In the Afro-descendant town of Puerto Tejada, in the southern Colombian department of Cauca, a handful of master swordsmen represent one of the last bastions of the traditional martial art called “grima,” or machete fencing. From its origins in the colonial era to the threats facing this ancestral art form in the present, grima is an integral part of Afro-Colombian cultural heritage. The House of Cacao The House of Cacao offers a cool and tranquil refuge from the tropical sun in a region known for its sweltering heat. Yet, even in this cultural center, a welcome shelter from the clamorous streets outside, the metallic ring of steel striking steel breaks the quiet repose. Here, in the Academia de Esgrima de Machete y Bordón, some of the last masters of an ancestral Afro-Colombian martial art propagate their teachings to younger generations dedicated to the survival of their heritage. “This is an art that, ever since our African ancestors arrived in this country, we have maintained and preserved through the generations,” explains Maestro Miguellourido, a recognized master with fifty years of experience in the art. “That’s why for us, grima is an art of freedom and resistance. That’s why we can never allow it to die. It’s our heritage and the legacy of our ancestors.” Yet the future of this heritage is unclear. The masters dwindle in number as many young Afro-Colombians look to urban Colombia and mestizo culture instead of their own heritage. Grima has no official status in the National Registry of Colombian Cultural Heritage. Like so many others, it’s a tradition that stands at an impasse between a storied past and an uncertain future. An assortment of machetes and “bordones,” or defensive sticks w...