DAY 13 LAST DAY DISCOVERING THE HIDDEN IDENTITY OF THE BANILEJOS

09:47



This morning I woke up at 6:30 in order to observe and record how the fowl is slaughtered in Baní. I was able to interview three owners of different shops. As I walked through the mercado (outdoor marketplace), I noticed over 5 butcher shops. Apparently, this is a huge business in Baní. I asked the owners why they slaughter the chicken by slicing the neck. One of them told me that it is done that way in order to remove all of the blood and so that the meat is not spoiled by striking. He said that the process is fast and effective. In the following video, one can witness the process of cleaning the chicken. I was amazed that 5 people could fit in such a small room. The smell was horrendous, water on the floor, and blood everywhere; my kind of place!


One of the owners told me that all of the butcher shops in the country work with the same method. I have not been to all of the shops in the country, but I have been to enough of them in the Capital to know that this is possibly true. So, there is a hazaqah (legal presumption) that all of the fowl in the Baní is slaughtered according to the laws of shehitah (ritual slaughter). It is possible that Matanzas was where the first settlers ritually slaughtered there animals, as Mr. Valera affirmed, and that the Banilejos spread this custom throughout the various rural towns, and finally to the center of the city. 

Today, I am returning to the Capital. I bid my farewells to the Banilejos. One of my subjects gave me a huge lead in the Capital. She asserts that there is a large Banilejo community in the Capital and that I could obtain the remaining 7 DNA samples needed. I hope to obtain access and entry at the Buen Maestro Catholic Church, where many Banilejos attend. 

Farewell Baní.

Hasta la vista!


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