Bibliography

The following sources were used for the information on this blog:

Tramil. Medicinal Plant Database.Haiti.http://www.funredes.org/tramil/espanol/plantdata.html/ref_id/669

Benitez-Rojo, Antonio. "Introduction to the Repeating Island." Durham: Duke University Press,1992.

Chevalier, Andrew. Encyclopedia of Herbal Medicine. United States: DK Publishing,2000.

Crellin, John, Philpott Jane, Tommie Bass, A.L. A Reference Guide to Medicinal Plants: Herbal Medicine Past and Present. Duke University Press. 1989.

Keoke, Emory. Medicine and Health. United States. 1996

Introduction: BEGIN HERE

The Caribbean has long been pronounced as the unstable, discordant, syncretic string of islands that we mark as ideal vacations but no more than that. In this course, we learned over time that the Caribbean is not just the simplified Western vacation getaway but rather the history, the culture, have made it to a fully functional and modern society that the Western world does not acknowledge unless there is to be some negative remark to be made about it. Alejo Carpentier’s novel, Kingdom of This World is a magical realist work that blends fact and fiction and takes the reader on a blurring journey of Haiti’s political revolution: before, during, and after. However, this blog will not be about Haitian history rather it will be about the powerful and secretive relationship between the Caribbean people and the land specifically plant medicine.

We are introduced to Macandal, who is the master’s go to slave as he has an eye for the best horseflesh and soon after he has accident resulting in the amputation of his arm, he is kept on light duty of pasturing cattle, but little does the white master know he has given Macandal the weapon that will lead to his coup and defeat. Macandal’s sudden time in the pasture leads him to notice and analyze the plants, which becomes his duty he starts to research, experiment, and record the results of his plants. Macandal is no longer an ordinary slave rather he now is the medicine man, the knowledge holder of his people, he has the power to start the revolution. Even after the white people ‘kill’ Macandal, the Caribbean people scoff as Macandal is not truly dead he has transcended his position from slave to knowledge holder to symbolic leader of the revolution. All this begins just from the indigenous knowledge he gains from the plants.

Now applying this method to modern day Haiti comes up with the same results. Haitians depend more on plant remedies than drugs even today it could be due to the lack of medical services available or could it like Macandal the Caribbean people contain an inner, indigenous knowledge that is more valuable and successful than their modern day counterparts? To find the answer one has to look past the Caribbean artifice that the Western world has built as stated in Antonio Benitez-Rojo’s article “The Repeating Island,” and acknowledge the Caribbean for it is and for what it is not. This blog will attempt to connect the links between ancient plant knowledge and the ignorance the Western world associates with the Caribbean due to its past, which is the very thing responsible for the plant knowledge in the first place.

This blog will be dedicated to a number of plant medicines that are commonly used in Haiti and featured on the Caribbean Medical Database: Tramil, and modern day encyclopedias of herbal medicine (listed in the bibliography). The purpose of this blog is to give an option to people who have tried drugs for common ailments but to no avail. As per my own personal experience, some doctors who prescribe medicine nowadays are more interested in keeping the capitalistic drug industry running than actually healing the patient. This blog will feature 15 plants some indigenous to the Caribbean others introduced through colonizers but each plant has a purpose for a common ailment, the chemical breakdown of the plant including its nutrients, and the connection between the plant and person in reference to The Kingdom of This World.

*******The Blog postings should go in order from A (the Onion) to J(Poisonous End). This introduction is only here due to it not fitting in the about section.

Jatropha curcas: The Poisonous END

Jatropha curcas is the Barbados nut, a small poisonous plant that originated from Central America but has been spread to the Caribbean as well.

The medical uses of the Barbados nut is the sap, which closes broken skin, skin rash but it is very dangerous. Only a trained medicine man can apply the poultice as this plant is toxic and can lead to harmful effects.

The chemical breakdown of this plant is as follows: alkaloids, saponsides, quinines, flavonoids, and steroids.

In a study described on Tramil, 30 patients that already had a type of plantar wort were treated with the poultice instead of liquid nitrogen and the wort improved within 11-12 days.
Now this poison is very harmful but useful as every aspect of the plant contains some type of toxicity from the leaves to the roots and the Haitian people have figured out how to use and incorporate it safely in their daily lives. This use of poison which grows or perhaps was brought by the white man to the island exhibits the power the colonized (the Caribbean people) had over the colonizer (Europeans) as is shown in the novel with the poison seeping from the ships into the plantations, “Nobody knew how it found its way into the grass and alfalfa, got mixed in with the bales of hay, climbed into the mangers” (27). Now to the reader the answer is obvious: it was the slaves who were on the ships, in the fields, working with the plants who had this knowledge and manipulated it to suit their needs. But to the colonizer the slaves are the last suspects in their minds as it seems unthinkable that they could even imagine or let alone have a master plan to set themselves free. Benetiz Rojo’s article also cements this fact that even the modern day world continues to set the island back, not looking past its ‘instability’ to see the knowledge or power within the Caribbean thus he states, “The time has come for postindustrial society to start rereading the Caribbean” (2). It is past due time that the modern world recognizes that indigenous knowledge is the uncanny, some facet of it will always come back in the present, and in this case of plant medicine it is time to put aside the selfish Western greedy, capitalistic system and welcome a change that has the potential to cure not string along a person leeching their money indefinitely.

Foeniculum vulgare: Fennel

Foeniculum vulgare is fennel is a small herb with yellow flowers and is indigenous to the Mediterranean but as it grows easily near the sea, it has spread worldwide.

The medical benefits of fennel are healing earache, abdominal pain, flatulence, and stomach pain. To relieve any of them above a decoction of fennel should be taken orally.

The chemical breakdown of fennel is the following: “proteins: 2.8%; fat: 0.4%, carbohydrates: 5.1%, fiber 0.5%, ash: 1.7%, calcium: 100 mg, phosphorus: 51 mg, iron 2.7 mg, potassium: 397 mg; carotene: 2100 mg, ascorbic acid 31 mg.”

Studies described on Tramil indicate that decoction of fresh leaves ranging from 15-25 g/L and dry seed infusion (5-10g/L) taken orally relieves and reduces minor digestive tract spasms.

Fennel has a variety of beneficial health uses in the Caribbean but the majority are not studied in the United States as Benitez Rojo’s article states the Caribbean continues to be only addressed as the disjointed and unstable island, “The main obstacles to any global study of the Caribbean’s societies, insular or continental, are exactly those things that scholars usually adduce to define the area: its fragmentation; its instability; its reciprocal isolation; its uprootedness; its cultural heterogeneity; its lack of historiography…its syncretism” (19).

Eryngium foetidum: Culantro

Eryngium foetidum is culantro, a annual herb that grows in any tropical climate but originated from South America.

Culantro’s medical benefits are flatulence, flu, vomiting, palpitations and tiredness, and fever.
The chemical breakdown of culantro is “flavonoids, saponins, sterols, triterpenoids, taninos; essential oil consists mainly of: Dodec-2-trans-en-1-al (59%) and derivatives, 2,4,5-trimethyl benzaldehyde (37%) and derivatives, 2-methyl-crotonic, formyl-trimethyl-ciclohexadienol, Cymenol, ferurol.”

There have not been any major scientific studies done on culantro rather the medical use of this plant is based heavily on traditional methods of the Caribbean people and polls indicating effectiveness.

This value of traditional plant knowledge being implemented in modern day Haiti brings to mind the wide gap compared to the United States, where home remedies are on the backseat and drugs are the modern day medicine. In Antonio Benitez Rojo’s article, “The Repeating Island,” he states, “The Caribbean basis, although it includes the first American islands to be explored, conquered, and colonized by Europe, is still, especially in the discourse of the social sciences, one of the least known regions of the modern world” (19). The Caribbean is still seen as the exotic and foreign, thus even the medical remedies that are studied and proven by Haitian scientists that some plants work more effectively than drugs are not acknowledged or taken seriously just due to the source.

Curcuma long: Turmeric

Curcuma long is Turmeric can be considered a herb that is indigenous to India but is now cultivated in the Caribbean as it can grow successfully in any tropical climate.

The medical uses of turmeric are the following: antiseptic, anti-inflammatory, jaundice, abscess, hepatitis, and liver disorders. The traditional remedy is to make a decoction with the root and adminster orally.

The chemical breakdown of turmeric root is the following: protein: 7.8%; fat: 9.9%, carbohydrates: 64.9%, fiber 6.7%, ash: 6% Calcium: 182 mg, phosphorus: 268 mg, iron: 41.4 mg, sodium: 38 mg, potassium: 25 mg; carotene: 0 mg, Thiamine: 0.15 mg, Riboflavin: 0.23 mg, Niacin: 5.14 mg, ascorbic acid: 26 mg.

Studies conducted on the turmeric root powder that was administered orally to 1116 patients with acid dyspepsia, flatulence, and atonic in a double-blind trial. Turmeric in the Caribbean was most likely introduced during the 19th century as the British had hailed it as the cheaper alternative to saffron, and thus it had become wildly popular.

Citrus Aurantifolia: Key Lime

Citrus aurantifolia is the key lime, which is a citrus species that first grew in the Middle East and was introduced to the Caribbean on the way then spread from there to North America. Limes are naturally smaller, have a higher acidity, and stronger smell than lemons.

The key lime’s medicinal use in Haiti are the following: fever, Conjunctivitis, earache, cough, flu, cold, diarrhea, and headache. It is usually taken orally with 1-5 drops of lime juice for fever, 1-2 drops for Conjunctivitis, 7-10 drops for cold, cough, flu, diarrhea; and 1-3 for a headache.

The chemical breakdown of the plant is based on the leaf, flower, and rind as it contains flavonoids, citric and malic acids. The following nutrients are found in the key lime: proteins: 0.5%; fat: 2.4%, carbohydrates: 5.9%, fiber 0.3%, ash: 0.2%, calcium: 13 mg, phosphorus: 11 mg, Iron: 0 mg, Sodium: 2 mg, potassium: 82 mg; carotene: 10 mg, Thiamine: 0.03 mg, Riboflavin: 0.02 mg, niacin: 0.1 mg, ascorbic acid: 45 mg.

As the Tramil studies indicate Vitamin C is abundant in the key lime, and it has shown significant antibacterial and antifungal activity against the following viruses that cause fever, cough, and cold: Escherichia coli,Pseudomonas aerguinosa,and Staphylocccus aureus.

The key lime is one plant that is now produced more widely in the Caribbean than the United States, which is mainly because of North American Free Trade Agreement. The indigenous knowledge that Macandal has is through his own research but it is also inherited from Maman Loi, “Macandal showed Maman Loi the leaves, the plants, the fungi, the herbs he carried in his pouch. She examined them carefully, crushing, and smelling some of them, throwing others away” (19).

Cissampelos Pareira: Abuta

Cissampelos pareira is known as abuta and is widely used in Asia and in the Caribbean for its antioxidant properties, stomach pain, regulating menstrual flow, and high blood pressure.

The chemical properties of abuta are the following: the leaf contains alkaloids, hayatin, and carbohydrates.

Studies by Tramil conducted on abuta show that in an “hydroalcoholic extract (50%) of dried root is credited with antihistamine and antispasmodic effect in vitro (1 mg/mL) on guinea pig ileum.”

Abuta is a fairly unknown herb in the Western world thus there are little studies on abuta or even the trace on it introduction or perhaps even origin in the Caribbean. Our little knowledge of this plant is at odds with indigenous knowledge of people or even animals, as the people that come in regular contact with the plant know it best such as Macandal, “He held out his hand to a cow; she sniffed and drew back her head with frightened eyes, snorting” (18).

Cinnamomum verum: cinnamon

Cinnamomum verum is cinnamon, which is a small tree native to Sri Lanka and used for two specific maladies in Haiti.

The tree bark is made into a decoction for diarrhea and vomiting. 1-3 drops for each is recommended to take care of the problem.

The chemical breakdown of the cinnamon tree bark is the following: protein 3.1% fat: 1.2%, carbohydrates: 80.6%, ash: 3.3%, calcium: 470 mg, Thiamine: 0.02 mg, riboflavin: 0.07 mg, niacin: 0.7 mg.

Studies of the bark show that works as a antifungal antidote.
The history of cinnamon is long and varied stemming from Sri Lanka, India, China but has made its presence known in all parts of the world. There is no exact knowledge which colonizer brought it to the Caribbean but what is known is that it was used for its antifungal properties, which is the antithesis of what greatly interests Macandal in the novel, “But now what interested Macandal most was the fungi”(18).

Chenopodium ambrosioides:Epazote

Chenopodium ambrosioides is known by a variety of names Epazote, Wormseed, and Mexican Tea. It is a small, herbal plant indigenous to Central America, South America, and Mexico.

Epazote is used as a medicinal plant for diarrhea, stomach pain, skin ulcers, and intestinal parasites. For diarrhea, stomach pain, and intestinal parasites the plant is made into a simple decoction and taken orally ranging from 1-2 drops for mild, 3-4 drops for moderate, and 5-13 drops for extreme cases.

Epazote is chemically broken down into the following: protein: 3.8%; fat: 0.7%, carbohydrates: 7.6%, fiber 1.3%, ash: 2.4%, calcium: 340 mg, phosphorus: 52 mg, iron 5.2 mg; carotene: 2420 mg, Thiamine: 0.06 mg, Riboflavin: 0.28 mg, Niacin: 0.60 mg, ascorbic acid: 11 mg.
Studies have indicated that the leaf extract of the plant administered 25 mg orally to rats with chemically grown ulcers reduced the number of gastric ulcers without changing the gastric fluid volume and stomach acid.

Now Epazote is a characteristically Spanish herb and its traces to the Caribbean go back to colonization as the herb is not native to the land so perhaps it was brought over and cultivated. While it was being cultivated it is obvious that people such as Macandal were responsible for experiment and research while working the land, discovering the plants uses, “One vine produced a rash, another made the head of anyone resting in its shade swell up” (18).

Carica papaya: Papaya

Carica Papaya- is the Papaya, which is a tree-like plant that bears fruit and is originally from the Americas specifically South America but it is now cultivated throughout regions that have temperate and tropical climates.

The papaya is used to for its antibacterial activity, anti-inflammatory effect both that control infection and speed up the tissue recovery.

The chemical breakdown of the papaya is the following: proteins: 1%; fat: 0.1%, carbohydrates: 6.2%, fiber 0.9%, ash: 0.6%, calcium: 38 mg, phosphorus: 20 mg, iron: 0.3 mg, Sodium: 7 mg, potassium: 215 mg; carotene: 15 mg, Thiamine: 0.02 mg, Riboflavin: 0.03 mg, Niacin: 0.30 mg, ascorbic acid: 40 mg.

Various studies have been conducted and posted on Tramil but we will concentrate on the most successful:
“The latex of green fruit protect against experimentally induced gastric ulcer and decreased acid secretion induced by intravenous histamine in the gastric fistula rat.”
“The ethanol extract of dried leaves to rats intraperitoneally, showed analgesic activity (20 mg / kg), anticonvulsant (20 and 100 mg / kg), skeletal muscle relaxant (50 mg / kg), positive chronotropic (200 mg / kg ) and reassuring (10 mg / kg) 29”.

The juice of the unripe fruit has shown a significant decrease in the following viruses: Bacillus cereus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Shigella flexneri and Staphylococcus aureus.
The papaya is a fruit tree that has various medical benefits in the roots, leaves, seeds, and the fruit itself. Discovering the medical benefits of each facet of the plant is a laborious and difficult process only a skilled scientist or someone who spent days at end analyzing, gathering, and observing plants can decipher the mystery. This profile perfectly fits Macandal who gathered all sorts of plants, “pods that burst at midday with the pop of a flea cracked under the nail; creepers that plaited themselves in slimy tangles far from the sun” (18).

Capsicum annuum: Pepper

Capsicum annuum-A small pepper plant usually an annual or commonly known as a pepper plant.

In Haiti the leaves are commonly used to aid inflammation and boils of the skin. The leaves should be applied for three minutes on the skin but taken away when reddening of the skin appears (although this is a normal reaction).

The chemical breakdown of the leaves contain clorogenic acid, flavonoids, alkaloids, cartenoides, and Vitamin C. The plant contains the following nutrients: 9.5%; proteins: 14.8%; greases: 13%; carbohydrates: 55.7%; fibers: 20.9%; ashen: 7%; mineral: calcium: 177 mg; match: 345 mg; iron: 23,6 mg. sodium: 34 mg; potassium: 2344 mg; caroteno: 36362 µg; thiamine: 0,64 mg; riboflavin: 1,74 mg; niacina: 15,32 mg; ascorbic acid: 71 mg.

A study conducted with 50 adults aged 30 and over in Haiti indicates that when the plant does bear the fruit or pepper it aids in digestion and flatulence of adults by 35%.
The pepper plant is native to Mexico and works well in hot and temperate climates and it spread rapidly throughout the rest of the world. Now as the Caribbean was part of European colonization it is an educated guess that this was part of the cash crops such as sugarcane and beet that were led to be cultivated on the islands. Therefore this plant could have been another medicinal lesson that Macandal would have explored thoroughly, “[He gathered] solitary bushes with furry leaves that sweated at night; sensitive plants that closed at the mere sound of the human voice” (18).

Canavalia ensiformis: Jackbean

Canavalia ensiformis is the jackbean which is used for animal fodder and originates from Brazil. It is a small shrub, when not handled properly can cause toxic results in humans.

The leaves are recommended to eat only when just shoots. But in Haiti this plant is primarily used for burns or skin irritation. The burns only applicable to the body’s surface and plant not to be used when burns are in sensitive areas such as the genitals.

The nutrient breakdown of the jackbean is : proteins: 22.5%; greases: 2.1%; carbohydrates: 63.8%; fibers: 27.4%; ashen: 11.6%.

The Jackbean although commonly used for animal fodder has some healing effects primarily concerned with burns but even then it is not widely used. In the novel, Macandal concentrates on plants that are a part of everyday life, the ones that are not noticed but must have some type of health effect as he discovers, “His hand gathered anonymous seeds, sulphury capers, diminutive peppers; vines that wove nets among the stones” (18).

Bixa Orellana-Achiote

Bixa Orellana-Achiote is a small tree that is indigenous to the tropical regions and according to Tramil it is harvested for its seeds, which are mixed into either syrup or fried into coconut oil to heal burns, sunstroke, headaches, and colds.

The seeds are harvested and are pounded to a fine powder than either mixed with syrup for oral consumption or most popular, with coconut oil and applied to the burn.

The breakdown of nutrients in the plant are Vitamin C: 0,05% proteins: 6,61% total sugars: 10,24% iron: 0,08%.

A study conducted by scientists describes Achiote seeds and leaves mixture producing an antibacterial effect against the viruses Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli13.
However, achiote can produce many toxic effects such as the oil of the seeds applied to adults can cause a chronic nettle rash.

As Achiote’s cultivation in Haiti is relatively unknown but the fact remains that this plant when not used carefully can cause detrimental effects and the only way to understand the effects are to experiment and this is exactly what Macandal does in The Kingdom of This World. His knowledge of plants allows him to create a poison to administer to the dog to test, “Macandal rubbed its muzzle with a stone that the juice of the fungus had colored a light yellow. The dog’s muscles contracted, its body jerked in violent convulsions, and it rolled over on its back, legs stiff and teeth bared” (20).

Beta Vulgaris-The Beet

Beta vulgaris or the beet is a plant in the amaranth family with the most recognizable being the red beet. The beet is also an old world plant and varieties of it have grown wild all over China, India, and the Mediterranean.

The beet’s medicinal properties are the following: asthenia or weakness, functioning of the liver, antibiotic, lessen cholesterol, and blood pressure.
According to the Tramil database during a controlled clinical trial 20 patients between the ages of 54-50 were administered 120 ml of beet juice for one month and at the end of the trial were shown to have lowered blood pressure and the hemoglobin count, count of leukocytes, and uric acid were shown to be below average levels compared to the group who was only administered syrup.

A breakdown of the beet shows the nutrients to be within the root, leaves and every part of the beet contains oxalic acid, which is a reducing agent thus its effects are more understandable. The most effective form is the juice. The juice is said to stimulate cellular respiration, metabolism, and normalizes liver function as the study on rats indicated.

The beet’s venture into the Caribbean can be attributed to sugar. Well before the 19th century sugarcane was a cash crop and during this century a German scientist had discovered the sugar beet, from which sugar could be extracted, thus it provides an alternative to the sugarcane. So it’s possible cultivation in the Caribbean could be related. Cultivation of cash crops such as the beet leads to a greater understanding of the plants by the slaves, who worked with the cash crops such as Macandal in The Kingdom of This World, “To his surprise he discovered the secret life of strange species given to disguise, confusion, and camouflage, protectors of the little armored beings that avoid the pathways of the ants” (17).

Allium sativum: Garlic

Allium sativum or garlic is also considered an old world plant and its origin is not fully figured out but it is thought it is descended from similar species of plants, Allium longicuspis which grows wild in southwestern Asia. When Garlic is broken down into its chemical state such as when being crushed, it releases allicin, which is strong antibacterial, antibiotic, and antifungal compound.

Garlic is known to have many medicinal effects in Haiti such as healing: nausea, flatulence, fever, parasitical intestinal infection, pain of molar teeth, lower acidity of blood, itching and infection of the skin, and hypertension. For nausea, flatulence, fever, parasitical intestinal infection, pain of molar teeth, lower acidity of blood, and itching/infection of the skin a decoction should be made with the bulb,1-6 oral drops three times a day is recommended. For itching/external infection of the skin and hypertension the bulb should be pounded and can either be taken orally or applied as a poultice to the affected area.

The breakdown of the bulb contains the following nutrients: 3.5% proteins, 27.4% carbohydrates, fibers: 0.7%; ashen: 1%; calcium: 18 mg; match: 88 mg; iron: 1,5 mg; sodium: 18 mg; potassium: 373 mg; caroteno: 0 µg; thiamine: 0,24 mg; riboflavin: 0,05 mg; niacina: 0,4 mg; ascorbic acid: 10 mg.
This information is also seen in the USDA nutrient database: thiamine 15%, riboflavin 7%, Niacin 5%, panthothenic acid 12%, vitamin B6 95%,Vitamin C 52%, Calcium 18%, Iron 14%, Potassium 9%, Phosphorous 22%,and Zinc 12%.

However, garlic does have powerful side effects primarily being halitosis so be careful!
Garlic is produced worldwide but since it grows wild in most of EuroAsia the leading countries are China, India, South Korea, Russia, and followed by the United States. Every state in the U.S. grows garlic as a cash crop except Alaska and the presumable reason it is in the Caribbean specifically Haiti since it is not indigenous to the land, would be colonizers who had brought it over as a cash crop to cultivate as it can be easily grown anywhere. Garlic is not mentioned Alejo Carpentier’s The Kingdom of This World but cultivation of cash crops is a driving force behind the plantation system, which is essentially slaves such as Macandal working the land. As the slaves are the ones working with the crops, it is to their advantage to learn and find the medicinal power within the plants, “Stretched out in the shade of a carob tree, … he foraged with his only hand among the familiar grasses for those spurned growths to which he had given no thought to before” (17).

Allium Cepa: The Onion BEGINNING

The onion is also an old world plant, which now comes in a variety of forms canned, powdered, and even cooked. But onion in Haiti is a valuable plant as it is known medicine to take care of a cold, osteoporosis, heart disease, and lessen inflammation and asthma. It is recommended to eat the onion raw, cooked, or to take full medicinal effects drink the juice. One remedy to lessen inflammation is to soak the bulb in water for one to two days, drink it orally if internally inflamed, or apply it to the inflamed skin directly.

The onion bulb has been studied and it has revealed that it contains essential principle oils according to the Tramil database. This data is seconded by the USDA nutrient database that breaks down these oils into even more specific nutrients: Vitamin B (4%), Vitamin B6 (9%), Vitamin C (12%), Phosphorous (4%), and Potassium (3%).

A study conducted by Tramil indicates that a blind study of 300 asthematic adults male and female administered 500 mg of oral drops of onion juice showed an 95% decrease in symptoms.
The onion has been cultivated for hundreds of years for its health benefits and this is a prime example of a everyday staple of the old world that has numerous healthful effects but has not been part of the major studies by the modern world until the early 2000s and as is indicated by the rise in production in the United States around 2005 (UN Food and Agriculture Organization).

This overlooking of indigenous knowledge is demonstrated by the following quote in Alejo Carpentier’s The Kingdom of This World in which Macandal is designated to field work by the master little does the master know the power that lies in the relationship between man and land, “As he watched the slow scattering of the herd grazing knee-deep in clover, he developed a keen interest in the existence of certain plants to which nobody else paid attention” (17). Macandal’s sudden interest in his surrounding is due to him spending most of his work time there and this leads him to wield a strong and powerful relationship with the plants, studying, analyzing them to such an extent he develops an secret knowledge of medicinal plants that eventually becomes detrimental to the white master.