Kitchens and Constructions of Religious Subjectivity in Black Atlantic Traditions

In this conversation with Elizabeth Pérez, we explore her book Religion in the Kitchen: Cooking, Talking, and the Making of Black Atlantic Traditions. Dr. Pérez explains what drove her interests in the Lucumí tradition and how she became acquainted with her interlocutors at Ilé Laroye. We discuss her role in her fieldwork as a participant-observer and how her positionality as such alerted her to the importance of preparing ritual meals in the construction of religious subjectivity at Ilé Laroye. We also examine how gender roles are constructed and understood in and through the processes of preparing ritual sacrifices and the ways in which these constructions challenge traditional Western gender norms.