The following sections feature a series of interviews or snapshots into the lives of community leaders with deep understanding of syncretic afroindigenous knowledge systems and oral histories in the Dominican Republic—historic Ayiti…this is a living archive…

Jansikwe Medina-Tayac 5/28/19 Jansikwe Medina-Tayac 5/28/19

Carmen: Guardián del Calvario

En lo alto de Maguana Arriba, Carmen de la Rosa ha dedicado su vida a la misión de Liborio Mateo. Más que una misionera, es una guía espiritual, curandera y protectora de las tradiciones afroindígenas que resisten en el monte.

One might legitimately classify Carmen's role at the mission site as that of a missionary—just as one might designate the Calvary itself as a mission site. Both are more than what these sociological roles/sites may entail. Carmen has dedicated her life to preserving the history and mission of Olliborio Mateo. This includes being a medicine woman and protector of afro-indigenous spiritualities.

La Agüita de Liborio

Un viaje al corazón espiritual de Maguana Arriba nos lleva hasta la agüita de Liborio, un manantial sagrado donde el agua cura y los ancestros responden. Entre ceibas, oraciones y la fuerza de una tormenta, se revela una devoción viva que trasciende generaciones.

Ruperta “La India”: Piedras Sagradas

Project Mama Ceiba represented an intervention into the archival silences that have long characterized historical accounts of the Caribbean; by allowing others to participate in generating digital materials that document the lived experiences of Dominican women who, despite their marginalization within national narratives, function as venerated leaders and moral authorities within their communities, the project engaged in what might be called counter-archival practice. These women—healers, spiritual guides, community organizers, keepers of cultural memory—wield profound influence in their local contexts, yet remain illegible to official historiography. We provide a snapshot of some of their saberes for public research…