GSEJ founding member, Dr. Anna Waldstein has published a new study, Cleansing and Building in Rastafari Healing in London: Health Sovereignty for a Hostile Environment, which explores how Rastafari herbalists in South London assert health sovereignty through traditional healing practices. Published in Medical Anthropology, this paper will be of interest to researchers studying the African Caribbean diaspora, alternative healing traditions, biopolitics, and urban ethnobotany, as it highlights how herbal medicine serves not only as a tool for physical healing but also as a form of resistance and self-determination.
Drawing on ethnographic research, the study examines how herbal remedies like ‘bitters’ and ‘roots tonics’ are central to Rastafari health practices. This research situates Rastafari healing within the broader concept of health sovereignty—the right of communities to define and control their own healthcare practices. For many African Caribbean migrants in the UK, Rastafari herbalism is not just about personal well-being but also about resisting structural barriers to healthcare. In a political landscape shaped by the UK’s ‘hostile environment’ immigration policies, access to NHS services is often restricted, making alternative healing spaces particularly crucial. By providing herbal medicine alongside holistic health and spiritual guidance, Rastafari herbalists create a knowledge commons that allows people to reclaim control over their health.
This study sheds light on the intersection of traditional medicine, migration, and health justice in contemporary Britain. It highlights the ways communities create and sustain their own health systems, emphasising that sovereignty over well-being is not just a medical issue but a deeply political one. Read the full article here.
(The feature image is taken from the article and features Ras Dida’s stall in Brixton Market.)