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Citizen complaint of the day: Looks like somebody was dying to get into one East Boston park

By adamg on Mon, 04/14/2014 - 7:36am
East Boston Greenway cemetery plot

Concerned citizen is concerned about what appears to be a grave - complete with flowers - on the East Boston Greenway near the caboose and the fire station:

Some sort of witchcraft nobody ever die there yet it's a cemetery plot.

Neighborhoods: 
East Boston
Free tagging: 
East Boston Greenway
Maverick Square


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Comments

By Chris Rich on Mon, 04/14/2014 - 8:07am.

I have a feeling it's some vernacular landscape element although I didn't notice it on the 6th.

http://youtu.be/7mb6mxb8ZIg

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By BostonUrbEx on Mon, 04/14/2014 - 8:11am.

Some sort of witchcraft

LOL! Unless they're actually serious, that was hilarious, but I'm hoping that was just some sarcastic wit.

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By anon on Mon, 04/14/2014 - 3:22pm.

it's practiced down in the islands by some, and there are numerous variants throughout Mexico, central and South America. Many people down there refer to it ad witchcraft. And they have elaborate ceremonies, including animal sacrifices. Parks in and around Boston are sometimes used, and the dead animals are often left in the park.

No, it isn't a joke, it's very real.

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By Lmo on Mon, 04/14/2014 - 7:57pm.

I don't practice Santeria... I ain't got no crystal ball

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By Chris Rich on Mon, 04/14/2014 - 9:29am.

It is an Afro Brazillian religion and there have been a number of immigrants from there making a home.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Candombl%C3%A9

Voudun and Santeria are other Yoruba derived faiths that might be applicable.

It is sorta cool, if so.

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By bractune on Mon, 04/14/2014 - 2:58pm.

why do you think that it might be related to this belief system? i looked at the wikipedia page and couldn't really find anything that seemed to relate to it, but i am probably just blind

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By Chris Rich on Mon, 04/14/2014 - 4:07pm.

I'd need to see a better photo than that.

I know the daughter of Haiti's main Vodun Priest. She was portrayed by Cecily Tyson in a crappy movie. I had a houngan as a landlord in the early 90s in Cambridge,

Louis.. a great old man. I still see him in Central Square.

I recorded three Santeria priests, Motongo, Nuru and Merida in the middle of a possession ritual sending energy to a sick friend in an operating room back in 87 or so at the Tufts radio station. I pretended I din't know what was up.

Motongo was great. He could sing Tin Tin Deo with the best of em. A car crash took him.

The chant/canto for Babalao was called Babalu when Desi Arnaz played it on I Love Lucy.

The real one is something like Egua..egua.. babalu a ye egua...... repeated up and down the vocal register.

There are other scarier Afro Cuban cults like the Efik from Dahomey.

The great hand drummer Chano Pozo belonged to that cult and some think he was murdered for initiating Dizzy Gillespie.

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By SF on Tue, 04/15/2014 - 12:10am.

Actually, It's a makeshift memorial for the large parcel of land former locost parking lot on bremen street behind Gumball factory, sadly- which will soon be developed by greedy developers, a tremendous loss for that area, lol.

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By Frosty on Tue, 04/15/2014 - 12:40am.

What makes it "sorta cool"?

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By Chris Rich on Tue, 04/15/2014 - 9:12am.

I like it that several versions are represented in the area, Brazillian, Cuban and Haitian.

The music is one of my favorites. http://youtu.be/ZPid2ZZibqA

And the elements of it are present in Jazz. http://youtu.be/sxLmQZaNHPY

And I love how syncretism was applied to harmonize the imposed Catholicism with the Yoruba sense of longing for home..

Oh... Ogun?...That's just our name for Santa Barbara..."

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