On
March 8th, when I entered the Mahalia Jackson School and was greeted
by my people who presented me and everyone else, with a ‘yellow folder’ which
depicts ‘Petroglyph drawings at Yambou’ and large prints “Promoting Cultural
Awareness”, I became more excited. Moving along the hallway, there were
faces from my distance past and the smiles were genuine, the hugs were warm and
sincere. One could feel the strength of “Chatoyer”, a feeling of Unity. In my
mind I clenched my fist “Yes! Let’s ‘aspire yet higher’ and reach for the moon
together”.
The
city of New York designated March the 8th as St. Vincent and the
Grenadines Cultural Day and a plaque commemorating this event was presented to
H.E. Ellsworth I. A. John, SVG Ambassador to the United States.
Brothers,
sisters, parents, children, patriots and friends of St. Vincent and the
Grenadines in the Canadian Diaspora. I felt proud of this, to see that we as a
people are recognized by the City of New York.
This inspired me to share with you a bit of my experience at the first
annual Symposium in North America for the people of SVG.
There
was a sense of belonging, a feeling of community accomplishment, the sky has no
limit attitude. This is the beginning of
a time that most, if not all of us living in North America have dreamt of.
The
message from H. E. Ambassador Ellsworth I.A. John started by saying “A
people united with a common goal can achieve much”. He went on saying, “ We
can make a difference. Today, we can rededicate ourselves to identifying fully
with the culture of the land of our birth, and to work to ensure its survival
in a world where important issues for small states like St. Vincent and the
Grenadines are largely ignored”
The program was reflective
of different elements of Vincentian history.
Throwing a bit of light on the arts in the North American Vincentian
community. Absent was Anthony Joyette,
Editor of Vincentian Poets 1950-1980 who was to speak on post war poets of St.
Vincent and the Grenadines.
The
symposium opened with the National Anthems of Canada sang by Sandra Bobb and
myself. Marell Ellis sang the United States anthem and the St. Vincent and the
Grenadines anthem was sung by J. Erlene Williams-King. Verna Arthur, the Chairperson
made the opening remarks followed by a very deep poem by Maxwell Haywood, “Come
Again Chatoyer”. In this poem, he beckoned the ‘spirit of Chatoyer’ to come
and re-live in us Vincy people. Listening to the poem sent shivers to my body.
Other
speakers were Honourable Cosmos Cozier - Consul General to New York and
Honourable Renee Baptise - Minister of Tourism and Culture who emphasized the
importance of reviving and maintaining an archive of our cultural past. Mr. Leroy Ellis, playwright who staged a short
skit written by himself. Mr. Franklyn
McIntosh, “Frankie” as he is popularly known among Vincentians spoke about the
contribution of the McIntoshes to the world of music in the Vincentian,
Caribbean and North American Diaspora.
He also gave an idea what music was like in the 1920s, 40s, 50s and 60s
when his father and uncles began their creation of a family tradition of
musicians. Yemi Ajamu Khensu
(Stephenson Michael) spoke about the Literary Arts.
There
were panel discussions on History, Literary Arts, Craft, Music and Drama, Dance
and Folklore. This was all brought alive in the late afternoon during the Grand
Finale performance before an audience of over five hundred spectators and
participants from Boston, Miami, Ottawa, Philadelphia, Toronto, Washington and
New York.
The audience was first taken on a journey
back to the times of our hero 'Chatoyer' with performance in the Garifuna
language and dances, followed by myself, who read "Caribbean Dawn"
one of my recent pieces, which took the audience back to those days of reliance
on the Fowl Cock crows; to remind us that it is the
dawn of the morning and the processes in getting ready with the dependence on
light of a small lamp. Chantal Butler, Henria Stephens and Aisha Hadaway,
three of our popular dancers from Toronto did some interpretive dancing
entitled “Back in Times” to the rhythms and lyrics of a medley of calypso
mixed, by Lord Kitchener. There was a feeling of euphoria and pride to look at
the culture conscious youths of Toronto expressing a sense of heritage.
Thanks to Mr. E. B. John, Consulate SVG Toronto and Mr. Clem Ballah, Consulate
Attaché for Economics and Trade also of Toronto for their support and
encouragement to the Vincentian community of Canada.
The day ended with a
Vincy dance at the Club Malika where we danced until the wee hours of Sunday
morning.
Taking part in the event was an
experience I would always cherish. It
shows that our Government is trying its endeavour to create traditions for our
Vincentian heritage. I feel symposiums and events as such would bring us as a
people in North America closer together. Kudos to the organizers. It would be
nice to see such meeting become an annual event where talent from St. Vincent
and the Grenadines is represented. I
hope you will not miss it next year. .
Written by Elma Gabriel
Send
your comments to: (elma.gabriel@sympatico.ca)
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