Garifunas to hold community gathering

On Sunday, November 7th, 2009, seven Garifuna communities will hold their first ever Community Gathering.

Participating at the Gathering will be representatives of Fancy, Owia, Sandy Bay, Greggs, Rose Bank, Rose Hall and Chateaubelair.{{more}}

The Community Gathering is being organized by The Garifuna Heritage Foundation and the Rose Hall Cultural and Development Organization. The main objective of the event will be to share knowledge, discuss ideas and formulate strategies for the promotion of the Garifuna culture and heritage. Participating groups will do cultural and other presentations on their Communities. The Gathering will be held under the theme: “Exploring Our Garifuna Heritage from Past Glory to Future Success” and will be facilitated by Brendon La Caille of the UWI Creative Arts Centre’s, Arts in Action Programme, based in Trinidad and Tobago, as well as Diane Roberts and Danielle Smith of Urban Inc. Productions, based in Canada.

It is scheduled to take place on Saturday, November 7, 2009, starting at 9:30 a.m. at the Rose Hall Community Centre.

Creative Arts for Social Action Workshop

This workshop was developed to demonstrate the importance and explore the use of all forms of art and performance to promote social action in indigenous communities and other social groups. This Workshop will be facilitated by Brendon La Caille of the UWI Creative Arts Centre’s Arts in Action Programme, based in Trinidad and Tobago, as well as Diane Roberts and Danielle Smith of Urban Inc. Productions in Canada. These regional and international facilitators have worked across Canada, the United Kingdom, Columbia, the Caribbean and Europe.

Some of the objectives are:

• To introduce Arts and Performance as a medium for social change

• To validate community arts such as dance, drumming, poetry etc. in general

• To develop an effective vehicle to reach the youth

• To introduce a methodology to explore the Garifuna Experience, particularly as it relates to the post exile

It is hoped that this workshop will help to profoundly enhance the artist’s life, leading them to find a new creative voice based in their ancestral and cultural traditions.

It will take place on Sunday, November 8, 2009, from 2:00 p.m until 5:00 p.m. at the UWI School of Continuing Studies, Kingstown. The workshop is free of cost and all artists are especially invited.

Symposium

The Garifuna Heritage Foundation will be holding a Symposium which will bring together local professionals, international and regional researchers, practitioners and Indigenous peoples with a common interest in Caribbean Indigenous issues. The theme of the Symposium is “FORGING CONNECTIONS, RE-ENVISIONING FUTURES: RE-FRAMING THE EXPERIENCES OF CARIBBEAN INDIGENOUS PEOPLES”.

The objectives of this event include:

• To broadly outline the critical theoretical frameworks within which research connected to Indigenous peoples has been framed to date

• To identify the organizations and institutions which have some specific interest in promoting research on Caribbean Indigenous people in general and the Garifuna in particular

• To contribute to the broader public formal and informal education process in St. Vincent and the Grenadines in relation to the importance of the relationship between Indigenous cultural issues and national development

• To commence the process of developing a Plan of Action for the hosting of an International Conference in 2010

This event will be held on Monday, November 9, 2009, from 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. at the Chamber of Industry and Commerce Conference Room.

For further information on any of these three (3) events, kindly contact the TGHF Office at 456-2124 or email: tghfoundationsvg@yahoo.com.