This Fidel Castro Voodoo Doll owes its origins to an old Cuban guy who sold Minutos out of a converted garage on southwest 27th avenue, in Miami.

I noticed a beaten up Fidel Castro Voodoo Doll with half a dozen rusty pins sticking out of his chest and groin. I asked the old Cuban where he got it, and if he would sell it to me.

He told me it was created in Cuban in the late sixties by a group called El Instituto de Liberacion Vudu. Their mission was to use the power of Voodoo to overthrow Fidel Castro. They believed that if enough Voodoo dolls were put into enough hands, it would break the spiritual force field that allowed Fidel Castro’s to stay alive.

He told me that a couple of dozen dolls were printed and sewn in secret, using strips of stolen military uniforms. The strings were dipped in goat blood during a Santeria ritual. The Instituto planed to make seven thousand dolls, which is the number they believed necessary to take down Castro. Unfortunately, someone ratted out the group. Some members of the Instituto were executed, some disappeared, others escaped to Miami.

He was really depressed that it was 1971 and Castro was still alive. He offered to give me the doll, if I agreed to make more and get them distributed.

The Fidel Castro Voodoo Doll you see before you is the result of that meeting.

With some friends I organized a new Instituto de liberacion Vudu. We produced about a hundred dolls and spread the word. I gave some to family members and friends, and placed an announcement in Vanidades, a Cuban magazine.

But within days of publication, I received death threats from a group called Alpha 66. They threatened to kill me and my family if I didn’t immediately cease and desist. It wasn’t worth risking my life over.

That was more than 35 years ago. I don’t know how many still exist. For all I know, Fidel Castro may have one on his nightstand. What I do know is that they are extremely rare, and impossible to find.

You can get the Fidel Castro Voodoo Doll, and a copy of the surviving scrap of the Instituto de liberacion Vudu announcement in Vanidades magazine.

Kadi Patta leaves are aromatic herbs that are a necessary ingredient in many Indian and Thai recipes. They add a subtle, delicious flavor to any curry dish, and can be added to a variety of sauces.

In Ayurvedic Medicine –practiced by more than a billion Hindus and others, the Kadi Patta Plant is prepared as a natural remedy for:

  • Constipation
  • Nausea
  • Vomiting
  • Indigestion
  • Flatulence
  • Insect bites
  • Skin Problems
  • Cataracts
  • Burn Wounds
  • Diabetes
  • Lung Cancer
KADI PATTA
I have a small, boutique nursery where I grow a variety of succulents, cactus, adeniums and exotic plants such as the Kadi Patta -- the Indian Curry Plant.
Don't mistake the Kadi Patta plant, which is commonly called a Curry Tree,with the actual curry spices that are used in Indian Cuisine.
We grow hundreds of succulents and cactus. Some are for sale.
Some websites I created in a desperate attempt to support my creative endeavors: