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Music.

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Gwan, everybody, welcome to the Dis Afami History podcast,

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where we'll be speaking about history and as well family history and how history

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relates in terms of Caribbean people for the present as well as in the past.

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And how in the past, what that does and brings forward for what we are going

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through at present and what we can learn from our history, from our family and

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take that moving forward. So I do hope you enjoy the podcast. And if you like it, please ensure to subscribe, like, and review.

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Thank you. In today's episode, Wendy Aris has the honor of speaking with Chief

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Kalan Nibonrix Kaiman of the Jamaican Hummingbird Taino people.

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Join us for an inspiring discussion about the Jamaican Taino community,

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their remarkable resilience and unwavering perseverance.

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Let's dive into this enriching conversation. So let's have a listen.

1:04

Thank you so much, Kelan, for coming on to the podcast,

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Dysaphomy History, and to speak about the Tainos in Jamaica,

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and that they have not been a group of people that have been destroyed or no longer exist.

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So before we start, can I just have you introduce yourself and then we'll start.

1:43

Greetings, good day, my relatives, and my sister.

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My Taino name is Nibon Rish Kaiman. You can call me Kalan, Chief of the Jamaican

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Hummingbird Taino People. and today we are here to honor those who came before

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us and those who will come after us, the future generations.

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Kahom, thank you for this opportunity to share our story.

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No, absolutely. Thank you, Kalan. And can you just be able to, you know, we'll start.

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So can you be able to walk us through your ancestry to the Taino indigenous people on Jamaica?

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Yes. So for me personally,

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And I'll share this from a first-person perspective so that others that have

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similar experiences can understand

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that there are ways and means of coming to a similar conclusion.

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First of all, within my family, as a child growing up, we were very community-based.

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My grandfather worked in construction and you know we would live in these houses

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that he would build and then he would build another one and we moved to somewhere else you know,

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we're hopping around but we're always hopping around in the same areas.

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And we grew up in but I grew up in St.

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Andrew and you know that's another contention because But people say that I

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come from Kingston and I also sent Andrew because, you know,

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my experiences growing up is running cows,

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neighbors cows out of the yard and going into open fields and picking fruits.

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You know, it was a very different experience and it was one that I assumed was the norm for everyone.

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And, you know, as you meet more in your age range, going to school,

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you may have friends that may come over. You may visit them in their home situation. That is the first glance that some things are different.

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You know, it's the first realization that there are differences in culture.

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There are differences in households and how they're operated.

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And when that came to the forefront for me as an individual,

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you know, I started to ask questions. Now, in my family, when those questions came up, whatever was not known to be

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European was assumed to be African, right?

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That's just what happened. And there was an older generation in the family that.

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They didn't speak so freely of things that were not European.

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You know, there were sayings like, during the summertime, go inside,

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you know, you'll lose your color, you know, statements.

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So there were a lot of wounds coming up, internal wounds as it related to identity

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and how we're perceived and how we viewed ourselves.

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And that changed when I was in my late teens,

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early 20s, and I met someone who was a white passing individual with Jamaican

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ancestry that came here to learn more about his father's line.

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But he came with teachings from peru and

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he took me on as an

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apprentice and was teaching me these teachings from peru you

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know these indian people now my entire life growing

5:24

up as i said you know i i when it came to cowboys and indians i had an affinity

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for native america you know parents would buy me bow and arrows and headdress

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and you know it it was something that the narrative was different for me.

5:41

I always wondered why would they attack these people? Why do they want to take their lands?

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At an early age, I was aware of what was happening and this programming and making this seem fine.

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I was aware that what Indiana Jones was doing was wrong, which not many would have seen it this way.

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And after I learned these things from him, I felt a little grounded.

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I honored the Taino people of Jamaica. At that point, I didn't know there was

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any connection for myself and my family.

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And learning traditions from South America, there are similarities.

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You know, they're talking about woodpeckers. They were talking about the hummingbird.

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They were talking about the crocodile, which are things that are here.

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That going to the regular school system, we're not taught to value these things.

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We're not taught to of value are coney and the few that exist you know not many

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were lamenting what happened to our iguanas this this was just not normal outside

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of my household family discussions.

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And the next phase in my life was when I was introduced, because I was now trained

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in this, you know, healing modality. I was invited to an Akan shrine house, Sankofia House of Journeys.

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And while there, they shared with me about the Peace and Dignity Journeys,

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which is an intertribal prayer run. And that is really what shifted things for me.

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Every four years since 1992, there's an intertribal prayer run that takes place

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where Native Americans from Alaska.

7:13

All the way down to Argentina connect and they

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share in ceremony and a community runs from

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the north to a central space designated and

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from the south to the central space and they're hosted by different communities

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so this is kind of that reconnection that

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is taking place and I was invited to represent the

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Jamaican Taino so I had to do you know research so

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now this is reading up what colonizers wrote

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and and i have to thank boyanani dr leslie

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gale atkinson swaby jamaican homegrown identifies

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as taino and maroon who has a book

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the earliest inhabitants and it spoke about you

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know taino spaces in saint andrew that i

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had recollection of you know

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i remember going to school and my classmates saying

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to me that you know that they found a skull

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in the yard and and how them parents destroyed

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because they thought it was over and then to read in

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Leslie Gale's book that they were actually on

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a Taino site and being able to map

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the two experiences together and I'm

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saying wow this has been hovering around me for quite some time so when I was

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learning certain practices now connected to Taino tradition and how I'd have

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to carry myself representing Jamaica I was doing this training around my grandmother

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and she said to me that you know you you're doing things that my father used to do.

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And I said what and she say yes you know I'm used

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to same as my own engine or my own coolie and

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I was shocked because I've never heard that spoken of in

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the family before and when I asked her why am

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I only hearing of this now that is when she shared that the maternal

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side of the family they they grew

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up to believe that maroon or indian they

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weren't good people and for that reason that

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wasn't something to speak of and whatever programming she received she told

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her father even though she was you know laughing when she said it to him when

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she explained the story to me as a child she told him not to share that with

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anyone and to never say that again and he respected that and we had no clue we

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know nothing more about that part of the family other than his mother,

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spent some time in cuba before we heard she was born in cuba what we get to

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learn that you know she was born here and went to cuba and worked there with the church.

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And, you know, that shifted things for me internally because now this became

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a personal journey, not just, you know, me honoring the people that were here.

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But now, what can I learn about myself?

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What can I learn about my family? And while on the journey, I met with the Caribbean

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contingent, you know, people from Puerto Rico, Borinquen, people from Dominican

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Republic, Quisqueya, IT, people from Cuba.

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And now you know I'm sharing with people

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that are Cuba Taino descendants that you know I have ancestry

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from Cuba too and they're saying yeah you know or people went from Jamaica to

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Cuba you know that that happened and hearing the stories of how you know there

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were cave systems when the British came and you know how the story between Cuba

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and Jamaica is different from the other islands that

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there were places where, you know, there were Spanish men that intermarried with Taino women.

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And when the British came, they tried to hide these families and hide these

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communities in fishing villages. And it was such an emotional shift for me that here I am traveling throughout

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the Americas thinking I'm doing something,

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you know, to help others when it was really a lot of help for myself and my family.

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And to summarize what happened next is when I returned home with this information

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and I started to share with them,

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you know, like going through the family tree and where this person came from

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and started to record the stories from my grandmother.

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The funny thing that happened is sharing it with my paternal side,

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my father's mother, my grandmother, my paternal side started to share stories too.

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So I was like wait and she's now sharing that yes you know her her grandmother's

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name was Yaya and how she looked and how long her hair was and you know she

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said yes you know she was Indian I said East Indian and she said no we don't

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have any East Indian in my family they're from Jamaica,

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and it created a shift in our family because now these were things that my parents

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didn't know about and everybody was welcoming and accepting and.

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Started to make sense of some of the things that we do you know our family is

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a family of of dreamers on my mother's side so my

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mother my grandmother and my aunt

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and grandaunts like the woman on a whole in the family whenever there's

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someone has a a dream everyone would gather

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and talk about the dream and discuss and and interpret

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it and and come to conclusions and who

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the dream is for and what the dream means you know

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I thought this was normal in every household

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and it connected when I

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was there with our other Caribbean contingent families

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so we're at today

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for my family is that we know that we have Maroon ancestry we know that we have

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Taino ancestry we know that we have some Taino and Native American retention

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in some of our cultural practices and how we deal with dreams,

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how we deal with the ancestors. And from that, we have been able to connect with others on the island that share similar stories.

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You know, there's a terminology that one of our council members has shared in a paper, blood memory.

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It is an interesting thing when we get together and we're talking about dreams

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and everybody's like oh i've had that experience too yes this this dream or

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this experience where you're on the coast and you see these ships coming in

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and you know and i'm like wow so.

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Hmm, there are these powerful experiences that have connected us and this journey

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of understanding who we are and bringing that pride to our ancestry.

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Since then, we have accounts that has come together and we have restarted our

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tiny community, bringing everyone back together and sharing stories,

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sharing about the language resurgence.

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And what has happened is that we have community members was that they found

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out they're related you know they don't know each other but through looking

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into this tiny ancestry you know there are certain surnames that come up certain

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places that come up St Mary, St Anne, St Elizabeth and the connections are being made and you know I'm happy

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that these shifts are happening not only in my family but extending to others as well.

14:31

No absolutely and And it seems to me like that, you know, based on what you

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just said, is that there's been, I guess, certain things that have followed

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you your whole life until it all came together.

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And then with your light now being further flamed, it allowed others to be able

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to tell their story as well, which has been, you know, that's kind of,

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it's kind of humbling as well to be able to be a part of that.

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And so what are some of the, I guess, the key cultural practices and traditions

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and beliefs that have been preserved within the Jamaican Taino community?

15:06

Okay, well, alright. So the Taina community, I like to look at it in two subgroups.

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So there are the fishing villages that are on the coast, and there are those

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that are in the interior, in the mountain spaces.

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So there are some that identify as Maroon in the sense of they're not treaty communities.

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And there are the treaty communities of

15:32

Maroons as well that they have individuals that

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kind of live distant from the

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rest of the community and they know them to be you know the indigenous Indian

15:42

Taino people and amongst the communities on the fishing course the majority

15:50

of the practices are related to fishing it is related to canoe making or however

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elder that you know he has his father's ads and he holds a tradition of

16:00

woodwork and making these dugout canoes

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he will have what the archaeologists call

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the Antillian Z fish trap we in Jamaica does

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not have much fish but that is coming from that tiny

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tradition it there's our people are

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our farmers so in the mountains overall they

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are farming practices how we observe the cycles of

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the moon how we operate with our calendar when do we plan when

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do we reap there's even folklore around our practices so

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one of our staple foods is yucca which is cassava

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the teaching is that you don't smoke tobacco when you are planting cassava the

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cassava will become bitter you know and i've i've learned that from various

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communities as well so there are there are these different things that maintain

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there is basket weaving. There is in some communities hammock making, there is.

16:55

The food of Bami. You know, that's a kind of practice as well.

17:01

There is other folklore around trees, like the trumpet tree.

17:05

You know, we know that the leaves of the trumpet tree indicate the weather conditions that will be coming.

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This folklore is contained in some of our communities, like Woodside and a lot throughout the island.

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And some has become widespread, like the concept of the doctor bird,

17:22

doctor bird being a cunning bird. You know, Dr. Bud Akonibud, hard bud for dead.

17:26

You know, that song and that concept of it being the god bird is from Thai tradition.

17:30

There are stories behind why it's considered the god bird, the resilience that

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this bird has and its intelligence is connected to our people.

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There are still elders that they are growing tobacco for medicinal purposes

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and they're growing a traditional way and they're drying it with other medicinal herbs.

17:50

So it's it's a

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surprising thing when you open that

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door and at first for

18:00

most because we're disconnected you feel like

18:03

you know you're the only one in the space like you're the you're the last yes

18:09

and then you realize that there's so much preserved and there's so much going

18:13

on i mean we'll have our sacred sites and all of our sacred sites and when most

18:18

most of our sacred sites and sacred caves have a caretaker.

18:22

Like naturally, there are families in these communities that they understand

18:26

that their job is to take care of these spaces, take care of these petroglyphs,

18:30

take care of these sites, take care of these rivers, and they give offerings there.

18:34

So there's a continuation of these practices now that we're coming together.

18:39

It's not that we're trying to recreate or we're trying to, you know,

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read records from the 1300s or the 1400s and pretend like we're coming out of

18:48

a time machine. These things are here. And that's why I tell our community members that they have to honor their grandparents.

18:54

They have to honor their parents. Because the narrative of our existence and

18:59

continuity is what they have preserved and brought forward. It is not in the history books.

19:06

Right? How our people survived in Jamaica is one. It was by hiding.

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So everybody wonders, why is it that we're just popping up now?

19:15

Know because there are systems in place and there's an opportunity for us to

19:20

have our rights there's an elder that we have in in green island that you know

19:25

his family is caretakers of a cave that actually has a cacique's bones it has

19:32

calcified into the cave so it cannot be removed,

19:35

And he has this fear of sharing about that space because we don't have our rights,

19:42

that the government or others are going to want to come and take over the space and take over the space.

19:47

Already, archaeologists have come from universities overseas.

19:50

They've gone through, they've found pottery and different things.

19:53

They said they're going to write upon it. They don't include where they found

19:56

the things, any of that. They leave, they go back to the States,

19:58

and he has no connection with them. He can't hear from them.

20:01

You know, young students doing their thesis. places.

20:04

So we've had these experiences.

20:07

We carry that trauma of attempted genocide on our people.

20:12

So of course, we're not going to want to just come out and tell everybody, here we are.

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You know, when we hear the response from the public, oh, is he only representing 10 people?

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The thought that pops up in one of my council members' heads when they heard

20:24

that is, are they going to try to wipe out who they think is these 10 people now to put this to rest?

20:31

So we are very protective of our

20:34

community we're very protective of our families

20:37

we're very protective of our practices what we do now is we do have celebrations

20:42

that the public can participate in where we share more of our concepts our cosmology

20:49

how we connect with the environment the value in that is for the younger generations

20:54

because you know with all that is taking place with climate change,

20:57

a return to ancestral ways of balance that existed here for centuries is important.

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And we know that that onus is on us to speak up.

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When we see our generation, we have seen too many things happening,

21:13

you know, that the summers are getting hotter and the dry seasons are getting longer.

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It would have been very difficult for us to not step up and speak and share

21:24

what we know and to protect these spaces with the international laws that exist.

21:31

So we're trying to preserve our sustainable farming practices or fishing practices,

21:37

our connection with the environment and these sacred animals.

21:41

There was a narrative that iguanas were

21:44

extinct so we use them as one of our mascots too and there

21:48

has been a rehabilitation program with Hope Zoo Foundation

21:51

and you know the iguanas are

21:54

coming back in Jamaica and we say you know like oh like

21:57

like the iguanas they said we were extinct too right and

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the iguanas hold this special function because the seeds that an iguana consumes

22:07

when it passes through the iguanas body those grow faster and are more fertilized

22:15

than the regular seeds even when using you know these external.

22:21

Fertilizers, it helps to repopulate our forests.

22:26

So we all have a role to play and that is an important part of the practices

22:31

that we preserve and looking to share with the rest of Jamaica.

22:36

No, thank you for that because it is something to protect and just as you had indicated in terms of,

22:43

students coming over and doing their thesis and doing their archaeological digs

22:48

and just taking things that are actually tangible that are part of your heritage,

22:53

and then never to be able to see them again.

22:56

So, you know, absolutely to be able

22:59

to, I guess, to protect and to be very cautious, you know, of your group.

23:05

So would you be able to discuss, I guess, some of the challenges,

23:10

and I guess maybe that might be some of it, or obstacles that the Jamaican-Tayano

23:13

people have faced in preserving and promoting their cultural heritage?

23:19

Well, the most obvious one is that we don't have Indigenous rights in Germany.

23:29

Okay. And I appreciate this opportunity to speak to us and clarify.

23:34

The assumption based on things happening in the world today is that when an

23:38

Indigenous group speaks about Indigenous rights, that they're only talking about

23:43

land. It is more than land. The land is a central space that people are rooted and connected in and through

23:51

the land that's a space now where they can preserve their practices for future generations.

23:57

Communal land and living together and all that is very important. But.

24:03

Our indigenous rights deals with our cultural practices, deals with our spiritual practices.

24:08

We see feathers are sacred, feathers of certain birds that in our cosmology,

24:15

they're sort of closest to creator. So it represents for us a connection to creator and our prayers being carried and lifted.

24:23

There are systems that the average Jamaican has to go through to grow tobacco. one.

24:29

Most of the traditional Taino individuals that I know that grow that are not

24:36

operating through those systems because it's just something that their father

24:39

taught them and they pass it down for generations. You just know that these things going to be dried in a shed when you need medicine

24:47

or cleansing or you need to offer prayers that's something that you do.

24:50

We have a ridiculous Oviola in the books that mentions feathers and herbs and

24:56

plants that though not enforced, it still exists.

25:01

And there is concern and worry about us when we're gathering,

25:05

when we're blowing our conch shells, when we're honoring the sun,

25:09

we're honoring the day, we're honoring the moon, we're giving thanks to a good harvest.

25:14

All of these things are impacted upon based on the programming and the systems that exist today.

25:21

So all of that troubles are our rights the the

25:24

fact that in our communities there is

25:27

normally an elder woman who deals with home births the laws state that mother

25:35

cannot have a home birth for her first or her tenth child and the system that

25:42

exists today is really let me rephrase that let me not say the system.

25:47

The education for young doctors is around ensuring that when it comes to the birth of children,

26:01

for the mother and for them, they have less issues and the system that they

26:11

have designated as one for less issues is a C-section. a surgery.

26:19

I've heard the same being said amongst these practitioners that,

26:24

you know, it's a simple cut and they can be home in time for dinner, right?

26:30

That infringes upon the rights of our people and our cultural practices,

26:34

you know, that honoring of the placenta, that honoring of the navel string,

26:40

like there are generations who they don't know what that is like and they I will not have that.

26:45

So it's not just about the land.

26:49

It is about our identity.

26:52

We don't have the rights of indigenous people.

26:57

They say that we are viewed as indigenous culture and not people.

27:02

So that means we don't have the basic human rights to our practices,

27:06

to our religious beliefs, to our ceremonies to have our elder

27:11

officiate or our union ceremonies

27:14

you know marriage between our people our rites of passage

27:17

to have our young ones pulled out of school for their rites of passage like

27:22

these things may not seem important but it is integral in understanding our

27:27

connection to the land and the spaces and who we are and all of these are impacted

27:32

by the fact that we do not have our rights?

27:36

No, definitely that anything pertaining to the law to ensure that you have your

27:42

rights is absolutely important.

27:46

So going on to that, so what are some of the ongoing efforts or initiatives

27:51

aimed at reclaiming and revitalizing the Tayano traditions and knowledge among

27:56

the Jamaican Tayano community? Well, the first is that, you know, I'm so happy that Ancestors blessed us with

28:03

the Council of Elders and we have a connection with the international Taino

28:07

community and through these avenues and these channels we are able to consolidate

28:14

and archive a lot of the knowledge and information that we have.

28:17

There are things that should be obvious but they aren't and it's just because.

28:24

This knowledge wasn't being disseminated, you know, our ancestors and elders.

28:28

And when I say ancestors and elders, just for those listening,

28:30

I'm not talking about the 1400s.

28:33

I'm talking about grandparents and great-grandparents.

28:36

They had to hold on to some of this knowledge and hide it.

28:39

I mean, we have records of some of our elders that would step up and claim,

28:43

in those days, the terminology used was Arawak.

28:46

And they were ridiculed, you know. know they they

28:50

lost opportunities for business or

28:54

to own real estate or spaces based on

28:57

this sharing that they have done and

29:00

their complexion so in

29:04

the times that we're living now you know we have

29:07

an opportunity to step forward we have an opportunity i give

29:10

thanks that we have council members like tekina eri in a rule that is a professor

29:15

at university of ontario and she has scholarship for young Tainoa and black

29:23

students that want to continue their studies in education.

29:28

We give thanks for Tekina Katia Toa, Diane Prankt-Golding, that she's currently

29:36

the head of the Archaeological Society of Jamaica and one of our main genealogists.

29:43

We give thanks for Bajita Siba Inaru, one of our elders that specializes in

29:50

stones and crystals and she's able to share.

29:53

Most people when they talk about healing and the nature and the environment,

29:57

they talk about plants, but our traditions use stones as well and she carries

30:00

that tradition and she speaks towards that tradition. So through these individuals recognized in their own right and these work that

30:08

they are doing, all of us coming together, we have an avenue to share with the

30:12

next generation and to share with the public. We have sent a report to the Committee on Elimination of Racial Discrimination in 2022,

30:21

and the recommendations of the United Nations Committee is that the government

30:27

sit down and have discussions with us and the maroons,

30:30

and also that the members of society that are self-identifying as Taino,

30:36

that the government seeks to deal with us and acknowledge that.

30:39

You know it's not something for them

30:42

to try for us now

30:45

after all of this time of being ignored and rejected

30:48

to prove who we are what

30:52

we're asking is to preserve what we have and who

30:55

we are and our spaces that is

30:58

the ask so there's that there is last year went to the Inter-American Commission

31:06

on Human Rights and there as well we made our requests and our petition known

31:12

for indigenous rights of Taino and Maroon in Jamaica.

31:17

We are working at a level with the Ministry of Culture, pushing for support

31:24

on our activities so that we can share more with our community members and those interested.

31:30

We've connected with the History Association and there are some schools that

31:37

we may go and share with as well. And then, of course, others like yourself that give us a platform to get our message out.

31:44

Most recently, I was sharing at University of Rhode Island in Boston and Northeast

31:51

University through a collaboration with both of them, Catherine

31:57

John of URI and Chris Mangiapra of.

32:03

Northeast and there was also a manship artist residency where

32:06

we worked on solutions to preserve and promote the

32:09

culture of one of our communities woodside community there is

32:12

there's a lot of things that we're doing and we really appreciate that support

32:17

we'll have our big celebration coming up our new year celebration in may 26

32:22

so we'll share you know the fundraise and the stuff for that this one is on

32:27

a sunday so can get more support more people can come out and that's up Woodside,

32:32

one of our sacred sites that has three national heritage sites there.

32:38

So it's really about that awareness and getting it out there,

32:43

archiving information. Another success for us most recently, March this year, we were included in the

32:53

launch of an Indigenous Studies Cluster,

32:56

the The University of the West Indies was asked to, you know, be a part of that.

33:03

And MinorityRights.org, we were able to update the profile that they have on

33:09

Jamaica to include the Yamantayino as indigenous people.

33:12

And to speak about, hasn't it, our background, our profile and our current issues,

33:18

you know, where we're living people in the present, not just the issues that our ancestors face.

33:24

So a lot of the narrative is being changed to the present.

33:27

And I also co-authored a paper with Peter Siegel and Dr.

33:31

Professor Zachary Baird on another one of our thinocytes, white marl.

33:37

And that one is an archaeological paper.

33:40

So if you Google white marl and Cacica Callan or Peter Siegel, that one will come up.

33:45

And it is talking about white maltaina

33:49

site and its relevance throughout the centuries

33:52

for different groups and how

33:56

we're honoring and the work that we have to do and issues

33:58

that we have with even preserving that site as well because if

34:02

we're not people and we don't have the rights of

34:05

indigenous people then we can't

34:08

claim our ancestors when people find them we can't say

34:11

that we want them to be buried in an honorable way you

34:14

know there are so many implications that comes

34:17

from that and these are things that we want

34:20

to correct to shift but we want our

34:24

voice to be included and when there

34:27

are discussions or decisions around lands that everyone knows

34:30

them to be Taina lands it's on records and you know because we have not been

34:37

formally using these spaces because we don't have those rights they don't seek

34:42

or free our prior informed consent before any activities so we may just turn

34:47

up one day and the site is gone you know.

34:51

So we're becoming more vocal and galvanizing international support.

34:57

Our community sits on the Council of Indigenous, Caribbean Organization of Indigenous Peoples.

35:03

We've created the Yame Council of Indigenous Leaders with ourselves and the

35:07

Wynwood Maroons here in Jamaica doing advocacy.

35:11

And myself individually, I'm a part of the Council of Indigenous Traditional

35:15

Healers of the Americas. And, you know, they are each organization,

35:21

each group helps us with a different level of advocacy.

35:24

So we talked about health and medicine and birth practices that would fall under

35:30

the accounts of indigenous traditional healers of the Americas.

35:33

You know, they would amplify that message. There is a quarterly magazine that they put out.

35:40

Right now it's in Spanish. So I have to translate everything that I write to

35:43

Spanish. But it's an opportunity to get out to Latin America,

35:47

some of our tie-in ways here in Jamaica, how we view moon cycles, etc.

35:52

And happy for the waves that we've been able to make and maintain.

35:58

Absolutely. I mean, you're not only connecting to the local Jamaican community,

36:03

but as well to the broader community within the region itself.

36:07

So to amplify what you are about to in terms of having your Indigenous rights

36:14

acknowledged and put into law in Jamaica.

36:18

So, again, would you be able to, I guess, share any other personal or community

36:23

experiences that highlight, again, the resilience and the vitality of the Tayano

36:28

culture among the Jamaican Tayano today?

36:31

Oh, repeat that question? Like, would you be able to share any personal or community

36:35

experiences that highlight the resilience and vitality of Tayano culture among Jamaican Tayano today?

36:42

Oh, yes. All right. So one of the things, obviously, that I was sharing before

36:48

that I'm very proud of is that when...

36:52

When we did some research and we were looking online for Jamaica and Taino,

36:58

or looking up on Jamaica, we found MinorityRights.org website.

37:02

And the narrative, which is the same for so many places, had our people in the past.

37:09

Yes. You know, this narrative of extinction.

37:12

And I guess it was ancestors' guidance because I told our council member that

37:18

we need to write to them and let them know that we are here.

37:22

We need to mention the work that we have been doing and we need to push to have this changed.

37:29

You know, it is time now that we write our story because what they have on their

37:35

website was referenced by the Organization of American States and most university

37:39

students when they're searching, you know, that's one of the websites that would come up.

37:43

And though it took almost a year, you know, March this year,

37:48

we were successful in having that change.

37:51

So now when people ask, oh, we want some info on your Rwanda profile,

37:55

we can send them to MinorityRights.org.

37:58

And there it details the profile, it details the background,

38:02

the background from our perspective.

38:05

The background says that our island was the first island that Columbus and his

38:12

people released, the Bull Mastiffs. That was the moment that people ran into the mountains from the shores.

38:18

Or a narrative which speaks towards that intermarriage with the Spanish as well.

38:23

And these coastal villages and those who, to protect themselves and to hide,

38:28

they claim to be of Spanish descent instead of Taino because there was an exotic slave trade.

38:34

Which we have community members who would share with you that their great-grandmother

38:40

says this is something that is not that long ago.

38:43

Is in england because

38:47

you know there were offers made

38:50

for better life or this or that or whatever

38:53

it may be by a suitor and ended

38:56

up over there and had to start over from

38:59

scratch the promises were not kept these things have

39:03

been happening for quite some time so we are happy that we're able had that

39:08

opportunity to share our message and to share our story and to get that out

39:11

there The next thing that we're happy about that our community has been doing

39:15

here locally is that this year would make, for May 26,

39:21

the fifth year that we've had our Taino New Year celebration.

39:26

And it has been getting stronger and stronger support from grassroots,

39:33

those giving to the fundraiser. We got support from the Ministry of Culture last year and from private entities.

39:40

We've been able to have activities at our white mile site as well.

39:44

Two celebrations each year supported by Water Resource Authority and Hope Zoo.

39:50

We have been able to solidify for our community through my duality and our chieftainess.

40:00

She was successful with a group that got a project done with the University

40:05

of Edinburgh and got a grant. And what it was about is climate justice or climate mitigation through ancestral

40:14

gardens so a book is going to be created and website on one of our our sites

40:19

and the whole emphasis on it is how through these ancestral farming practices and

40:25

growing these ancestral foods the Taino foods of the island how we can contribute to.

40:32

Correcting climate change in these small ways and

40:36

as a result of that work that she has done she was

40:39

nominated to join a global research

40:44

co-researcher expo or conference

40:47

in edinburgh scotland so you

40:50

know we should be going there end of may and that's

40:53

another opportunity to network and to connect with others and

40:56

to get that awareness out and i guess the based on

41:00

your platform the creme de la creme is that we

41:03

have been working on something with harvard

41:06

for quite some time and that should come out later this year

41:09

so their harvard's

41:13

lab has genome-wide testing that has been used to extrapolate additional information

41:19

or detailed information on the ancestors or first peoples of spanish-speaking

41:25

caribbean and i can successfully say that

41:29

they had 22 successful samples from Jamaica and the data,

41:37

the information is already being extracted.

41:40

So by the end of this year or before the end of this year, there will be a paper

41:44

on the Taino people, ancient Taino people of Jamaica.

41:50

And that genome, that DNA sequence will be available for others to map to.

41:56

So they can definitively say that they are Taino descendants of Jamaica.

42:03

Absolutely. That's great. That is probably validation as well.

42:10

Because as you said, a lot of the Taino people had to hide, had to cover that,

42:17

you know, deny their culture in order to survive to this day. Right.

42:22

So and I guess I know that you've mentioned a couple of things in regards to

42:26

the Italian perspective. Would there be any other way in which the Taino perspective and voices contribute

42:33

to the discussion about Indigenous rights, environmental stewardship,

42:37

and cultural diversity in Jamaica?

42:41

Yes, my dear. So as it relates to Indigenous rights, you know,

42:45

if you've noticed when I share about any advocacy work that we're doing,

42:51

I always include the Maroons. Maroons are our relatives.

42:54

And when I say relatives, I don't mean like distant cousins.

42:57

I mean, brothers and sisters, blood relatives.

43:00

If you want to look at it one way, you can say that the people in the mountains

43:05

are the Maroons and the people on the coast, you know, you just refer to as the Amitai.

43:12

And due to that fact whatever it

43:16

is that we're doing we ensure that the doors open and

43:19

they have access and they have their own keys not something that

43:22

they have to require us or they have to

43:25

be subservient to us or any of that they have these rights as well so we're

43:31

working on that and we're pushing for that together you know there are atrocities

43:35

that take place in their communities And a lot of it is from misinformation

43:40

and lack of understanding.

43:43

And there really needs to be a cultural sensitivity course as a part of our

43:50

indigenous rights and this moving forward.

43:52

You know, how they deal with ancestral remains, allowing us,

43:56

when they find them, to be present and to honor the spirit of those ancestors so they can pass over.

44:02

These things are important to us and our people. It's like some of these remains

44:08

or ancestors are condemned because they don't have that opportunity.

44:12

Just as someone of a Catholic faith would have their last rites, we have our rites too.

44:17

There's a story I heard from one of my own relatives in a community where police

44:22

came and someone was in mile and the police was trying to address that individual who,

44:31

you know, if you understand about our spiritual practices, he wasn't present.

44:35

And, you know, it was escalating to the police officer almost becoming violent.

44:40

You know, as if this person is not having any disregard for him.

44:44

If we had our rights that wouldn't happen an elder

44:46

medicine person they would speak to someone in the community and that person

44:51

would do whatever it is that it requires his information if it's somebody that

44:55

you want for something whatever and will be that guide and explain that you

44:58

cannot do that during these times you cannot do that because of the impact it

45:02

will have right there are so many

45:06

things that are of utmost

45:10

importance to us and our

45:13

way of life and our way of being and our identity and i

45:16

think it is good if that is understood wide

45:20

scale so one of the things that we'd love to do we

45:23

heard that it's funding is an issue so that's why in

45:26

the recent press release we made mention of that that the narratives

45:30

in the national museum and these places and

45:34

need to be updated to speak towards the present so if

45:37

it means that they need funding for signs i know

45:40

that if we reach out to the diaspora we will get the funding you

45:43

know so if the signs need to be updated and it's a cost they

45:46

let us know the cost and we will find the money to pay for that

45:48

to happen because it it shifts things for our young ones growing up knowing

45:53

that we are here but being taught in schools and elsewhere that we're extinct

45:59

i have no problem with the narrative that or communities were decimated because they were.

46:07

But the people survived and the culture survived.

46:12

So those are some aspects of things as it relates to our indigenous rights.

46:17

As it relates to cultural diversity, yeah, that respect on a whole.

46:22

I mean, there are several ethnicities here, Jamaica's motto is out of many one people.

46:28

Because of the circles that I'm in, Jamaica has a good amount of Native Americans

46:35

that will pass through here from time to time.

46:37

There are Cherokee here, there are Diné Lakota here, there are Miskito from

46:41

Nicaragua here who have settled in St. Elizabeth.

46:45

And the average Jamaican has no idea, has no clue. And,

46:48

you know, a lot of times these stereotype comments are made and ingest and they

46:54

don't understand the impact that these will have, especially to a younger generation

46:57

who might hear these things and feel like, you know, they don't really want to take up.

47:02

There's no pride in taking up their place and their culture and their way of being.

47:07

So that needs to happen. And appreciation and respect.

47:12

We have that. We understand that. when we're going

47:15

to a space because of the connection that i shared with our

47:18

relatives from south america we understand what plural

47:21

nationality is and that's lost even in

47:25

some places in north america and central america yeah the

47:27

concept that several nations nations

47:31

can exist on one landmass and

47:35

together and work together we can

47:38

in the morning i can greet creator in my way and you greet creator in your way

47:43

and somebody else greet creator in their way and we move through the day together

47:47

in a good way you don't have to repeat what i am saying and i don't have to

47:51

repeat what you're saying but that colonized way so i guess the next thing to summarize it is,

47:58

decolonization you know as it relates to education interaction relation hierarchies

48:04

that needs to be shifted and we're doing the work to shift that.

48:08

I believe that the template of us working together through the AMA slash Jamaica

48:13

Council of Indigenous Leaders with our own relatives is a good example of what's

48:17

possible and what I've heard from our relatives throughout the Caribbean is that,

48:22

nothing like that exists elsewhere to date.

48:26

So the more opportunities we have to amplify and to share that for pro-national

48:32

groups, they're rooted in the space and in the land and their stories in the land.

48:36

So that's something that we share together as stewards of the land,

48:40

not to reap or to take from the land, but to give to the land.

48:45

No, definitely. And what you said kind of leads into the next question in terms of,

48:49

you know, what the role do you see with Latino culture revitalization playing

48:53

in the broader conversation about decolonization and Indigenous sovereignty in Jamaica? cap.

49:00

All right. So in Jamaica, sovereignty is a hot word, right?

49:07

There are many concepts around sovereignty. And again, I think the reason why

49:13

it's a hot word is that a lot of times it is focused on land. Yes.

49:19

Sovereignty and autonomy, as I've shared, is more than just land.

49:23

Sovereignty means that we have

49:26

the wherewithal the rights

49:29

and the systems the systems in place

49:32

to take care of our own people take care of them physically emotionally and

49:40

spiritually that means that if there are issues we have our own systems for

49:45

conflict resolution we can settle disputes on our own.

49:49

That means that as it relates to poverty or it relates to malnutrition,

49:55

we have systems that can resolve those issues that we can make our decision

50:02

and we can work on our own without requiring any.

50:07

Provisions or making applications in external entities to have these things done.

50:14

It's that is what we're looking at. That is what we're working on.

50:19

And that to me for our community is our definition of sovereignty.

50:22

Sovereignty for us is our medicine people respected just as much as the Western doctors.

50:31

So if there is an issue, we can go to our medicine people.

50:36

They can write a certificate. They can recommend certain practices,

50:40

diets, fasts for our young ones.

50:43

They can write up a paper for someone and, you know, they have that time off

50:48

from work to go and deal with whatever spiritual ailment that may be affecting

50:52

them mentally so that they can move forward.

50:54

But it is a vision of a Jamaica that is even advanced as it relates to North

51:02

America and South America that has these things because it is based on our traditional values.

51:07

A lot of the systems that are in place as it relates to federal recognition

51:12

in the States were penned by the colonizers, even though with an intention to

51:18

strike some balance. but it was based on what they saw as valuable.

51:21

And over time, that is what value, cultural value became. But for us,

51:26

the cultural value is the culture itself and the practices itself.

51:29

You know, how amazing would it be for a young girl having her first moon.

51:37

Have a certificate for her to have that time at home with community and go through

51:43

a rite of passage to understand something that she's going to live with until

51:47

she's going through menopause that empowers her and helps her to understand the part that she's on.

51:54

Imagine what it is like if our young men had their rite of passage when their

51:59

voice was changing instead of them feeling embarrassed and feeling that they

52:04

need to tap into more testosterone and become more aggressive,

52:08

they realize that their voice changing means there's a responsibility they're

52:12

taking on and it means that they need to be mindful of how they use their voice,

52:17

the type of content they create in this world of creating content,

52:21

what messages they're putting out, who are they protecting with their voice.

52:25

Imagine what Jamaica would be like because these are not things that That would

52:30

be relegated to our communities alone.

52:34

But would be shared with the wider Jamaica.

52:37

So that the young ones understand and are welcomed into these different phases as they grow older.

52:46

If they were welcomed into manhood and womanhood. And welcomed into their sacred unions.

52:53

And welcomed into the role of being an elder. So it was time.

52:56

They could look forward to it. They could say, whoa, you're not 50 and are going to be 52 in two years.

53:03

And I'm going to be an elder and the community going to welcome me and I'm going

53:07

to put a sash on me and I can give feathers now at celebrations and ceremonies.

53:11

And if something happening now at a university, I can go and talk and go and

53:15

collect an honorarium instead of just sitting down in an old folks home or at home with nothing to do.

53:20

So it shifts the mindset and it's going to take time to get Jamaica to understand

53:29

because right now, everybody is in this landlocked perspective.

53:33

And they're thinking that when we talk about rights and we talk about what it

53:37

is that we desire, that that's all that we're talking about.

53:40

What we want is for land and the water and the environment to be in a sustainable

53:48

way for the next seven generations. And right now, because the next seven generations is 200 years,

53:55

right now we have no faith in those who are the current caretakers.

54:00

So if it means that we are co-caretakers, that is fine.

54:04

Because in our traditions, there was no concept of owning land.

54:09

I can't say I'm going to own the land and when the land feels like it's going

54:12

to shake or it's going to flood or the trees are just going to turn over. I can't control that.

54:17

What we can do is try to ensure that we are remaining in balance so that what

54:24

we have lasts for the next generation.

54:27

There's an old saying that the land that we live on today is something that

54:33

we have borrowed from the future generation.

54:36

So it doesn't belong to us. And we need to make sure that they have it to utilize.

54:41

No, for sure. And you're just talking about in terms of having some sense of

54:46

value, some sense of knowing oneself in terms of being able to,

54:51

as you said, to the rites of passage for both the female and the male.

54:55

And of course, then, of course, later on, part of that life cycle and then becoming

54:59

an elder in the community. I mean, it's all about knowing oneself and knowing what each of these milestones

55:07

will represent and be significant to.

55:11

So, you know, I guess this leads again to the next question about,

55:15

are there any significant historical or archaeological findings related to Chimeketayano

55:21

people that have been found or documented?

55:25

Yes, there has been quite a few. As I recommended the book, Earliest Inhabitants by Dr.

55:34

Leslie Gayle Atkinson-Suewe. We know her as Boyanani.

55:38

She shares about several archaeological

55:41

sites and work that has been done some of them you know lost to development

55:47

these buildings built on top of them so there's not much that can be done there's

55:51

a white mile site that a lot of rescue archaeology is taking place there and

55:55

that is one of the sites that we're trying to protect as much as we can there

55:59

is Woodside where we'll have our celebrations that has their two national heritage sites that are Taino sites,

56:08

the Taino Steps and the Atabay or Mother Earth,

56:14

Spirit of Mother Earth, Tetraglyph, where we do our offerings and give thanks

56:17

during our New Year celebration, which for us is the start of the rainy season.

56:23

There's discussions about, well, there

56:26

has been discussion for some time about having returned to

56:29

our island two of our most I would

56:32

say our most important semis that are at the British Museum

56:35

currently and I know I know the government

56:38

was talking about this new system that

56:41

exists of having things on loan I mean I'd rather we have them and I know that

56:48

the government wants to put these at the a new museum they are looking to build

56:53

at Port Royal you know I'm looking to have some discussion with them because

56:56

we don't necessarily want our ancestral artifacts to be separated.

57:02

The two semis that I mentioned is the semi of Boyne Hill and the semi of Marahou.

57:06

Marahou has been known as the Birdman and Boyne Hill is the rain semi.

57:12

And these are two significant things because they anchor the two seasons that

57:16

we have here, the dry season and the rainy season. We believe that once those return home and we can start doing the work that

57:25

we're supposed to do with honoring those semis,

57:28

is that some semblance of balance or at

57:31

least wisdom would be garnered on how to maintain

57:34

the semblance of balance that we seek

57:37

and i had mentioned to you about the work that is being done with harvard where

57:41

the ancestral remains samples were taken from those that are a part of ue's

57:47

archive and institute of jamaica 22 were successful and information will be coming out if not by the

57:54

end of the year before the end of the year on the data that

57:57

has come from that one of the things that i've requested from them is

58:00

to to identify the closest living relative today of our ancestors because one

58:09

of the things our people hears a lot is you know about phenotype how we look

58:13

and reality is that they don't know how tiny people look right my belief is that the closest,

58:21

living relative to our ancestors today.

58:26

Maybe, well, from what I understand, our Lakona relatives, the Arawak relatives

58:30

on the mainland, or maybe some relatives in the Amazon, the Brazil region of the Amazon.

58:36

But I think, still believe it is good for them to understand that,

58:40

And for that to be clear, in the minds of Jamaicans moving forward,

58:46

not to say that, you know, our phenotype is what their phenotype would be or vice versa,

58:54

because we're not assuming to be people from the 1300s or the 1200s.

59:00

Caribbean has always always had a culture of intermarriage intermixing you know

59:06

taking the best of two worlds and putting it together to ensure the survival of the next generation.

59:14

Definitely a good stock yeah for sure absolutely so and then how can individuals

59:21

outside of the community support the efforts to preserve and celebrate Taino

59:26

culture and heritage in Jamaica. Well, one, what I'll do is that, you know, we'll have our website,

59:32

yamayuani.com, Y-A-M-A-Y-E-G-U-A-N-I.com, can reach out to us.

59:38

With the recent press release, there are some NGOs and other organizations that

59:42

are looking to support us with our Indigenous rights, amplifying our voices,

59:47

creating platforms for us to share, whether it's Zoom meetings or inviting us

59:52

to speak at conferences, seminars, etc.

59:54

Et cetera, because in every space that there is individuals from the Jamaican

59:59

diaspora, chances are that they themselves may have Taina ancestry.

1:00:03

And in our desire to help you, well, in our desire to find help for ourselves,

1:00:10

maybe end up helping you as well. Our culture is cyclical and circular and deals with being holistic.

1:00:19

So there's this concept of reciprocity. As we give, so do we receive.

1:00:24

So that's one aspect of it. And the other is, yeah, we have our celebrations,

1:00:29

you know, where there's four that is open.

1:00:32

Well, let me tell you, we have one March 14th at White Marl.

1:00:38

We have May 26th at Woodside.

1:00:42

We have June 20th at Charlestown. That's where we are now.

1:00:50

Solstice in our Taino way. We have September 21st or 22nd back at White Marl

1:00:57

and then we have December 21st.

1:01:01

So we have these activities that take place that's open to the public.

1:01:04

We're developing other activities at Woodside so people can go there and they

1:01:10

can do a tour of the Taino site, Daddy Rock and Taino Steps with you know

1:01:15

the aim of helping to develop up the community and

1:01:18

create sustainable ways for the community and

1:01:21

the individuals and there's expertise that

1:01:24

we may require too you know so we're reaching out to these ngos that

1:01:27

are out there our young ones may want some opportunities to

1:01:30

to learn how to work with social media probably one

1:01:33

of our communities could be suited with

1:01:37

computer lab and instructors come and

1:01:39

teach them robotics or programming you know

1:01:43

like there's always this assumption that in

1:01:47

our communities the only thing that we want to learn is is craft

1:01:50

and to build things you know there's there's other levels we have graphic artists

1:01:55

or boarding graphic artists or videographers there are certain levels of sustainability

1:02:00

required when we have our celebrations it would be good if it's somebody from

1:02:03

our community that can do it would be good if there are scholarships for archaeology so So, you know,

1:02:08

the person doing them theses just go around in backyard and them checking up

1:02:11

on other artifacts that are there. You know, there are a lot of barriers perceived for our people and any assistance

1:02:18

in breaking those barriers. Exactly. No, that'd be great. Now, I'll include that in some of the show notes

1:02:24

as well for some of the links that you mentioned. And what message would you like to share with people who are interested in learning

1:02:31

more about the Jamaican Taino and their contributions to Jamaican history and culture?

1:02:37

In the annals of history, there is a line in which the attempt to wipe my ancestors

1:02:47

from the history books was initiated.

1:02:51

That line is during the moments when the British came to the island,

1:02:57

and it is said that the Spanish released the enslaved.

1:03:03

At that point, for whatever reason, as sad as it may be,

1:03:08

the assumption was made and programmed into the people of this island that enslaved

1:03:16

in the America only refers to people of African ancestry, which is a hard one to swallow.

1:03:23

And from that point, the Tainos were whittled away little by little.

1:03:31

There are records of us on plantations belonging to the British,

1:03:36

even some prominent schools. We are part of building some of these prominent schools in Jamaica.

1:03:42

But whittled away little by little to where our first prime minister claimed

1:03:49

he has had Arawak ancestry, Alexander Bustamante. And again, he was ridiculed.

1:03:56

What I would say is that we're in a time now in the world where we have to write our narratives,

1:04:07

on our history and we have to understand and look on things from the perspective

1:04:12

of the people that lived during those times.

1:04:16

Have to respect our ancestors, those who came before us, those who taught these

1:04:22

practices of preparing the bami,

1:04:26

of growing the cassava in a way that, you know, Jamaica has no mass numbers

1:04:33

or any, I've never heard of cyanide poisoning from cassava in Jamaica.

1:04:38

It happened in Nigeria when the crop went there, but not here because it has

1:04:43

been practiced here for centuries prior.

1:04:45

It is a staple food that we really should be growing more and have the availability of it more.

1:04:53

I believe once we understand the medicines that are here, that have always been

1:04:57

here, the value, and we start to value them, we start to value that heritage,

1:05:03

whether you're Taino or not, because it was passed on to the enslaved Africans.

1:05:10

We were enslaved together and the purpose was our survival and we've survived

1:05:14

and forgotten that part of our history. We forgot those who showed us the medicine, we forgot those who showed us how

1:05:21

to plant on this land, we forgotten those who fed us and took care of us.

1:05:28

And the traditional teaching that I shared with you is that because life is

1:05:32

cyclical in our circle, they said that the healing can only take place when

1:05:37

the The circle is closed. And those who were here first, the circle returns to them finally in the end.

1:05:47

And the healing can begin. So in our teachings, acknowledging the Taino people is a step,

1:05:56

as simple as it may sound, but it is a step forward in healing the trauma of

1:06:01

this land, the resistance of this land.

1:06:04

Healing the people of this land. Wherever it is that they may come from, and in so honoring first people,

1:06:12

that we can truly step forward into healing.

1:06:16

We would then acknowledge what has been here the longest and what are the priorities

1:06:20

to preserve, protect, and maintain.

1:06:25

I definitely agree and definitely resonate with all that you said,

1:06:30

because healing is a big part of it in order to be able to move forward and

1:06:36

to cherish what has and what will be moving forward.

1:06:40

So how do you envision the future of the Jamaican Taino community and their cultural legacies?

1:06:48

I envision a Jamaica that is resilient, as resilient as the cassava, as we call it, yuca.

1:06:56

One of our spirits is yuca who, which is the spirit of the cassava.

1:07:01

This crop is resilient to hurricanes because it is a tuba.

1:07:06

It's resilient to floods because it is a tuba.

1:07:10

It is resilient to strong winds because it is a tuba.

1:07:13

And it can last the food made from it can last the cassava bread for up to 3 or 4 years,

1:07:20

it's filled with a lot of nutrients, vitamins and minerals and living on a land

1:07:27

that has that legacy and has continued for so long our main staple is rice,

1:07:33

which is not grown here so the vision is for Jamaica to take up the work that

1:07:40

Chief Dennis is doing my wife Chief Dennis Ranalla To have several ancestral gardens,

1:07:45

you know, with our heirloom corn or heirloom cassava.

1:07:50

A return to the awareness of the medicinal uses of tobacco for parasites, for wounds.

1:07:58

A respecting of our traditional healers for there to be an established complementary

1:08:04

alternative medicine section with the Ministry of Health here in Jamaica.

1:08:08

Maker, for there to be a representative in government that is dealing with indigenous

1:08:14

rights and indigenous people's rights, so that we have a voice when it comes

1:08:18

to any extractive industries around our waters or around our lands,

1:08:23

that our sacred sites are preserved and protected.

1:08:28

Once that happens, there will be an influx of what they call spiritual and indigenous

1:08:33

tourism because other relatives on other islands that don't have the things

1:08:38

that we have like our Atabay, Semi and Petroglyph can come to Woodside and pay respects there as their ancestors would have done.

1:08:46

Can learn some of the things that we have preserved and we can learn things

1:08:50

from our relatives as well. We can trade and receive some heirloom seeds and

1:08:55

crops that we may have lost during the colonization process.

1:08:59

That we can honor and preserve and promote the expansion of the spaces of our

1:09:06

iguana so that we can have that reforestation taking place.

1:09:10

That there can be education on Taino cosmology, Taino medicinal practice and

1:09:17

worldviews that is taught as a curriculum at the University of the West Indies.

1:09:22

You know, probably this is the future result from this indigenous

1:09:25

studies cluster so that we can

1:09:28

create cultural value so that young ones

1:09:31

in our community do not view the

1:09:34

role of elder council member or kaseke

1:09:38

or chieftainess as duty of

1:09:42

burden but something to aspire towards that

1:09:45

is able to maintain their family and their livelihood that

1:09:49

there will be a network of individuals throughout the diaspora supporting these

1:09:54

activities that there will be this resurgence of our language probably it will

1:09:58

start our ceremonial and it will grow to something now that is anchored in our

1:10:03

communities because in In the languages,

1:10:06

a lot of our cosmology and our worldview, they're there.

1:10:08

They're things that are hard to express in English about our respect for the

1:10:13

land and our connection to the land. That there will be young leaders leading the charge in preserving and promoting

1:10:23

sustainable ways of living and passing that true digital technology out there

1:10:29

to the rest of the globe and the world at large,

1:10:32

that we will have these archives of our stories because stories are medicine as well.

1:10:38

Understanding where we came from, where these birds came from,

1:10:41

and helping us to stay in alignment and knowing what are the good morals to

1:10:47

hold on to and the values to uphold.

1:10:49

I see a future where there is cultural sensitivity.

1:10:56

Where we will be able to walk hand in hand and understand the issues that each

1:11:02

of us has struggled through and work on it together, where we'll understand

1:11:07

that this is one planet that we're sharing.

1:11:11

And if there is an issue on one side, it affects all of us so that we'll be

1:11:16

able to collaborate on things that are most important and that the Indigenous

1:11:19

principle of working for the next seven generations,

1:11:22

the next 200 years, is at the core of the decision making process.

1:11:27

That's the future I envision. No, thank you so much for that,

1:11:33

Cologne, because that's a great vision and something that, you know,

1:11:39

hopefully can be worked towards. words. And finally, as we close, what are some current call to actions that you have

1:11:47

of the Jamaican Taino, or is there anything else that you'd like to bring to

1:11:51

the attention to our listeners today? To our listeners, I would say that there are a lot of activities that are being

1:11:58

started, that have been initiated.

1:12:01

I would say, I would, for the individuals listening that are curious to start with your family start with asking questions,

1:12:12

if you need help you can look online for you know good bio questions start recording information,

1:12:19

from your parents and from your grandparents while you can some of it may not

1:12:24

make sense now but it will make sense later understand their stories understand

1:12:29

what the world was like through their eyes.

1:12:32

Yes, what has been recorded by others has value, but start at home, okay?

1:12:40

Check while you can. How did the parents meet? How did the grandparents meet?

1:12:46

What era were they growing in? What is some of the folklore or the stories that they heard growing up?

1:12:51

What were some of the practices that were done at home?

1:12:54

You would be surprised because with the information available now you're able

1:12:58

to place where some of these things are coming from what is the nature what

1:13:02

is the root of it you know there's some simple things you you hear in your family

1:13:07

that you have Indian tracing back to practicing,

1:13:12

back before 1834 well the Indian indentured came to Jamaica in 1834 so if you

1:13:17

have Indian in a family before then then who are they right.

1:13:22

Start there. DNA comes later. So start at home with the family. That's one.

1:13:28

And the stories and asking the right questions, you get the right answers.

1:13:32

You know, what folklore you have in your family, what folklore stories you have

1:13:37

about dreams, you know, what are some interesting things that happened while

1:13:40

they were growing up, some stories, what were their relations to storms and

1:13:44

natural disasters and events. A solar eclipse took place recently. What is your family's

1:13:49

tradition regarding solar eclipse what's your

1:13:52

family tradition regarding lunar eclipse what's the family tradition

1:13:55

regarding full moon and a new moon

1:13:58

document this for yourself

1:14:01

for the future generation so that's one and then two reach out to our community

1:14:07

the activities that we're doing support if you can when you can messages like

1:14:14

this that are amplifying our voices like subscribe subscribe, share.

1:14:19

You know, it is important. This is how we get the messages out and are able

1:14:25

to reach those who may be going through some issues,

1:14:29

who may be going through imposter syndrome, and they need that support.

1:14:34

They need to hear from someone who looks like them, that that great-grandmother

1:14:39

was not crazy, and that, you know, we may have a record of that family line

1:14:45

in our list of enrolled family members.

1:14:49

That they are not alone, that there is community.

1:14:54

And we're here and we'll do our best to try and support.

1:14:58

Thank you so much. Thank you, Kalon.

1:15:01

I really do appreciate your time for coming on to the podcast and to speak about

1:15:05

the Jamaican-Tayano community and to be able to expand that discussion. So thank you so much.

1:15:11

Music.

1:15:16

Hope you enjoyed this episode, and if you did, please make sure to like,

1:15:22

follow, subscribe, and write a review for the episode wherever you listen to

1:15:27

your podcasts. Thank you. Music.