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A storm can level homes, but it also reveals what we stand on. Hurricane Melissa’s record winds and devastating surge tore through Jamaica and neighboring territories, but the story is bigger than wind speed—it’s a living history of language, science, memory, and community that runs through the Caribbean. We trace the roots of “hurricane” to Taino and Kalinago cosmologies, revisit Cuba’s pioneering forecasting under Father Benito Viñez, and connect these legacies to today’s urgent fight for climate justice and long-term recovery.

I open up about the shock of seeing beloved places underwater and the ache of waiting on WhatsApp for family updates from afar. This episode offers more than reflection; it’s a roadmap. You’ll hear concrete ways to help now and sustain support later, from vetted donations and mutual aid to advocacy for loss-and-damage financing and regional capacity-building. If the Caribbean sits on the front lines of climate change while contributing the least to its causes, then fairness means resources, protection, and policy that match the stakes. Listen, share the links, and stand with communities rebuilding today for a safer tomorrow. If this conversation moved you, subscribe, leave a review, and pass it on so more people can act with us.

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Sacred land, contested memory, and a centuries-long fight for sovereignty, this conversation with Dr. Garrey Dennie traces the deep antiquity of the Kalinago in St. Vincent, their transformation into a maritime powerhouse, and the strategic choices that delayed European domination for generations. Instead of a single “first contact,” we explore two: the catastrophic arrival of Europeans and the liberatory meeting of Kalinago communities with Africans who escaped or were freed from bondage.

Dr. Dennie unpacks genocide as a 300-year process, where pathogens, forced labor, and scorched-earth campaigns worked in tandem to clear land for sugar and slavery. He explains how the union that produced the Garifuna did more than build solidarity; it created a hybrid identity with immunological resilience that helped communities survive. From the First and Second Carib Wars to the brutal detention on Baliceaux and the mass exile of 1797, we follow the pivotal moments that transformed St. Vincent and, paradoxically, shortened its time as a British slave society through relentless resistance.

We also step inside a landmark scholarly effort: the forthcoming multi-volume Native Genocide and African Enslavement in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. He is one of four Vincentian historians co-authoring the series that restores Indigenous and Garifuna perspectives to the center, bridges archaeology and epidemiology with political history, and invites listeners to reconsider where homeland and belonging truly reside. If you’re ready to move beyond textbook myths and confront the intertwined stories of survival, identity, and power, this episode offers a clear, compelling path forward.

Dr. Garrey Dennie is an Associate Professor of History at St. Mary’s College of Maryland and a founder of its Program in African and African Diaspora Studies.  He obtained his first degree at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill and his Ph. D at The Johns Hopkins University.  Dr. Dennie has also lectured at the University of the West Indies at the Mona campus in Jamaica.  Dr. Dennie has produced and published original scholarship on the politics of death in modern South Africa. And in the greatest privilege of his life, Dr. Dennie served as a speechwriter for Nelson Mandela in the battle to destroy white rule in apartheid South Africa.

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What if the medicine you need was growing right outside your door? We sit down with author and farmer Aleya Fraser to trace the living thread of Caribbean herbalism as she details in her new book Caribbean Herbalism: Traditional Wisdom and Modern Herbal Healing. 

Together, we unpack the tension between modern convenience and disappearing habitats, and we get practical about what to do next: how to identify plants safely, why relationship matters more than hype, and where citizen science can meet peer-reviewed research without losing soul. We talk creolization—the way Indigenous, African, European, and South Asian traditions fused into today’s remedies—and why names matter, from “guinea hen weed” to Latin binomials that help us translate across islands. 

If you’re in the diaspora or on the islands, you’ll find clear steps to reconnect: sit with elders, join a local farm or foraging group, support growers protecting habitats, and keep a simple log of what teas and tinctures do for your body. This conversation opens a another gate into herbal practices that are accessible, rigorous, and deeply Caribbean—where story and science enrich each other and wellness returns to the commons. If this speaks to you, subscribe, share with a friend who loves bush tea, and leave a review to help more listeners find these roots.

Aleya Fraser is a land steward and ethnobotanist with a strong lineage of land-based people. She has spent the last 12 years managing and founding farms and deepening her herbal knowledge through communing with elders, practice, and scientific research. Aleya uses her bachelor's degree in physiology and neurobiology as well as the ancestral wisdom in her fingertips to guide her studies and research interests. She blends her upbringing in Maryland with a strong focus on Trinidadian roots in her writings. She is considered a pollinator of people and weaver of landscapes. Aleya managed and cofounded farms in Baltimore City, on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, in Northwest Virginia, and now, in her ancestral lands of Trinidad and Tobago, where she lives with her husband and daughter. She can be found on Instagram (@naturaleya) or online at naturaleya.substack.com.

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What if everything we thought we knew about Caribbean literary history was incomplete? That's the premise of today's captivating conversation with Professor Alison Donnell, whose groundbreaking new book, Lost and Found: An A to Z of Neglected Writers of the Anglophone Caribbean (Papillote Press 2025), challenges the traditional narrative that Caribbean literature primarily emerged in the 1950s through male writers who migrated abroad. Through painstaking research spanning decades, Donnell reveals a far richer literary landscape populated by remarkable women writers, Indo-Caribbean voices, and authors who remained within the Caribbean, crafting work specifically for local audiences.

The stories behind these recoveries are as fascinating as the writers themselves. We meet Vera Bell, the first female chief clerk of Jamaica's National Water Commission and prolific poet; Monica Skeet, who balanced a conservative teaching career with radical storytelling; and Edwina Melville, the first woman with a tractor license in Guyana who dedicated herself to representing Amerindian life. These weren't just writers – they were teachers, journalists, civil servants, and community leaders whose literary work formed part of a broader mission to build Caribbean cultural literacy.

Whether you're a Caribbean literature enthusiast or simply love stories of historical recovery and justice, this episode will transform how you understand the relationship between literature, identity, and cultural memory. Listen now to discover the writers who helped shape Caribbean consciousness long before we knew their names.

Alison Donnell is head of Humanities and Professor of Modern Literatures in English at the University of Bristol. She has published widely in the field of Caribbean literature, with significant contributions to the fields of literary history and culture, recovery research of women authors, and Caribbean literary archives. Her recent works reflect her ongoing commitment to exploring and expanding literary histories, including a special double issue of Caribbean Quarterly on Caribbean Literary Archives. Her latest monograph Creolized Sexualities: Undoing Heteronormativity in the literary imagination of the Anglo-Caribbean was published by Rutgers in 2021.

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In the mid-20th century Caribbean, cinema became a powerful tool for nation-building, education, and political messaging through two remarkable organizations with surprisingly parallel methods but divergent ideologies. Dr. Pedro Noel Doreste Rodríguez joins us for this enchanting history in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month.

The story begins in 1949 when Puerto Rico established the Division of Community Education (DIVEDCO), creating films that taught rural communities practical skills while reinforcing cultural identity within the island's complicated relationship with the United States. Ten years later, revolutionary Cuba founded the Instituto Cubano del Arte e Industria Cinematográficos (ICAIC), similarly using cinema to educate citizens but through an explicitly socialist lens. Both organizations deployed mobile cinema units, bringing film to remote villages alongside community discussions and educational programs. These weren't Hollywood productions seeking profit, but state-sponsored projects with clear political objectives.

Perhaps most surprising is Cuba's relationship with American cinema despite the US embargo. The ICAIC organized pirated screenings of films like The Godfather, viewing them as critiques of American capitalism rather than threats to revolutionary values. This openness to global cinema influences, filtered through a revolutionary perspective, helped shape Cuba's enduring film tradition. What can these remarkable cultural experiments teach us about the power of cinema as both art and political instrument? The answer lies in understanding how these films didn't just entertain audiences—they helped shape Caribbean identities during one of the region's most transformative periods.

Pedro Noel Doreste Rodríguez is Assistant Professor in Film Studies at Michigan State University and Co-Director of the Manchineel Project. He is a historian of Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx film and media whose research surveys cinematic encounters between the global North and South, diasporic and exile filmmaking, and avant-garde film cultures in and of the Hispanic Caribbean. He is coeditor of the anthology "Vivirse la película: Methods in Puerto Rican Film Studies," forthcoming from Centro Press.

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Storytelling lies at the heart of Caribbean identity. Award-winning filmmaker Alyscia Cunningham joins us to unravel the power of Caribbean folklore through the lens of modern cinema. As a first-generation Trinidadian-American, Cunningham's childhood was filled with spine-tingling tales from her parents' homeland in southern Trinidad. Today, she channels those experiences into her documentary and narrative horror films, creating what she calls "impact art" – creative works designed to educate audiences and spark meaningful conversation.

We dive deep into Cunningham's filmmaking journey with Douen and Douen II, exploring why this particular folklore figure – a mischievous childlike spirit who died before baptism – resonated so strongly with her. The conversation reveals fascinating insights about the challenges Caribbean filmmakers. Beyond entertainment, Cunningham's work serves as a crucial bridge between generations, preserving cultural knowledge while making it accessible to contemporary audiences who might otherwise never encounter these traditional tales. Her approach demonstrates how Caribbean horror folklore can evolve without losing its essence, honoring ancestral wisdom while ensuring its survival. Discover how ancient Caribbean folklore finds new life on screen, and why these stories matter now more than ever. 

Alyscia Cunningham is an award-winning impact artist, author, filmmaker, tactile artist, and photographer who has contributed to the Smithsonian, National Geographic, Discovery Channel and AOL. Her work focuses on women discovering their strengths and surviving challenging circumstances. Rooted in her identity as a first-generation Trinidadian American, Alyscia’s early fascination with storytelling was sparked by the tales of resilience, folklore, and life lessons shared by her Caribbean elders. These narratives of triumph over adversity and cultural heritage fuel her creative passion, driving her work in both documentary and narrative filmmaking. Alyscia is also the Founder and Executive Director of Her House Media LLC, focusing on production of documentary and horror films written and directed by women of color.

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When we lose a loved one, the stories they carried often disappear with them—unless we find ways to preserve them. This powerful truth drives creative consultant Calvin Walker's experimental audio project "Daylight Come," which traces his family's migration from Jamaica to the United Kingdom and connects deeply personal narratives to broader historical movements. Calvin walks us through his creative process, from attempts at writing and filmmaking to his eureka moment when discovering AI-generated voices could provide the emotional distance needed to tell difficult stories. What unfolds is a masterclass in cultural preservation that weaves individual experiences with pivotal historical contexts like Windrush, colonial legacies, and the formation of Caribbean communities in postwar Britain.

Most compelling is Calvin's passionate defense of documenting seemingly "ordinary" family histories: "The more stories, even if they're banal, that get put down with dates and times and facts, the harder it is to sweep them away and say it didn't really happen like that." In an era when historical narratives are contested and sometimes erased, these personal archives become powerful acts of resistance and remembrance. Have you considered documenting your own family's journey? Calvin offers practical advice for getting started with modern tools that make preservation more accessible than ever. Recording these histories builds bridges across generations and oceans, ensuring cultural legacies endure beyond individual lifetimes.

Calvin Walker is a Jamaican-born creative consultant with British and French nationalities. His work bridges visual arts, storytelling, and cultural advocacy, shaped by a background in photography and technology. After starting out as an independent photographer, Calvin moved into multimedia development and later spent twenty years at Film France, where he developed international partnerships and promoted France as a global hub for film and post-production. He collaborates with artists, filmmakers, and institutions around the world, and has contributed to major industry events such as the Cannes Film Market, FOCUS London, and Berlinale EFM. Calvin also advises art and design schools and is the creator of Daylight Come, an experimental audio project exploring ancestry, migration, and memory.

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What drives someone to pick up a camera and document untold Caribbean history with no formal training? For Richard Vaughn, it was a simple realization: the political stories that shaped the modern Caribbean were either missing from film archives or told through a heavily biased lens. Vaughn takes us on his remarkable journey from curious Jamaican-American to award-winning documentary filmmaker. With us, he describes what would become "The Love Trilogy" – three powerful documentaries examining pivotal Caribbean political figures: Michael Manley of Jamaica, the Grenada Revolution, and Cheddi Jagan of Guyana. The trilogy's name emerged organically from Manley's own words about his political movement: "The word is love."

The conversation weaves together reflections on Caribbean self-determination, the connection between political movements and cultural expressions like reggae music, and practical advice for aspiring documentarians. Vaughn's simple guidance resonates beyond filmmaking: identify what needs preserving in your community's history, start with whatever resources you have, and persist despite obstacles. Listen now to discover how documentary film serves as both historical preservation and a tool for balanced understanding of the Caribbean's complex political landscape. What stories in your community deserve similar documentation?

Richard Vaughan born in New York to Jamaican immigrants in 1980. Driven by a passion for his culture and determination to educate and tell stores that history often forgets. Winner of the Madrid International Filmmaker Festival 2017 for Best Editing of a Documentary and the 2017 Van Gogh Award: Prodigy Auteur at the 2017 Amsterdam Film Festival for his second documentary Rolling Along: An Inline Movement. Previous credits include The Word is Love: Jamaica's Michael Manley (2012), Rolling Along: An Inline Movement (2017), Four Years of Love: The Grenada Revolution (2021), The Price of Love: Cheddi Jagan (2024). Films available here. 

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 Thirty-five years ago on July 27, 1990, Trinidad and Tobago experienced a shocking violation of its democratic foundations when Yasin Abu Bakr and the Jamaat al-Muslimeen stormed Parliament and the national television station, holding the Prime Minister hostage and declaring the government overthrown. This episode delves into a Caribbean coup that rarely makes the history books but lives on in the memory of Trinidadians who witnessed it. Writer Esker David Johnson joins us to share his personal connection to the event. Together, we uncover the economic and social conditions that fertilized the ground for this uprising, from Trinidad's oil-dependent economy to the marginalization of Afro-Trinidadian communities that Abu Bakr claimed to champion.

But the most fascinating aspect of this coup isn't just that it happened—it's what didn't happen afterward. Despite the violence, the hostage-taking, and approximately 30 deaths, the perpetrators walked free due to amnesty agreements signed under duress. This extraordinary lack of consequences created what Johnson describes as a "recalibration" of Trinidad's national identity, a wound in the country's relationship with justice that shapes crime and politics to this day. Through calypso, cultural memory, and comparative history, we trace the echoes of this event through Trinidad's later struggles and are reminded that memory, justice, and national identity are inextricably linked. 

Eskor David Johnson is a writer from Trinidad and Tobago and the United States. His debut novel Pay As You Go was a finalist for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize as well as the the New York Public Library Young Lions Fiction Award. A professor of Fiction Writing at Stony Brook University, he lives in New York City. Also check out Johnson's recent piece on the coup, "Sisyphus in the Capital." 

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Freedom wasn't granted—it was seized through blood, sweat, and unwavering resistance. Across the Dutch and Danish Caribbean colonies, enslaved Africans fought against brutal systems of oppression that are often overshadowed in mainstream historical narratives focused on British, Spanish, and French colonial powers.

When thousands gathered in St. Croix on July 2nd, 1848, led by freedom fighter General Buddhoe (Moses Gottlieb), they weren't asking politely for their liberation. They threatened to burn Frederiksted to the ground, forcing the Danish governor to declare immediate emancipation. This powerful act of collective resistance is why July 3rd remains sacred in the U.S. Virgin Islands, commemorated through Freedom Week celebrations that honor ancestral sacrifice and triumph.

Meanwhile, in the Dutch Caribbean territories like Suriname, Curaçao, and Aruba, emancipation arrived decades later in 1863—and even then with the cruel stipulation that the formerly enslaved would be required to work an additional decade on the plantations where they had suffered. This delayed freedom, finally realized in 1873, is now celebrated as "Keti Koti" (the chain is broken), a powerful testament to resilience against Dutch colonial brutality. 

The colonial footprints of the Netherlands and Denmark—alongside brief periods of Swedish and Portuguese occupation—remain etched in Caribbean legal systems, languages, demographics, and collective consciousness. By amplifying these overlooked histories, we honor the full spectrum of Caribbean resistance and recognize that every Emancipation Day represents a hard-won victory by those who refused to accept bondage as their fate. Our ancestors' struggle for dignity continues to illuminate our path forward.

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