[Archaeology is] a vast fiendish jigsaw puzzle invented by the devil as an instrument of tantalizing torture.”
As an Educator, Anthropologist with specializations in gender, power, and identity in Indigenous Caribbean Societies, and a Historical Archaeologist, I weave together the past and present into a rich living tapestry. My inspiration comes from human remains/artifacts/chronicles from the past, as well as the words and accounts of living descendants. In this way, I treat time not as a linear construct but as a kaleidoscopic mosaic of human experiences that transcend the rigid strictures of geospatial “realities.” The archetypal myths (heroes, villains, and creatures) of past and future cultures live in our collective genetic memory. They are the fancies of our higher spirits and the monsters of our Id, lurking in the cave of our subconscious. The Opi’a, the Duppy, the Ciguapa, the Soucouyant, the Ol’ Higue, the Loup Garou, the Chupacabra; they are all there… waiting…
(setting of Book II of the Nocturne Trilogy)
Recent News: Upcoming Publications
“Stolen Moments”
In Tengo Sed: An Anthology of Works Celebrating Black Voices, Identities, and Personhood
About:
“Stolen Moments” by Rosalina Diaz
Set against the backdrop of Brooklyn’s Puerto Rican community in the 1980s and 1990s, Stolen Moments is a haunting coming-of-age story about trauma, memory, first love, and the emotional scars that shape a life.
As Marisa reflects on the relationships that defined her youth—from the dangerous obsession of a troubled cousin to the tenderness of a boy whose love offered her a glimpse of hope—the boundaries between past and present begin to blur. Marked by violence, grief, guilt, and longing, she struggles to reconcile the woman she has become with the wounded girl she once was.
Lyrical, intimate, and emotionally raw, Stolen Moments explores the enduring weight of loss, the complexity of survival, and the fragile moments of connection that can alter a life forever.
Nocturne: Spirit of the O’Pia (Coming Soon!)
Upcoming Public Events
https://www.nypl.org/events/programs/2024/04/25/retratos-de-la-llegada-autores-latinx-e-historias-de-inmigrantes-en-nueva
New Publication Release
Decolonizing Ethnography: A Reimagined Framework for Teaching Radical Ethnography (2024)
https://www.culanth.org/authors/rosalina-diaz
Decolonizing Paradise: A Radical Ethnography for Environmental Stewardship in the Caribbean https://www.academia.edu/98765954/Book_watermark_Part?source=swp_share (JUST RELEASED 2023!)
