On the Miami Xombi Attack

Normally, I keep my deeper, more esoteric cultural references, practices, and beliefs recessed, and not so in the public eye. I answer any question posited, but more as informational, as I try and be objective. The major news story of a naked man in Miami, Florida, USA, who chewed the face off of his victim, even after he had been shot multiple times has triggered the “Zombie Apocalypse” meme. As a member of a culture that knows of xombis and has dealt with them for centuries, I feel the need to speak. I am dead serious in this essay, this is not satire, a joke, or a sales pitch.

Miami, Florida, is a slightly Anglicanized version of a Taino place name. The original is Mayani, or “waste-place”. There are several stories still told about Mayani, as it is a natural opening to Xibalba-Sorroya, the Underworld. Xombis and tormented and trapped souls are said to wander there, trying to find a way to Xibalba, so that they may find rest, and stop suffering. The fact that the Spanish and then retired Anglos and Khazars built a city on top of such a place is mind-blowing.

There are three main kinds of xombis- constructed, infectious, and surrendered.

Constructed xombis are made by members of Afro-Caribbean communities, most notably in Haiti and Cuba. They are captured people who are chemically and mechanically subdued, and turned into vassals by dark magicians called paleros or houngans. They use a combination of naturally-occurring substances to achieve these effects- fugu puffer-fish poisons, jimsonweed toxins, and various metal salts. These first cause a coma, which mimics death, and then a stupor, in which simple instructions can be followed. A dose of nagare or sea-salts and water will restore these xombis back to full humanity, as it counteracts the chemistry and dehydration. Paleros and houngans often use their xombis as attack dogs and as labor slaves. Being that the local cultures have been contaminated by monotheism, the traditional methods of prevention and healing have been largely forgotten, and have been replaced by fear of demons and a devil.


Infectious xombis suffer from encephalitis or meningitis. There is a high fever and swelling, followed by coma, and then, when the coma ends, there is sustained brain damage. Usually only the medulla oblongata and base functions are still intact, resulting in motor capabilities, but no cohesive or conscious functions. The disease can be caused by bacteria, viruses, or fungi. A particularly nasty form is caused by a mosaic-virus, sometimes incorrectly referred to as Solanum. Infectious xombis are aggressive, and will attack and bite without provocation. They can spread their infection to other living creatures through body fluids and wounds. These are the classic Romero xombis, shuffling, moaning, and animated. Unlike the Romero fantasies, these xombis are NOT “risen from the grave”, they are quite ill biologicals. Once the fever has caused coma, rehabilitation is almost impossible. The classic damage to the brain stem is the best way to stop these creatures, as it stops all motor function instantly, with the minimal amount of infectious splatter. A full outbreak of these xombis should last about 90 days until it subsides, offering care is given to prevent new infections in healthy individuals. The immune systems of those infected will be severely compromised, allowing that any injury sustained by the xombi will allow it to become overrun with normal bacteria, viruses, and fungi in the environment, which will quickly consume the xombi. There are also no infected “sprinters” past the first 48 hours, as there is no re-hydration or nutrition, and no way for the body to repair itself quickly. Waste removal also seems to be a problem in infected xombis, and they become septic quite rapidly.

Surrendered xombis are the most common, and are simply people who have given up their thinking and autonomy to outside sources. They are the true “walking dead”, as they are biologically alive, but have given up. Being the most populous kind, they are quite dangerous, and are subject to propaganda, mass panic, and hysteria.

I doubt that an encephalitic xombi would have been allowed to leave hospital grounds, especially while naked- I would hope that, even in Miami, someone would have noticed a missing intensive-care patient who was naked taking the elevator and wandering down Calle Ocho. There are also no reported meningitis/ encephalitis outbreaks in Florida currently, either viral, bacterial, or fungal. What we do have in Miami and South Beach are huge Cuban and Haitian communities, both of which have paleros and houngans. With increased narcotics, gangs, and poverty (massive foreclosures and homelessness) in the area, I believe our Miami xombi to be of the constructed kind, sent out as an attack animal to do a houngan's or palero's bidding, or even a possible escape from one of their stables. Many times constructed xombis are kept naked, so that they are quickly noticed if they wander. A contact in the local police shared with me that there are “dozens” of incident reports in Little Haiti and in the Cuban areas where “family” negotiate with cops not to arrest their naked, incoherent, and wandering “relative” back into their custody with no incident report or charges filed. Many times it is reported “they simply forgot to take their medication”, and NEVER are EMTs allowed to examine the xombi, nor are any medical treatments or modalities given or allowed. These two communities tend to be secretive, ignorant, and violent, and the police have heavily strained relations with both communities. The police will go along with the wishes of the community elders to keep some semblance of peace in these situations, not unlike the Hasidic immunity to the law in Brooklyn.

So before you go to your local gun shop and Wal-Mart to prepare for the Zombie Apocalypse, research into the ways actual xombis exist and function. As much as I love Romero and Max Brooks, they are entertainment and mythos, NOT reality. Don't panic, and don't go to Mayani. Ever.

- Joaquin 2 Cacimarex, Raymundo Rodriguez-Jackson, Sewaornock, New Paltz, NY, Manahatouac.