 The Mayor of Havana, Carlos de La Torre, reinstate the Carnival festivities officially in 1902.The massive participation of a population of African origin in the Independence war resulted in a greater integration of the Afro-Cubans in social activities, and facilitated a more important participation of this segment of the population in the Carnival during the first years of the Republic.For the first time blacks were allowed to play their music and dances along with the "comparsas" of white people, such as El Alacrán, the Model T cars covered by flower arrangements and the "carrozas" (floats).