Culture of the Dominican Republic Festival. During four days each December, independent films, shorts, and documentaries are screened. "Notes": Culture of the Dominican Republic The culture of the Dominican Republic is a diverse mixture of different influences from around the world. The Dominican people and their customs have origins consisting predominately in a European cultural basis, with both African and native Taíno influences. The Dominican Republic was the site of the first European settlement in the Western Hemisphere, namely Santo Domingo founded in 1493. As a result of over five centuries of Spanish presence in the island, the core of Dominican culture is derived from
Women in the Dominican Republic for women to find jobs, where they are paid less. Many women from the Dominican Republic migrated to New York City in the United States in order to escape from the "male-dominate culture" of Dominican Republic society. One notable example of literature depicting the struggles of women in the Dominican Republic and their yearning for better life through education is Julia Alvarez's historical novel titled "In the Time of the Butterflies", whose heroine Minerva Mirabal lived in the Dominican Republic during the reign of Rafael Trujillo. In 1931, the Dominican Feminist Action, led by Abigail Mejia, hosted the First Feminist