Music: Oiaymeló by Margarita Cuero. Interpreted by the amazing cantaora Benigna Solís. I am fluid
and in constant process of becoming. I am daughter, sister, lover, woman, friend. I am Sandra Paola — “la pequeña protectora de la humanidad,” and I am the daughter of wolves (López) and guardians (Ramírez). I am fluid and in constant process of becoming. Nací en las montañas de Abya Yala, y por seis generaciones mi familia ha vivido on stolen land: en la cordillera oriental en el territorio Muisca de Bacatá, en el litoral pacífico en territorio Awá y Tumaco, y en el valle alto del Magdalena en territorio Pijao. Some of my ancestors were born of the earth in Abya Yala. They weaved with her roots, Sang with her waters, Moved with her breeze. Some others, traidos forzosamente del gran continente Africano, with shackled hands and feet were pulled from their own Mother, displaced, brutalized, raped. Survivors of unimaginable journeys. Most of them, los Europeos, who roamed primarily the territories of Spain, Ireland, Scotland, and France came en busca de oro y plata. In search of a better life. So here I am, born of contradictions, violence, rape, hopes, dreams. I am fluid and in constant process of becoming. My mixed heritage gave me the opportunity to migrate North to Turtle Island, to the neocolonial and imperialist country of United States of America. Fast forward 15 years y ahora me desenvuelvo en una realidad bilingüe. I dream, speak, move, write, and create in two lenguas. This new hybrid, this “border tongue” of Anzaldúa ahora me acobija en la frontera de U.S. y México. Es ahora aquí donde trenzo sueños, where I start my journey to wholeness, and where I begin to trace back to create my future. beat.
colonizer and colonized: a dance
and a poem
Reclaiming indigeniety
By expanding my understanding of listening and relational presence while remembering how to establish a reciprocal relationship to land and more-than-human nature. This process has been supported by the writings of Robin Wall Kimmerer, specifically her book Braiding Sweetgrass. The wisdom that she carries has inspired me to create a daily ritual of gratitude, look for concrete ways to give back to Mother Earth, and spend more time in the company of (and dancing with) my non-human brothers and sisters. Honoring African rootsThe Latin American vernacular dances that I grew up dancing are grounded deeply in their African roots. By embracing characteristics of the African aesthetic (e.g. body isolations, polyrhythms, dancing closer to the floor) and expanding my current practice to include rhythmic-based improvisation, I aim to decolonize my experience through embodiment.
Making storiesWhile in residence at SFAI I began to use storymaking as a way to reclaim my lost family lineage. I wrote three short (mostly) fictional stories drawing from memories, stories told and written by family members, historical facts, news articles and documentaries. These have become a space for me to wrestle with the complexities of mi mestizaje and confront the colonial narrative in my family’s past and present in an effort to create an alternative one in the future.
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