Makeba Walcott ’19
Makeba Walcott ’19
Research Technician, Cancer Research Institute at Massachusetts General Hospital-Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
Field: Medicine and Public Health
Funnily enough, I heard of my current Research Technician position from a fellow Vassar alumna who currently works in the lab, who had heard of it from a former Vassar Haiti Project (VHP) member that worked there before her. Everyday, between taking care of countless amounts of cancer cell lines and mice, we somehow manage to laugh about how that one VHP member ignited what has become multiple generations of past Vassar graduates in our lab. This is exactly how I remember VHP: it has taken me places. In a literal sense, yes, given that I have physically traveled to different places as part of our art sales, and am now blooming in an entirely new city as a result of what I call a VHP-initiated network of Vassar alumni. But VHP, as in its members, the art, and Haiti itself, has also taken me places emotionally and spiritually.
Most importantly, it has guided me to walk out of a world that despises myself and my ancestors, and enter into a new place of unapologetic love for myself and black culture. It was VHP that encouraged me to view Haiti not through the drowning lens of popular misguided narratives, but through the nation and its people. The authentic artworks and untampered testimonies of Haitians as part of my time in VHP provided raw visions of the country that I was never exposed to before. To put this into context, as an Afro-Caribbean woman, I grew up in a space that was colonially positioned to hate a country simply because of its cultural and religious practices, with Vodou being the ultimate epitome. VHP has taken me to a place that enabled me to envision Haiti as a rich nation of kings and queens, whose people pressed on and did what was considered utterly naive at the time.
After all, it did become the world's first black republic. When I look at an artwork, a level of indescribable pride quickly consumes my soul that cannot be so easily erased often because of its unapologetic account of Haiti. In short, it moves me. The stories of our women partners who have created their own rhythms despite the many disturbances that surround them have taken me to a place of freedom and joy, where I have grown to embrace their contributions to the world. Simply put, they've moved me. The work that Lila, Andrew, and the students at Vassar put in day in and day out have made this all possible. They've loved me, and allowed me to love myself. In other words, they have enabled me to be moved and explore this place I was once too hesitant and apologetic to explore. Of course, I still have a far way to go in learning about Haiti and its people, but I am deeply thankful that VHP ignited that start.
