Exiled Wookiees celebrate Black Forest Day
On Vjun, home to perhaps the largest population of Wookiees-in-exile, Wookiees all over the galaxy gathered today to commemorate their families and comrades fallen in the Galactic Empire's brutal ethnic cleansing of Kashyyyk four years ago.
Wookiee males, females, and young were murdered indiscriminately in what remains the most vicious act of racial violence in living memory. Black Forest Day, a two-day event, is a recognized holiday in several jurisdictions and is observed at many locations where exiled Wookiees congregate. Though the day is similar in thought and form to what is called “Life Day”, its themes are decidedly darker.
Although the New Republic has since wrested control of Kashyyyk from the Empire, the rebuilding process is slow, and many exiled Wookiees remain unable to return to the forests of their home world.
On Vjun, we interviewed one Wookiee on the condition of anonymity about his thoughts on the holiday. “Today marked the fourth anniversary of Black Forest Day," he said, "a day remembering one atrocity out of many the galaxy seems to forget in these times of war. Four years ago, the Galactic Empire deemed it suitable to their amusement to commit genocide upon the Wookiee race; they have ruthlessly ravaged peaceful villages for their personal amusement, gassing innocents that were merely going about their day."
"All of this terror and devastation was in the name of their grotesque “Wookiee rugs”. The resulting terror was followed by years of “Twelve Colonies”, a defunct pro-imperialist government, oppression and then the New Republic oppression which continues to this day. I came to them with a request, to rebuild my village thinking the sundering which plagued us might finally be over. After an endless line of request and forwarding, the final answer was that I would not be allowed to return to my home world.”
“Wookiees were not allowed to live,” he continued, “as denying them their right to hunt, to build, and to grow was as much of a death sentence as outright murder. Many reluctantly have fled their beloved home world, but Wookiees are never truly comfortable away from their home world.”
Ceremonies on Black Forest Day typically involve preparing special alcoholic beverages, known as accarragm gyyrkurg. The drink, known for its highly concentrated alcohol content, varies from location to location because it is made only from what is naturally available. Fungus is the most common ingredient, but plants are used in cases where no safe alternatives exist. This beverage takes several months on average to produce; exceptionally zealous participants start production the previous Black Forest Day. Participants drink the beverage throughout the day, and in a special Dusk Ceremony they pour the remnants on the tallest tree available (preferably a wroshyr, if the populace are lucky enough to have procured one) to commemorate those lost in the purge. After Dusk Ceremony participants either return home for quiet contemplation and reflection or depart for The Hunt.
The second day is a celebration of continued life for all that remain, and of successes in the previous night's Hunt. Communal feasts, typically consisting of large quantities of a spicier rendition of Wookiee cuisine such as Xachibik broth, occur throughout the day. The second day ends in a parting ceremony: Spicy Wookiee Flat-biscuits and other alcoholic beverages are offered to living relatives who must return to their prior obligations away from home. Before the local day ends, participants sing a rhyme to ensure that the memory of the holiday and its purpose are always preserved.
This article was produced and written by the "Wookie Society Institute".
