Columbus Caribbean Voice - Culture and History

This Month's Featured Caribbean Country

nospam@example.com (columbuscarib) — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 20:05:41 -0700

This Months 's Featured Caribbean Country: St. Kitts

Flag:
Catpital: Basseterre
Population:38,958 (July 2005 est.)
Size:261 Sq. km.
Language: English
Status: Independent September 19thOfficial Government Website:
US Embassy or Consulate:www.embassy.gov.kn Tourist Interest:Investment Information
News Papers: St Kitts and NevisImportant Date:August 6th, (Emancipation Day )September 17th (Heroes Day), September 19th (Independence day

If this is your country then share your spirit.

Chitown 1st Annual Jerk Fest : This Saturday June 7th

nospam@example.com (columbuscarib) — Fri, 30 May 2008 15:17:00 -0700

See larger Flyer here

It is official ! The Chitown Jerk Festival is now back on track for this ~~June 8th, 2008~~ This Saturday June 7th,

The Chicago Caribbean JerkFest is a celebration of authentic Jamaican Jerk in its various forms. “JERK” is a traditional Jamaican art of cooking thoroughly seasoned meat, spiced with pepper and smoked on pimento sticks. Food plays a central role in family life and traditions in the Caribbean and the cuisine of the Caribbean is like a cultural patchwork quilt. This festival will give the people of Chicago the opportunity to share in this cultural experience.

The first of its kind Chicago Caribbean JerkFest is strategically planned to launch Caribbean American Heritage Month (June 2008), and its goal is to help promote the cultural diversity of Chicago’s Caribbean population and promote the Caribbean in the Chicago area through a Jerk Cook-Off Competition, Cultural Displays, Live Entertainment, Domino Tournament, and the Kidz Fun Zone.

For JUST A TASTE OF WHAT TO EXPECT AT CHICAGO CARIBBEAN JERKFEST 2008

Log onto the official website http://chitownjerkfest.com//

Celebrating Marcus Garvey August 17th

nospam@example.com (Melafela) — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 07:05:00 -0700

Marcus Garvey was born August 17, 1884 in the Parish of St Anns Jamaica, West Indies. His legacy is one of immeasurable influence on the socio-polical consiousness of black people throughout the African Diaspora. In 1914 Marcus Garvey established the The Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA)

This movement, which moved it's base from Jamaica to Harlem New York has the distinction of being the largest ever organizational mass movement blacks in America. It is stated that any time during its peak it had 600,000 active members, by 1919 it has claimed over 2 million.

This is a prime example of the direct link between the Caribbean and the United States, particularly among peoples of African dissent. It also speaks to the fallacy of the idea that the designation of "black" is in reference only African Americans.

"Look for me in the whirlwind or the storm, look for me all around you, for, with God's grace, I shall come and bring with me countless millions of black slaves who have died in America and the West Indies and the millions in Africa to aid you in the fight for Liberty, Freedom and Life"-Marcus Garvey

Marcus Garvey's influence is still seen today and historically his impact is indelable. Malcolm X wrote that he attended UNIA meetings with is father as a child. The Black power movement and Black panther adopted the use the UNIA flag with its recognizable Red Black and Green.

This flag symbolizes the ongoing sentiment of black nationalism and has even been called the flag of black people , especially in the United States. It has been called the Pan-African flag, The Black Liberation flag and Black Nationalist flag.

Red: the blood that unites all people of African ancestry, and shed for liberation;
Black: Black people whose existence as a nation , though not a Nation-state is affirmed by the existence of the flag; and
Green: the abundant natural wealth of Africa.*

Martin Luther King stated "was the first man of color to lead and develop a mass movement. He was the first man on a mass scale and level to give millions of Negroes a sense of dignity and destiny. And make the Negro feel he was somebody."

Malcolm X's own father , with whom ,as a child, he used to attend UNIA meetings was an active follower of Marcus Garvey's teaching.

Musicians , particularly reggae musicians , particularly Rastafarians , refer to Marcus Garvey in song. Burning spear in particular released an album titled Marcus Garvey in 1975. Countless hip hop artist as well as even popular artist like Sinéad O'Connor continue to refer to Marcus in Song.

Marcus Garvey had one major goa.l for the UNIA which he stated in plain language even speeches.

"The Universal Negro Improvement Association stands for the bigger brotherhood; the Universal Negro Improvement Association stands for human rights, not only for Negroes, but for all races. The Universal Negro Improvement Association believes in the rights of not only the black race, but the white race, the yellow race and the brown race. The Universal Negro Improvement Association believes that the white man has as much right to be considered, the yellow man has as much right to be considered, the brown man has as much right to be considered as well as the black man of Africa. In view of the fact that the black man of Africa has contributed as much to the world as the white man of Europe, and the brown and yellow man of Asia, we of the Universal Negro Improvement Association demand that the white, yellow and brown races give to the black man his place in the civilization of the world."

*regarding the Black Liberation Flag of the UNIA (According to George Bornstein, however, Marcus Garvey included green in the design of the UNIA flag to symbolize the link between Black liberation and the struggle for Irish liberation.)

For more information See the following sites

Official Marcus Garvey Site

Official UNIA Site

Wikipedia

PBS

Watch Video documentary:

Jamaicans local and worldwide celebrate the independence of a nation

nospam@example.com (columbuscarib) — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 14:38:59 -0700

Jamaica first raised it's now well recognized flag on August 6th, 1962. "A bipartisan committee of the Jamaica House of Representatives designed the

Jamaican Flag which consists of a diagonal cross with four triangles placed side by side. The diagonal cross is gold; the top and bottom triangles are green; and the hoist and fly (side) triangles are black.

Symbolism

“The sun shineth, the land is green and the people are strong and creative” is the symbolism of the colours of the flag. Black depicts the strength and creativity of the people; Gold, the natural wealth and beauty of sunlight; and green, hope and agricultural resources. "-source "Jamaican Information services"

This year on Monday August 6th, Jamaican throughout the world will celebrate 40th anniversary its independence from England. In 1958, it had become a province in the Federation of the West Indies prior to attaining full independence after leaving the fedeartion in 1962.

Jamaica's sense of independence is only now begun. After years of colonial rule, hundreds of years of slavery until it's formal abolishment in 1838, Jamaica now looks forward to finally entering the world stage boundless and prosperous.

The spirit is felt in all areas of human endeavors, science, music, sports, world politics and economics.

Jamaicans here in Columbus and the rest of Central Ohio, will be celebrating with Jamaicans in the rest of the world !

Continue reading "Jamaicans local and worldwide celebrate the independence of a nation"

Bobo Ashanti: Rastafarians on a mission

nospam@example.com (columbuscarib) — Sat, 28 Jul 2007 17:26:00 -0700

This sect of Rastafarianism , identified by their turbans and robes have combined the mysticism inherent in rastafarianism with orthodox christianity and strong black nationalism

Life and Debt: The Caribbean in debt what is the solution ?

nospam@example.com (columbuscarib) — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 04:14:00 -0700

Life and Debt is an award winning documentary which offers intriguing commentary about the effect of globalizations on countries such as Jamaica. See the film and comment?