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Wandalis Jimenez New Black Ethnographies

INTRODUCTION My name is Wanda Jimenez and I am a Cultural Anthropologist living on planet Earth. Two years ago, around April 2223, I got the opportunity to leave Earth and travel to Planet Xelii to visit Tropicus Libertatem. This made me the seventh person on Earth to ever visit this land ever since it was created more than six decades ago. Before I embarked on my journey to Tropicus Libertatem, I spoke to Zehra Ralin, one of the only six people to travel to Tropicus Libertatem before my journey. When I asked him about the land, he told me that Tropicus Libertatem, “holds the sensational beauty that the Caribbean used to hold to a much broader extent as beauty fulﬁlls every unit measurement that Tropicus encloses in Xelii with its land and its people.” Four hours away from Earth, people believed Tropicus Libertatem to be a gloriﬁed simulation of how it felt like to visit the Caribbean before the natives forced the leaders of their islands to restrict access and travel on these islands to the rest of the world due to mass exploitation. Tropicus Libertatem also has held the reputation of being a galactical paradise in which the people that live there feel as if they live in a utopia.

INTRODUCTION After my journey, I came to find that the truth behind Tropicus Libertatem is that those who are fortunate to inhabit the space where given the gift to reside in Planet Xelii because they were honorable contributors or descendants of honorable contributors who fought a great race war for the people who used to live in the Caribbean here on Earth; inhabitants of Tropicus Libertatem are known as Zegna’s Only those who are composed with African and Caribbean (African, indigenous, mulatto) ancestry, blood, and lineage can live and travel to Tropicus Libertatem. Their victory was such a success, majority, if not all, believed they were the ones who first wiped out racism in the Caribbean. This is important in seeing as to why the people who inhabit Tropicus Libertatem are highly and divine people of great honor. As I waited seven years to get approved to do conducted research on Tropicus Libertatem, I decided to travel there as I needed to get direct sources for information about this land, the people who live here, and the race war that occured. This is due to the fact that information towards all these matters are limited here on Earth when they restricted access to the Caribbean area. I was given limited access to learn information towards my research in the only museum that stands in Tropicus Libertatem, Museum du Paxis. I also had the chance to meet and gather information with Rize Olan’s great granddaughter. Rize Olan was an influential and symbolic leader that fought the race war and even though I didn’t interview her great granddaughter, she gave me light information about her contributions to the war that I have implemented in this research. In addition, the research that I am providing to you also highlights Tropicus Libertatem as a world, the way it came to be and the way it functions. I hope you enjoy my research because I sure did enjoy my time in this breathtaking place.

ECOLOGY I learned that one of the reasons why Tropicus Libertatem was created in Planet Xelii was because of the serious ongoing issues of global pollution here on Earth. The creators of Tropicus Libertatem knew that climate issues were irreversible and as much as they wished, there could be no fix to the problems facing the environment in which we live in. You will learn later on that Zegna’s live in their own utopia here in Tropicus Libertatem and one moral conduct of Tropicus Libertatem is to treat your living space with respect; therefore, Zegna’s do a wonderful job in maintaining Tropicus Libertatem ecologically kempt. The Zegna’s in Tropicus Libertatem hold a mentality to them in which they know that they are not the superior species that inhabit Planet Xelii. Therefore, they respectfully share their space with the creatures that inhibit Tropicus Libertatem. This includes beautiful black and brown horses, leopards, lions, butterflies, doves,koi fishes, mermaids, and bee’s. These creatures are biochemically engineered to reverse any polluting effect that would take place around any space they visit that is being polluted; in the rare case that it does. As every inhabitant of Tropicus Libertatem wear microchips (called Dilectios), they receive alerts on their dilectios where pollution has occurred on the area in which they are nearly located whether that’d be in water, air, or grounds. Zegna’s in Tropicus Libertatem have a mandatory civic duty of thoroughly cleaning up an area of space in which they are assigned to once every three weeks. This can be a school, a park, a restaurant, an elder Zegna’s home, etc. This duty is highly emphasized as one of their most important way of living is to have moral respect for all things around you, including the space you inhibit.

ECOLOGY Because of this, I hope you can visualize that Tropicus Libertatem has been a crisp, fresh and flourishing space for one to occupy. Because Tropicus Libertatem is in another planet, the sand is composed of black Basalt. The sky and water are also purple, it goes from lavender in the morning time to a beautiful galactic hue once the night time comes. I feel like i’m home on the beach in the morning time but once night time comes, I feel like I just traveled the deepest of galaxies as everything would turn into a rich, dark glowy tone around me. My favorite aspect about the nature of Tropicus Libertatem is the scent of the air. Everytime the air turns into a wind, it releases a mixed scent of what I recall to be berries, jasmine and citruses in a bed of musk, sandalwood, and amber. The temperature would range from 15 degree Celsius to 32 degrees Celsius but if you would feel too hot, you would go to the nearest body of water and it would refresh you to an optimal body temperature due to the solar collectors constructed around the ozone of this land. The first creature ever introduced to Tropicus Libertatem was a bee. Bee’s are a very important symbolic figure to this area because not only do they purpose in pollinating plants for the creation of food in order to sustain all living things to keep creatures alive. But, like most people of color living on Earth, Bee’s are often feared; peoples first instinct is to run away from them, get rid of them, or kill them but truth is both are essentially significant to the livelihood of a society and environment. This is why the only food ever grown and eaten in Tropicus Libertatem are foods that have been pollinated by bees. Most popular foods eaten in Tropicus Libertatem include Mangoes, Guava, Passion Fruit, Avocados, Beets, Lima Beans, Eggplants, and more.

FIELD NOTES ~ ROUXIE BEACH, TROPICUS LIBERTATEM Date: April 12, 2223 Time: 12:49 P.M. Place: Rouxie Beach, Tropicus Libertatem It was my first full day in Tropicus Libertatem. As I was awakened by the soothing coo’s of the doves and the wind rustling against the palm leaves that stood right underneath my cabana, I then initiated my short walk to Rouxie beach. The Zegna’s all dressed in casual clothing that was unisex but, they draped themselves in body jewelry and headwear made of either shells, crystals, or freshly picked flowers that were surprisingly located in the sand. Everyone is of the same or similar complexion, like the ash woods of the palm trees that are facing me, or like the hue of the coffee that I smell walking by every table encircled by Zegna’s who were enjoying the start of their afternoon. The sand was black from the Basalt rocks however, when I picked it up with my two palms the texture feels like a mixture of powder with silk. I saw a leopard pacing towards me so I brought back the sand to the Earth’s ground and walked the opposite direction. As the wind kept soothing its way around the beach it left a scent of Jasmine and Amber, I think this happened to be my favorite part about being in Tropicus Libertatem. As I strolled along the beach, I was delighted by the horses that walked next to me, or the butterflies that surrounded me in the air. I think it was the first time in my life where I felt like i was surrounded more by creatures that were not human.

FIELD NOTES ~ ROUXIE BEACH, TROPICUS LIBERTATEM When I walked past a Zegna, I couldn’t help but realize that they used a lot of phrases of love and reassurance with each other. Some of the phrases were, “ namaste, my angel, my darling, lover, peace be with you, I’d be happy to assist you, you are loved, we care, we understand, I am here for you, I am happy for you…” To my surprise, both elders and young Zegna’s would equally tell each other these things. I also noticed that they touched each other a lot. Their hugs would last more than five seconds, they kiss on the mouths and foreheads, they would rub each others arm, shoulders, and hands, they would cradle, and they would caress. Every Zegna seemed to treat each other with an overwhelming amount of love and respect but, it was mutual. At a long rectangular table in front of the beach that I was in, there was food being set up by Zegna’s. The table had berries, mashed vegetables, coffee, avocados, onions, macadamia nuts, red and green peppers, tamarind, and figs. Even though the food looked appealing, I was more distracted by the beautiful hibiscus and azalea flowers. The Zegna’s picked petals off the flowers and proceeded to gath around the man who prepared the food. As they collectively started creating a head crown out of the flowers, the man who prepared the food was being kissed on the forehead by each member of that table that he was in. Each time he received a kiss, there was a purple glow in his arm.This man looked like he was in his mid 40’s. His skin and face was vibrant. His eyes were lively as if they were about to tell an exciting story. As the Zegna’s proceeded to sit down their seats, they exchanged words of gratitude and affirmations, the beautiful phrases came to my ears again. Within each phrase, different parts of their bodies would glow purple as if they were fireflies. Rouxie beach made me feel warm, fuzzy, and comforted in both physical and emotional ways.

TECHNOLOGY In Tropicus Libertatem, every Zegna must wear a microchip that are called ‘Dilectios’. Dilectio’s were introduced before the race war and they were the prominent cause that fueled the war. A Dilectio is a quarter of a centimeter and it has a purple LED light at both ends that light up when it is attached to a Zegna. The Dilectio’s were constructed with its most advanced, state of the art technology at its time (2110) that intermixes chemical and electrical simulation. This allows for the cells and neurotransmitters to be hijacked to interact with each other in subtle and precise ways that once seemed unimaginable. In other words, the microchips function is to boost the level of serotonin, oxytocin, dopamine, and endorphins through the brain of a Zegna. They however, release not just one message to a speciﬁc neurotransmitter in the body but about ﬁve messages at a once, boosting the production level of serotonin, oxytocin, dopamine, and endorphins in the body to about 50-70% than per usual (depending on a Zegna’s height, weight, and tolerance level.) The Dilectio’s work as it self injects unto the desired body part of a Zegna when pressed hard against the area of the skin they want to to be injected in. When attached to the Zegna’s, the Dilectio’s send out the chemical and electrical messages in heavy pulse vibrations that carries along to the neurotransmitter in the brains that hijacks and boost serotonin, oxytocin, dopamine, and endorphins levels for as long as the Dilectio’s stay in the body of a Zegna. This causes the brain of a Zegna to block out any reaction that makes them inhibit any sort of negative emotions. But also, because the vibration has chemical and electrical simulation, the Zegna’s not only suppress any negative emotions going on in their brain, they also suppress any negativity that goes on in the world around them. This is the reasoning behind Tropicus Libertatem’s reputation of being a utopia because with the microchip, every Zegna has their own personal experience in acquiring the most optimal route to their life of pure bliss.

SPIRITUALITY As one can see, spirituality in Tropicus Libertatem is a dynamic movement that is heavily implemented into the environment. One of the reasons Tropicus Libertatem came to fruition was so that inhabitants can be accountable in implementing and celebrating Humanism in a safe space where they are free from the corruption that they have endured and fought against. One of the reasons as to why Tropicus Libertatem is located in the region of Xelii that simulates a Caribbean island is because that region is surrounded by a beach and vitalizing sunlight; this is the perfect setting for recreation and relaxation to occur which is needed for long term health and happiness. The Zegna’s don’t worship a God but instead, worship each other because their universal practice implements the belief in the welfare of humankind. They don’t believe in religion and symbolic worship because these practices once justified racial discrimination and slavery throughout history. In terms of their old community on Earth, their personal relationships throughout their lives conflicted as people in their lives judged and mistreated them because religion and symbolic worship protected their own idea of what they believed to be the universal truth. Zegna’s practice Unity as they come to harmony with their state of oneness by applying ritualistic practice in worshipping one another. This becomes possible when they show gratitude, adoration, compassion, and honor through verbal and physical display. An example of this is when the Zegna’s who were having a feast the day I had written my field notes, made a head piece for the Zegna male that prepared the meal and each Zegna proceeded to kiss his forehead.

INTERVIEW On my first week mark, I had a conversation with Rize Olan’s great granddaughter, Bu Olan, at Rouxie Beach. She invited me to dinner because she did not like the idea of an interview but rather an informal conversation. After Ms. Olan finished her meal, she walked to towards the glowing purple waters and sat on top of a large calcite that reflected light from the moon. After five minutes passed that I sat down, she calmly turned her body towards me, broke into a smile, and told me, “it is nice to have your presence with me at this time of day”.

Me: I appreciate you having me. Bu Olan: What brings you here? I’m afraid I haven’t seen you around.

Me: I’m not from here. I come from Planet Earth. I was sent here because I got approved for my research studies on your history and people. I am only here for a 15 days. Bu Olan: Our people are full of history but we are discreet, I understand why you want to know about is. You’re not the only person I know what comes from a place that’s in Xelii. Even though we welcome you with full arms, I believe a majority of my people aren’t fond of having visitors from outside.

Me: Why is that? Bu Olan: Everyone who comes here asks us about our Dilectio. Everyone who comes here asks us about the way we live and questions as to why we do it. It bounces us off our harmony that we have created within this space. We stop coexisting peacefully as soon as we are questioned about our coexistence with this environment but we must be fair to our people of Earth, it is only right.

INTERVIEW Me: Even though I don’t physically or emotionally experience it, I understand how that can be annoying for you… were you sitting with your family earlier today? Bu Olan: Yes, they are my family but not in the way that you think. In here, family is not by blood. Family is everyone. I actually have never met these people but I felt closely connected to them when we sat down and shared time together. Me: What do you mean you never have met these people before? Bu Olan: I don’t know who they are, maybe I have seen them around once or twice but I don’t know their name. In this island, we feast once a month with people we’ve never meet. It helps us learn to love everyone and everything around us. Why do we only have to love people that we personally know? Some of it is just faint love too, not the love that engulfs us or makes us feel warm inside. When we feast we hold a meditative ceremony for love, we reach out and search for that love in one another. It’s not as easy as you think. Me: How does giving love to other people that you don’t know make you feel? Bu Olan: I feel like I can only do it when my Dilectio is on. This makes me sad but that feeling goes away when I wake up and put the Dilectio back on my body. If I didn’t have my chip on right now it would probably be hardexpressing my feelings with you. It makes me cry sometimes at how beautiful I see the world around me and when it’s time to turn it off, I shut down, I feel like a really beautiful ﬂower died.

INTERVIEW Me: How do you feel about having to wear the Dilectio in this land? Everyone has to wear it, right? Bu Olan: Everyone has to wear and you can’t shut it off for more than four hours. Most people do keep it on at all times even though they know there are health risks to it. It’s as if you’re living grandeur. Imagine feeling euphoric, orgasmic at all times. But you have to make a tradeoff, you live longer in this utopian state of being but you have to deal with the reality how you face the world when you have it off. Or, you can be in this state of bliss forever but, you only experience it for so long because of health risks. What would you chose to do? Me: I’m actually not sure. Both options honestly outweigh the other no more, no less… why did you chose to take it off? Bu Olan: It’s not normal to feel like this all the time. Think about it. I understand that it’s such a beautiful feeling to feel happy and be happy. But, imagine eating the same food every day, imagine wearing the same clothes every day, imagine doing the same routine every day for the rest of your life. Light cannot exists without darkness, without our bad feelings, because people will not appreciate or understand the beauty of one another. I feel like that’s what being equal is all about. You need both these elements to coincide with one another and create a phenomena which is what I feel means to live and not this world that was created. I feel like this device was invented because humans back then didn’t master or respect these elements the way they should have, to the point where there was no reverse. It got so bad everyone just broke into a war …

THE RACE WAR- (2112-2122) My last week in Tropicus Libertatem, I spent majority of my time in Museum du Paxis to learn about the race war. Even though I was given limited access towards information about this war, it was the suffice information that i’ve been yearning to learn for the past eight years. To start off, The race war started February 11, 2112. However, it originated when two black students, Ramez Davici and Nicoletta Paz, from a predominantly white and affluent university in the island of what was known as Puerto Rico, formulated the idea and brought the invention of the Dilectios into fruition. They wanted the Dilectio’s to be a device that can help people dramatically reduce the feeling of what stresses them out the most in order to achieve long term health prosperity. When they conducted trial and research, they realized that the main issue that stressed out people of color the most was racism. Because they believed that racism was irreversible, they then started experimenting on a permanent relief solution on the Dilectio’s. The innovative process of the Dilectio’s started gaining popularity as those who were being tested all concluded that the Dilectio’s made them feel in a state of euphoria. The research was then quickly shut down by university officials who wanted to seek ownership on the Dilectio’s for proﬁt maximization. After Davici and Paz refused, they were arrested and taken to court for an ‘illegal’ start up on an innovation because supposedly they weren’t given authorization to conduct the invention. ⁃

THE RACE WAR- (2112-2122) News towards the controversy of the Dilectio’s spread like wild fire throughout the island on Puerto Rico. On February 11, 2112, when Paz and Davici had their court arrangement, thousands of people of color joined outside the courthouse to protest against the university. Fed up with the injustice and cruelty that the people of color has had to experience in the island, Rizé Olan set the Dilectio controversy to be the last straw and declared the race war. With the help of her lover, Zana Jermaine, both women broke into the courtroom, and opened fire, managing to help break out Davici and Paz. As the protesters flooded into the courtroom and rioted in the streets, the city soon declared a martial law. Forming a strong unification throughout the nation, protestors and rioters fought back for the next ten years. Unfortunately Olan, Jermaine, Davici, and Paz all passed away as they were denied proper medical care when they suffered from open wounds from the shoot out in the court room. Their legacy however, lives on. In 2117, an engineer that goes by the name of Nina Stokes, finished developing the last model of the Dilectio that would be used in Tropicus Libertatem, in her underground laboratory. She buried the model until she finished developing a habitable and prosperous environment for people of color in Planet Xelii with the help of her team. When she successfully attempted and finished the environment, she ordered for the rioters to surrender and executed a mass evacuation throughout the island for rioters to depart to Tropicus Libertatem with the help of influential leaders who she befriended around the nation. Strategically, Planet Xelii went on lock down with state of the art sensor technology that has forced a permanent restriction to any hovercraft that is not identified as those that are owned by Planet Xelii.

MOOD BOARD

PHOTOS FROM TROPICUS LIBERTATEM

CONCLUSION To conclude my research, I was ecstatic and satisfied with my trip to Tropicus Libertatem but, even more satisfied with my findings towards this research. Not only did I learn great and valuable information in Museum du Paxis but, I equally learned from the Zegna’s, the creatures, the cultures, and the environment that encompasses that society. I was more shocked about my findings on the Dilectio’s than I was about my findings towards the race war. As I have never used a Dilectio, I came to find that Tropicus Libertatem is only it’s own island off of Planet Earth; it is the Dilectio that simulates people into feeling bliss and feeling like they’re surrounded in a utopia. The Dilectio’s helps one fabricate their own paradise at the base of this land in Planet Xelii. I was hesitant about inserting a Dilectio to my body when I was asked if I wanted to. From what it seems, Zegna’s are in a constant high off a mind trip that they have let control them. Those who decide to remove it throughout their day, or weeks, etc. become irritated because they grew accustomed to it but now have to cope with the realization of the reality of it all. I guess not all that glitters is gold. With that being said, I conclude my research proposal and I hope you have been informed and attempt to visualize the beauty behind this hidden treasure.

ANNOTATIONS AND BIBLIOGRAPHY 1.

Cohen, Kenneth S. “Qigong Fever: Body, Science, and Utopia in China by David A. Palmer.” AnthroSource, American Ethnologist, vol. 36, no. 1, 24 Feb. 2009, pp. 205–206., doi:10.1111/j.1548-1425.2008.01111_19.x.

- This article focuses on the Qigong fever and how it can be used to create a utopian society in China. Qigong is a system of therapeutic practices that allow humans to change their lives being solely focused on their needs but rather living freely. Overall, the article expresses how medical practices can be transformative and evolutionary throughout the future. Zegna’s in Tropicus Libertatem experience change by using Dilectio’s to block out negative emotions and thoughts within themselves and from the world around them.

Hogan, Jenny. “Synapse Chip Taps into Brain Chemistry.” New Scientist, 24 Mar. 2003, https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn3523-synapse-chip-taps-into-brain-chemistry/. “Synapse chip taps into brain chemistry” explains the possibility of creating neural prosthetics which would need a microchip that interacts with neurotransmitters. This article speciﬁcally deﬁnes the roles of neurotransmitters such as Oxytocin, Serotonin, Dopamine, and Endorphins. This article was essential towards helping me formulate and establish the process in which the Dilectio’s which properly function restricting negative feelings and thoughts to be produced amongst the Zegna’s. It also helped me understand the function of Oxytocin, Serotonin, Dopamine, and Endorphins; all vital towards the creation of helping the Zegna’s feel the utopian simulation.

ANNOTATIONS AND BIBLIOGRAPHY 3. McCray, Kenja. “Oyotunji Village [The Village] (1970–- ) • BlackPast.” BlackPast, 8 Apr.2019,https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/oyotunji-african-village-1970/. -

This article places a large emphasis on the Oyotunji tribe’s and the celebration of their culture, and Nationalism. Oyotunji translates to “Oyo will rise again,” and their work involves uplifting Orisha worship, while independizing themselves from western-dominated political and religious rule. Similarly, my account is a telling of a secluded society consisting of people of color. This society worships their own religion and cultural practices, entirely free of western influences. Prior to achieving their independent state, the individuals in my story lived in in Puerto-Rico, where they were dominated by western culture. After fighting for their freedom, these villagers fled the land and settled in a state where they were able to celebrate their traditions and nationalism, much like the Oyotunji tribe.

4. Roosevelt, Anna C. “The Development of Prehistoric Complex Societies: Amazonia, A Tropical Forest.” AnthroSource, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd (10.1111), 28 June 2008, https://anthrosource.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1525/ap3a.1999.9.1.13.

Heterarchical societies have been viewed as an alternative to hierarchical societies when forming complex and prosperous civilizations. These non-state societies have proven to efficiently support dense and large populations of individuals. This article further explains how Amazonia managed to sustain massive systems of architecture and earthworks for long periods of time, without the need for authoritarian and central rule. In contrast, hierarchical societies made lasting and detrimental impacts on their environments. This is relevant to what I express in my research towards Zegna’s functioning in Tropicus Libertatem through worshiping one another, unity, and humanitarianism. Zegna’s follow through with their roles in a heterarchical society, without the necessity of a government or speciﬁc ruler.

ANNOTATIONS AND BIBLIOGRAPHY 5. Wilkins, Amy. “‘Not Out to Start a Revolution’: Race, Gender, and Emotional Restraint among Black University Men.” SAGE Journal, SAGE Publication, 1 Feb. 2012,https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0891241611433053.

In this article, Wilkins examines and describes the process in which Black men, especially those instilled in universities and institutions, face emotional restraints in order to ﬁt into a predominantly white crowd and middle class. These Black scholars practice psychological strategies throughout their lives in order to avoid being labeled as angry Black men. Precautions are taken with their behavior and demeanor, as well as their approach to race politics, in predominantly white environments. The article further explains that in the process of managing their emotions, they use Black women as an outlet to release the anger and agitation they choose to restrain as well as also letting Black women take on the role of the savior complex in speaking out towards racial injustice and prejudices amongst both genders. In my research, Rize Olan and Zana Jermaine were two revolutionary Black women, that ﬁght for the freedom of Ramez Davici and Nicoletta Paz, two Black males attending university, from going to jail over racial prejudice.