Roots Revival Project
The Apology Was Just Words. This Is the Healing.
How Roots Revival at Plantation Succour Is Breaking the Psychological Chains That Still Bind Sint Maarten
On December 19, 2022, the Dutch Prime Minister and on July 1, 2023 King Willem van Oranje stood before the world and apologized for 250 years of slavery. The words were carefully chosen. The cameras flashed. The news cycle moved on.
But here in Sint Maarten, on the terraced hillsides of Plantation Succour, the 300+ year old slave walls still stand. The soil still remembers. And our young people still refuse to farm.
“That’s slave work,” they say. “I’m not doing that.”
The chains are gone. But the prison remains—in our minds.
The Invisible Wound We Don’t Talk About
My great-grandmother, Victoria Madelaine Marlin-Benjamin, was born on April 10, 1893—just thirty years after emancipation. To her, slavery wasn’t ancient history filed away in textbooks. It was family memory, passed down through whispered stories and unspoken trauma.
“It felt like it happened last week,” she would say.
Victoria knew forty-seven medicinal plants by name, purpose, and preparation. She could tell you which leaf stopped bleeding, which root calmed fever, which bark eased pain. This wasn’t folklore—it was science, passed down through generations of enslaved Africans who had no access to doctors, no choice but to learn the land that imprisoned them.
Her knowledge was power. Her hands were skilled. Her wisdom could heal.
Yet when I ask young people in Sint Maarten today why they won’t farm, the answer is always the same: “That’s slave work.”
The psychological barrier is so deep, so pervasive, that we would rather import 90% of our food than touch the soil our ancestors were forced to till. We would rather face food insecurity, economic dependency, and hurricane devastation than confront the trauma that makes agriculture feel like humiliation.
This is the understudied impact of slavery that nobody wants to talk about: the mental chains are still locked tight, and they’re killing us.
The Deadly Cycle We’re Trapped In
Let me show you how this plays out in real time:
Youth reject farming → We import everything → Food costs skyrocket → Hurricanes destroy supply chains → Shelves sit empty for weeks → We rebuild, import again → Youth still won’t farm → The cycle repeats
After Hurricane Irma in 2017, Sint Maarten had no fresh food for weeks. Supermarket shelves were bare. Supply ships couldn’t dock. Families rationed canned goods and waited for international aid.
We have fertile land. We have year-round growing seasons. We have the knowledge—buried in family memory, waiting to be reclaimed.
But we won’t farm. Because farming means slavery. And slavery means shame.
This is what intergenerational trauma looks like. It’s not dramatic. It’s not visible. It’s just a quiet, persistent refusal that threatens our survival.
The Research Question Nobody’s Asking
At Stichting Marlin Yard, we’re asking the question that makes everyone uncomfortable:
Why does a community surrounded by fertile land choose to starve rather than farm?
And more importantly: How do we transform “slave work” into empowerment?
This isn’t just about agriculture. It’s about psychology. It’s about healing. It’s about breaking mental chains that are just as real as the iron ones our ancestors wore.
We’re studying: – How historical associations with forced labor create persistent economic barriers – What methodologies can effectively transform trauma into empowerment – The role of heritage preservation in community psychological healing – How technology and entrepreneurship can shift perceptions of agricultural work – Whether reframing farming as “innovation” rather than “tradition” changes youth attitudes
This is living laboratory work. We’re not writing academic papers in isolation—we’re implementing solutions in real time at Plantation Succour, measuring what works, documenting what doesn’t, and building a replicable model for post-colonial agricultural transformation.
Because an apology without research is just words. And research without action is just papers.
We’re doing both.
Plantation Succour: Where Trauma Meets Transformation
Walk with me through Plantation Succour at The Keys, Sint Maarten.
The slave walls wind through the hillside like ancient scars—volcanic stone stacked by hands that bled, backs that bent, spirits that refused to break. These walls date back to 1648, built by enslaved Africans to terrace fields for crops they would never profit from.
Every stone in these walls was laid by someone who prayed for freedom they would never see.
We could tear them down. We could let the jungle reclaim what pain built. We could pretend the past doesn’t exist.
But we choose something harder. We choose to transform.
The Roots Revival Project is restoring these walls—not as museum pieces, but as working agricultural infrastructure. The same terraces that once grew crops for colonial profit will now grow food for community empowerment.
We’re creating historical educational gardens that show the evolution of Caribbean agriculture from 1648 to today: – The crops enslaved Africans were forced to grow: sugar cane, cotton, indigo – The survival crops they grew for themselves: sweet potatoes, yams, cassava, pigeon peas – The medicinal plants they cultivated in secret: aloe vera, tamarind, moringa, the herbs Victoria knew by heart – The modern sustainable crops we’re introducing: climate-resilient varieties, permaculture systems, organic methods.
We’re building hiking trails along these heritage walls so that locals, school groups, and visitors can walk where our ancestors walked—but this time, as free individuals.
We’re establishing community composting systems where neighbors bring food scraps and yard waste, transforming it into rich soil for the gardens. Waste becomes life. Trauma becomes healing.
And we’re training young people in agricultural entrepreneurship—not as farmhands, but as innovators, business owners, and climate heroes.
From “Slave Work” to Sacred Work: The Mindset Shift
Here’s what we’re not doing: We’re not asking young people to become their ancestors.
Here’s what we are doing: We’re inviting them to honor their ancestors by continuing the work—but this time with dignity, technology, choice, and profit.
The transformation strategy is multi-layered:
1. Technology Integration We’re introducing drones for crop monitoring, hydroponic systems for water efficiency, mobile apps for farm management, and digital marketing for product sales. When farming looks like innovation, it stops feeling like the past.
2. Entrepreneurship Focus Through our Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program, young farmers aren’t just growing food—they’re running businesses. They set prices, manage customers, build brands, and earn sustainable income. When farming generates wealth, it stops feeling like oppression.
3. Cultural Reclamation We’re teaching that Victoria’s knowledge of forty-seven medicinal plants wasn’t ignorance—it was science. That our ancestors’ ability to grow food in harsh conditions wasn’t submission—it was genius. That agricultural skill isn’t a mark of slavery—it’s a superpower.
4. Climate Heroism We’re reframing farming as the ultimate act of resistance: “You’re not just growing tomatoes. You’re saving your island from climate disaster. You’re feeding your people when hurricanes hit. You’re breaking dependency on foreign imports. You’re a freedom fighter with a hoe.”
When a young person plants a seed in soil their great-great-grandmother tilled, something sacred happens.
The chain breaks.
Food Security Is Freedom
Let me be blunt: An island that can’t feed itself isn’t free.
Sint Maarten imports over 90% of our food. We are one Category 5 hurricane away from starvation. We are one global supply chain disruption away from crisis. We are completely, dangerously, unnecessarily dependent.
And the cruelest irony? We have the land. We have the climate. We have the knowledge buried in family memory.
We just won’t use it. Because of trauma from 1648.
The Roots Revival Project is building food security through:
– Community garden plots providing fresh produce for 100+ families
– CSA programs connecting local farmers directly with consumers
– Hurricane-resistant farming techniques ensuring food access during disasters
– Seed saving and crop diversity reducing dependency on imported seeds
– Youth agricultural training creating the next generation of food producers.
Every tomato we grow here is an act of resistance against dependency.
Every young person who chooses farming is breaking a chain.
Every meal sourced locally is freedom tasted.
Healing Happens in the Soil
There’s something deeply therapeutic about putting your hands in earth your ancestors worked.
We’re seeing it happen in real time at Plantation Succour:
Elders teaching youth the medicinal plant wisdom passed down through generations—the same knowledge Victoria carried, now being reclaimed with pride instead of shame.
Community members composting together, transforming waste into life, building something collectively that no one could build alone.
School groups walking the heritage trails, learning that the people who built these walls weren’t just victims—they were survivors, innovators, resisters.
Young people planting seeds in terraced plots and realizing: “My great-great-grandmother did this. She kept us alive. That’s not weakness. That’s power.”
You can’t heal what you won’t touch.
For too long, we’ve avoided the land because it carries pain. But avoidance isn’t healing—it’s just prolonged suffering.
Healing happens when we return to the soil, acknowledge what happened there, and choose to transform it.
The walls remember everything. The soil holds all the tears, all the blood, all the prayers.
And now, finally, it’s holding seeds of freedom.
The Apology Isn’t Enough: We Need Action
On December 19, 2022 AND on July 1, 2023, the Netherlands apologized for slavery. We heard you. The words mattered.
But words without investment are performance, not reparation.
To Dutch leadership: You acknowledged the past. Now fund the healing. Support agricultural transformation projects in former colonies. Invest in psychological research on post-slavery trauma. Back food security infrastructure that builds true independence.
Apologies cost nothing. Healing costs investment. Show us the apology was real.
To Sint Maarten government: Food security is national security. Prioritize local agriculture in policy. Fund youth training programs. Protect heritage sites like Plantation Succour. Make farming economically viable again.
To the Caribbean diaspora: This is your heritage. Your ancestors. Your responsibility. Reconnect with the land your family was forced to leave. Fund the healing of your homeland. Visit with purpose, not just for photos.
To everyone reading this: You have a choice. You can scroll past. You can feel sad for a moment and move on.
Or you can be part of the healing.
How You Can Help Break the Chains
This work can’t happen without you. Here’s how you can contribute:
Donate to Roots Revival
Every contribution directly funds:
- Restoration of heritage slave walls
- Creation of historical educational gardens
- Youth agricultural training programs
- Community composting infrastructure
- Research on psychological transformation
Donate here: Donate Now
(Note: Stichting Marlin Yard is currently applying for ANBI status; donations are not yet tax-deductible)
Volunteer at Vicky’s Keys
Come be part of the transformation. Restore the walls your ancestors built. Plant the seeds of freedom. Learn the medicinal plants Victoria knew.
Meaningful travel packages available: Explore Packages
This isn’t tourism—it’s healing work. It’s nation-building. It’s breaking chains.
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The more people who understand this psychological barrier, the more support we can mobilize. Share this article. Tag political leaders. Demand government funding. Amplify the message.
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Full Roots Revival Project Details
The Land Remembers. Will You?
The slave walls still stand at Plantation Succour. The soil still waits. Our ancestors’ hands built these walls. Their sweat fed the land. Their prayers rose from this earth.
They couldn’t choose. We can.
They were enslaved. We are free.
They were silenced. We can speak.
Every seed we plant is an answer to their prayers.
Every young person who farms is a chain broken.
Every meal we grow ourselves is freedom tasted.
On December 19,2022 and July 1, 2023, the Netherlands apologized. We heard you.
Now we’re asking: Will you help us heal?
Will you fund the research that transforms minds?
Will you support the project that feeds bodies?
Will you invest in the healing that breaks chains?
The apology was just words. This is the work.
Roots Revival isn’t just a project. It’s a movement. It’s healing. It’s survival. It’s freedom.
The land is waiting. Our ancestors are watching. The future is ours to grow.
Will you help us plant it?
Cee Marlin is the founder of Stichting Marlin Yard and the visionary behind the Roots Revival Project at Plantation Succour, Sint Maarten. As a descendant of Victoria Madelaine Marlin and a leader in sustainable development and heritage preservation, Cee is dedicated to transforming colonial trauma into community empowerment through agriculture, education, and psychological healing.
For partnership inquiries: info@marlinyard.org