8849: Re: 8836: Mackandal- haitian maroon (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Lois E Wilcken <makandal-ny@juno.com>

For the story of Makandal, you might begin with a novel, Alejo
Carpentier's Keys to the Kingdom.  Its opening chapter tells the story. 
A book by Pluchon--I don't own a copy and don't recall his first name
(maybe Pierre) or the exact title--traces the history of magic and poison
as weapons among the slaves of St. Domingue.  In The Black Jacobins,
James recounts the story (pp. 20-21), but gives no sources.  You might
look at James 's bibliography, anyway, because it gives many primary
sources for his book that might also be of help to you.

I'd be interested in what you eventually unearth.  The group with which I
work named itself after Makandal when it was formed in Port-au-Prince in
1973.  Its founding members were teenagers who never went to school, but
they knew about Makandal's association with magic and daring, and that
was enough to select his name.  We've always been eager to learn more.

Lois Wilcken
La Troupe Makandal - New York City's #1 Haitian Roots Ensemble
621 Rutland Road, Brooklyn NY 11203
718-953-6638 / makandal-ny@juno.com
www.makandal.org