A Young Wayuu Journalist on the Essence of Wayuu Culture

A Young Wayuu Journalist on the Essence of Wayuu Culture

In March 2022, we met the young Wayuu woman Lina Michell Cuadrado Martínez in El Pájaro. At the time, she was still a student of Félix Montiel – today she studies journalism in Bogotá. She impressed us with her remarkable clarity and curiosity – and she already had an idea in mind: to document the Wayuu coming-of-age ritual “Majayüt”, also known as Encierro – the seclusion of girls during puberty – through interviews with elder women.

We were fortunate to accompany her on film. Lina directed the project herself: she asked the questions, led the conversations, and approached the subject in a way that was meaningful to her and her community. Her perspective reveals how central women’s roles are to the identity of the Wayuu – and how knowledge and traditions are passed down through generations.

Lina also wrote an article for the German-Colombian Friendship Association (DKF), available here (in German and Spanish only). In it, she describes how deeply womanhood, knowledge, tradition, and community are interwoven in Wayuu culture.

• Read Lina’s article in Kolumbien Aktuell No. 126 at DKF

Soon, we will also publish the interviews and footage recorded by Lina here on Dock Wayuu.