Taíno Author Releases New Children’s Book

New York (UCTP Taíno News) - Inspired by the true story of how the people of Borikén (Puerto Rico) saved Bieke (Vieques) from environmental destruction, author Rafael Landrón has written a bilingual children’s book entitled “Beba and Little Sister Island” published by Campanita Books. The story focuses on a young manatee named Beba who is summoned by her animal friends to travel and discover the origin of the thunderous noise they keep hearing from other side of their beautiful island home. Illustrated by award-winning artist María Antonia Ordóñez, the story is a timeless tale of courage, solidarity, love, and justice set in the beautiful waters of the Caribbean.

In Beba and Little Sister Island, the animals play the role of the real-life heroes whose courageous acts tipped the scale and literally saved the island. Much of Bieke (affectionately called la Isla Nena - translated in the book as Little Sister Island) had been turned into a radioactive, polluted, devastated landscape. With the departure of the U.S. Armed Forces the island is on its way to recovery, but it will be decades before the damage is reversed.

“The story never makes direct reference to where the big ships come from, or what they are doing there”, explained Landrón. “I wanted the message to be universal”.

A Borikén Taíno, Rafael Landrón is a Professor at Boricua College in New York, as well as an emerging poet, performer, and writer. Beba and Little Sister Island is his first children's book and is available at Amazon.com.

UCTPTN 12.16.2010

Good News for Manatees

Florida (UCTP Taino News) - The Manatee or “sea cow” is a gentle sea creature that inhabits tropical waters from Florida through the Caribbean island chain, down to coastal South America. The word Manatee or Manati comes from the Taino Indian language and there is even a town in Puerto Rico that retains the name. The Manatee feeds only on aquatic plants and was an important part of Taino culture much like the buffalo was to some North American Tribal Nations. Today, the Manatee is still considered sacred to many Taino who are happy to note that the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission recently voted to delay downgrading the manatee's status from endangered to “threatened.”

In a letter issued on Monday, September 10th, Florida Governor Charlie Crist called the manatee one of Florida’s “beloved natural resources.” The Governor urged the Commission to postpone their decision given the need for a better method to estimate the Manatee population and the record 417 manatee deaths in 2006.

The FWC decided to defer the decision on down-listing manatees until at least the Dec. 5-6 meeting in Key Largo, FL.

UCTP Representative Mildred Caraira Gandia, a Boriken Taino who lives in Miami welcomed the decision as “good news for Manatees.” She and other community members plan to continue to monitor the situation.

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See also: http://taino-facts.blogspot.com/2007/01/manatee-or-manati.html

Manatees Have "Long-Distance" Sense of Touch, Experts Say

By Blake de Pastino for National Geographic

If you ever go swimming with a wild Florida manatee, be prepared for what might look like an amorous advance.

Renowned for their touchy-feely behavior, sea cows have been known to approach unwitting swimmers, close their eyes, open their mouths, and lean in as if busting a manatee make-out move.

But freaked-out snorkelers can relax. The behavior, scientists say, is just one example of how manatees use their uniquely developed sense of touch.

New research suggests that manatees' tactile sense is so finely tuned that the animals may experience "touch at a distance"—an ability to "feel" objects and events in the water from relatively far away.

UCTP Taino News Editor’s Note: The word "manatee" originates from the Taino word "Manati". Traditionally, the Taino consider the manati as sacred as North American Indigenous Peoples consider the buffalo sacred. Prior to colonization Taino hunters used every part of the animal for food, tools, and other resources.

See also:
http://taino-facts.blogspot.com/2007/01/manatee-or-manati.html

Manatee Seen as a Good Sign to Taino People

New York, NY (UCTP Taino News) - A recent sighting of a massive manatee traveling up New York’s Hudson River is seen as an important event by Taino Indians in New York. A representative of the United Confederation of Taino People, Roberto Mucaro Borrero noted that “for some of our community this rare occurrence is seen as a positive prophetic sign.”

The Taino were the first Indigenous Peoples in the Western Hemisphere to encounter Columbus and manatee is a Taino word. Manatees are commonly associated with the warm waters of Florida and the Caribbean.

“We relate this sighting to another that took place some years ago in Boriken (Puerto Rico). Both of these occurrences are seen as an opportunity for a renewed relationship with the natural world and responsible action” continued Borrero.

The Taino traditionally view the manatee in a manner similar to the way North American Plains Indians view the buffalo.

Borrero also observed that “this manatee comes to New York at a perfect time as we will commemorate the 12^th International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples at United Nations headquarters tomorrow on August 9^th and we will certainly bring the spirit of this sacred sea-going relative to the United Nations.”

While a rare sight it is not unprecedented for manatees to travel this far north a few have been sighted along the shores of Long Island and even as far north as Rhode Island.

The manatee has been spotted at 23rd Street near Chelsea Piers, West 125th Street, and later in Westchester County. It appeared to be healthy.

UCTP Taino News 08.08.2006