The Garifuna Heritage Foundation and the Coordinating Committee of the Garifuna International Conference held a Media Conference yesterday morning at the Peace Memorial Hall to update the media and the general public about the establishment of the International Garifuna Conference to be held here on March 10th to 13th.
According to President of the Garifuna Heritage Foundation, David “Darkie” Williams the International Garifuna Conference was launched in early January and is geared towards the establishment of an International Garifuna Research Center. Williams said information on Garifuna Heritage and Culture will be stored in the Centre and disseminated from there. He disclosed that they are working towards receiving ideas of how this Centre is to be formulated and the ideas will be received through the medium of the Conference.
Williams said while there are other Garifuna Centers in other countries, this Center is going to be an international one and a Center of this magnitude should be housed in St. Vincent and the Grenadine because SVG is the ancestral home of the Garifuna. He said they are hoping to create a semblance of a Garifuna Village during the four days of the Conference.
Williams said they have received immediate responses for the Conference from Garifuna Committees outside of St. Vincent and the Grenadines and that there will be local and international presentations at the Conference. He noted that the persons that came forward are persons who have a keen interest in the culture.
The Foundation President noted that the Garifuna Culture was eliminated as there were laws that prohibited the culture. Williams said the Garifuna Culture is not popular in SVG and that only certain aspects of it have been practiced but in an unconscious way. He said the public will be enlightened about the culture through the Center. He said that Garifuna Heritage Foundation has made progress for its ten years existence and has been doing a lot in sensitizing the public about the Culture. Williams noted that the process has been slow and deliberate because they do not want persons to think that anything could pass for Garifuna Culture.
Chairperson of the International Garifuna Conference, Mike Browne said they are creating history through the establishment of the Garifuna Centre and the hosting of the Conference since it is the first time they are having a Garifuna Conference like this one anywhere in the world. Browne noted that through this Conference they are hoping to have an impact on all facets of the society. He said they are looking at the possibility of placing Garifuna Language and Culture into the education system.
Browne said Garifuna culture can impact our economy should we recognize the uniqueness of SVG as a tourism package. Browne said we are not using our culture to advance economically noting that most countries that have advanced economically have used their history.
He said the Garifuna Culture is distinct and there needs to be a nexus between Tourism and Garifuna so we can sell a unique package. He noted that UNESCO has declared Garifuna as a masterpiece of intangible heritage and it is important for us to retrieve this Culture. Browne said they are inviting the entire Parliament to the Conference as it has to be embraced in a non-partisan way. He stated it is a national undertaking and the Centre will be the vehicle to carry forward the work.
There will be a Garifuna Market Place, Art and Cultural Exhibition and Film Series pertaining to Garifuna Heritage and Culture at the Conference. At the Conference there will be presenters from Dominica, Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Martinique, Mexico, Honduras, Belize, USA and host country St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Persons who are interested in attending the conference can visit the Conference website at www.garifunaresearchcenter.org.
The year 2012 marks 215 years since the expulsion of the Garifuna from the island of Yurumei, the Ancestral Homeland, (presently known as St. Vincent and the Grenadines), to Roatan , Central America. This traumatic event binds the Garifuna in Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Belize ,the United States and other parts of the world with Yurumei , with their culture and with each other. Over time, the links between the Garifuna people in the diaspora and those in St. Vincent have slowly been forged and continue to be strengthened.
May 8th, 2011 also marked ten years since the Garifuna Heritage and Culture was declared by UNESCO as a Masterpiece of the Intangible Heritage of Mankind. The Garifuna culture, having made a tremendous contribution to the economic, social and political landscape of Central America and the Caribbean, has attracted researchers at Universities and other Institutions worldwide in the fields of anthropology, history , archaeology and music among others. However, this research is not easily accessible to the Garifuna people themselves, nor is much of it physically available to the general public for the purposes of informing Education Policymakers, cultural practitioners, social activists, students and other researchers.
The Garifuna Heritage Foundation, an organization based in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, is establishing the -International Garifuna Research Center (IGRC)to address this issue . IGRC will collect and maintain physical and virtual copies of all existing Garifuna arts, craft & technology, source documentation – in all formats – of existing published and unpublished research on the Garifuna Heritage and Culture, promote and conduct further research into the Garifuna Heritage and Culture and related aspects; design and implement projects and programmes to ensure that the information gathered is disseminated through various media locally, regionally and internationally in particular to Garifuna people and communities.
TGHF will be hosting an International Conference, Art & Culture Exhibition, Film Series and Garifuna Marketplace in Kingstown, St. Vincent and the Grenadines from March 10th-14th, 2012, to share ideas, examine issues , forge networks and strengthen global links to support the Center’s development .
We are inviting participation in this important conference through the presentation of papers on topics that focus on research conducted on the Garifuna Heritage and Culture by scholars, practitioners and cultural activists engaged in regional and international development. We will consider all proposals for papers. Papers may include those presented at previous Conferences, Seminars or workshops. Papers may be presented in English or Spanish, however a written translation of the paper into English should be provided.
Subjects may include but are not limited to the following :
Garifuna Identity:
• What roles do civil society and political organizations play in the construction of a Garifuna identity in the various nation states where Garifuna reside? ; The issue of Yurumei as an Ancestral Homeland and its significance to Garifuna people internationally; Exploring the Vincentian component of the Garifuna Heritage and Culture; The Garifuna within the context of the Indigenous Peoples Movement regionally and internationally – do we fit?; Researching and writing Garifuna History –
Garifuna Cultural Manifestations as Living Heritage:
• Exploring practical modalities for promoting the Garifuna Culture in St. Vincent and the Grenadines; Public Policy and Practical realities relating to Education and culture pertaining to the Garifuna culture; Has craft and practical skills training in Garifuna craft been meaningfully incorporated into development planning for the benefit of Garifuna communities?; How has Garifuna music impacted on the youth and on non-Garifuna persons? Have the Garifuna cultural manifestations- Visual Art, Music, Dance, Spirituality, been economically exploited internationally and if so, for whose benefit? Documenting of the Garifuna Cultural Manifestations using visual arts- Issues and challenges;
The Socio-Political and socioeconomic dynamics of the Garifuna Culture
• Preservation of land rights and rights to Sacred Places – Land Issues confronting Garifuna People; Organising Garifuna Communities – tradition vs academia- practical methods and success stories; What support and new challenges emerge from the mobilization of Garifuna within the context of the Indigenous Peoples movement , the AfroDescendants movement or other socio-political movements; How is the social media as well as the electronic and print media informing and impacting Garifuna community mobilization?
The UNESCO Declaration – Ten Years after – Review, Refocus , Renew
• Review and analysis of the impact of the UNESCO Declaration on the Garifuna Communities , Institutions internationally and the Garifuna Heritage and culture generally ; Administrative and Organizational opportunities and Challenges in the development of sustainable institutional platforms for strengthening the work of Garifuna organizations and communities; Developing the virtual village – building the basis for growth and development of Garifuna communities over the next ten years.
As part of the event we are including a series of Garifuna Film/documentary screenings. We are inviting Film producers and documentalists to screen their work during the event. We are also inviting Painters, sculptors, Photographers and other artists who have works with a Garifuna theme to exhibit their work. As part of the networking objective of the Event, Garifuna Organizations, Garifuna Community Groups and institutions are also invited to showcase their programmes, projects and work.
Papers: Participants interested in submitting Papers are asked to submit an Abstract of no more than 300 words and a one-page biography , including Mailing address, Presentation Format, Email address(es) Telephone contacts/phone, and fax number(s) and skype addresses by email to Lucinna Poyer, IGRC Conference Secretariat, at yurumeiconference@gmail.com by January 31st, 2012 . Papers must keep to a reading time of 15 – 20 minutes (approximately 7 – 8 pages). Participants can submit Papers which have a Practice focus , which describes exemplary practices or programs in the community and which may take the form of a case study, demonstration or technical report. Presentations may also be based on the reporting of original research or on the general application of any theoretical framework.
Films: Participants interested in screening films/documentaries/videos with a Garifuna related content are also invited to do so. Kindly email a brief summary of the film/documentary/content to the above email address by January 31st, 2011.
Paintings: Exhibits of Paintings, sculpture and other Visual Arts with a Garifuna theme are also invited Interested persons should email the above address describing space requirements and numbers of paintings by January 31st, 2011.
Display Booths (Garifuna Marketplace): Garifuna Organizations, community groups , institutions and individuals worldwide who wish to showcase their work can apply to host a booth for such purpose. Individuals may also apply . Booths are limited and will be rented on a first come, first serve basis.
For more information , call 784-45-62124 or send an email to the above address.
Founded
2001
Location
Villa, St. Vincent and the Grenadines Kingstown, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
About
The Garifuna Heritage Foundation (TGHF) is an organisation formed in June 2001, that is dedicated to rebuilding and retrieving the Garifuna Heritage in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
Company Overview
The Garifuna Heritage Foundation (TGHF) is a non-profit organization geared towards the identification and promotion of the Garifuna Culture and Heritage in St.Vincent and the Grenadines. In recent times we have been playing a pivotal role in bringing to the forefront of the national debate on cultural matters this aspect of our National Heritage. The Organization was formed in 2001 and has in the…See more
Description
The Garifuna Heritage Foundation Inc. (TGHF) is an organization formed in June 2001 which is dedicated to rebuilding and retrieving the Garifuna Heritage in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. We are legally registered as a non profit company under the Company Act of the Laws of St. Vincent and the Grenadines and our membership of over two hundred persons is drawn mainly from persons in St. Vincent a…See more
Mission
1. To enhance, promote, protect, and coordinate activities between Garifuna people in St. Vincent and the Grenadines and other persons promoting the interests of the Garifuna Culture in the Caribbean, the USA and Central America.
2. To implement projects and programmes geared towards building a fund for the promotion of Garifuna cultural practices in St. Vincent and the Grenadines and the improvement of the socio-economic condition of communities in St. Vincent and the Grenadines which have significance to the preservation of the Garifuna people and Culture.
3. To mobilize the expertise and talents of diverse individuals int he Caribbean and elsewhere and to harness their creative energies in establishing and maintaining such funds geared towards promoting Garifuna cultural practices and traditions and improving the socio-economic condition of communities in St. Vincent and the Grenadines which have significance to the preservation of the Garifuna Culture
4. To promote activities which enhance interests in the history and anthropology of the Garifuna at a regional and international level.
5. To provide technical, advisory and other services aimed at integrating the Garifuna culture and experience into the Caribbean Civilization.
6. To maintain such Collections of printed, audiovisual and electronic materials, register and databases as will enable the Foundation to fulfill it’s mission.
7. To develop a supportive network of institutions which serve to promote and facilitate the dissemination and exchange of information on all matters affecting the Garifuna Culture.
Awards
Garifuna Heritage Award
(Garifuna Coalition Inc. USA )
Certificate of Merit
(Presented by Ruben Diaz Jr. President of the Borough of the Bronx)
Products
Institution Building Programme
Training and Development Programme
Public Education and Research Programme
Economic Sustainability Programme
Advocacy
Email
tghfoundationsvg@yahoo.com
Phone
1 784 456 2124
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