Mother of All Lands
In the beginning, we were not a divided republic. The originating groups of migrants to arrive from the Maindlands of South and Central Americas to the Antilles, eventually settled into Kiskeya/Quisqueya as one nation: Taíno. Together, Indigenous wisdom and traditions of hunting, gathering, fishing, and farming was shared and integrated. Our island was nourished, protected, and in reciprocal kinship with its people.
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The first wave of colonial conquest in 1492, lead way to the genocide of our Indigenous population and organized society. What emerged was an intermi​xing of African, Indigenous, French, and Spanish heritage, and a disunion with Ayiti. The conquistadores did their best to eradicate the Indian and African culture and identity from their slaves, my ancestors, but the strong beliefs were protected. Oral traditions and practices of the Tcha Tcha and Agua Dulce lineages were often passed on to the children and grandchildren, saving the ancestral ways.
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Amid the intentions of independence and sovereignty that fuelled revolutionary chaos across the island and among it's peoples for centuries, the man-made dividing line is one that has kept us displaced and unforgiving to the very real symbiotic, multicultural connection that we share. Ayiti-Kiskeya is the great Mother of All Lands. The one that gives our living, breathing, sacred bloodline, a heartbeat. It is to be celebrated and acknowledged that we have been blessed with a diverse Afro-Indigenous-Euro-Caribbean culture that is unique to no other.
With gratitude and reverence, I acknowledge and locate myself as a traditional visitor and immigrant from the lands of Quisqueya, (Dominican Republic), living, working, creating, and learning on sacred Coast Salish territories. Honouring the Hul’qumi’num and the SENĆOŦEN speaking First peoples, and the W̱SÁNEĆ, Quw'utsun, and Stz'uminus First Nations. I recognize that this is their land and how their ancient ways of being and governing have been interrupted. I am a descendant of the Arawak speaking Saladoid people, Taíno, carrying into my rituals, medicines, and healing practices the legacy, traditions, and continuity of my Indigenous, African, and European ancestry. Kiskeya Spirit Medicine strives to be a thread in the continuation of cultural strength and awareness in our communities by way of intentional action towards reconciliation, reconnection, and land stewardship.
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HwnJ'nuts (Fulford Valley, Salt Spring Island, BC)