|
The
Garífuna Day Street
Festival is an outdoor event. Its objective is
to commemorate the exile of the Garífuna people from
Yurumein (the Island
of St. Vincent, in the Caribbean), to their
arrival in Central America, on April 12, 1797.
The commemoration's theme this year is "Garifuna
Bicentennial + 10 -Historic Past - Brilliant
Future."
Today, the
Garinagu, which refers to people of the
Garífuna culture, migrated from Belize,
Honduras, and Guatemala to various cities in
the United States including Los Angeles,
Chicago, New York and Miami. This community
of unknown survivors has brought with them
their language, their art, their food, and
their culture in an attempt to preserve that
which many have sought to destroy.
In Los Angeles, Garinagu Empowerment
Movement, known as G.E.M. (now inactive), worked to
raise awareness about the Garífuna culture
and created the annual Garífuna Day Street
Festival. Due to G.E.M. no longer
being active as an Organization, the 2007 street
festival will be produced by the Organization
that produces the "Biggest
Belizean 2 Day September Celebration",
Belize Cultural Foundation (BCF), under the
direction of Louis D. Reyes (Co-Founder
and former Vice President of G.E.M.).
The street festival always falls
on the Saturday closest to April 12th
because April 12th is officially sanctioned
as “Garífuna Day” in the city of Los
Angeles, thanks to the support of
Councilwoman Jan Perry and the hard work of
G.E.M. The Garífuna Day
Street Festival was created to celebrate the
last time Garinagu were together as one on
April 12, 1797, the day they arrived on the
island of Roatan. This festival presents
the best of the Garífuna community through
the displays of art, music, dance, and
cuisine.
Garifuna
Survival Today
The survival of
Garifuna culture
over the centuries is a testament to the
community’s strength of spirit. Despite the
experience of intense physical hardship and
strong acculturation pressures, the
Garifuna maintain a distinct identity embodied
in their unique language, religion and
traditions.
Today, the Garifuna population
is more vibrant and dynamic than ever. In
addition to their traditional communities along
the Caribbean coast of Belize, Guatemala,
Honduras and Nicaragua, approximately 100,000
live in the United States, where they continue
to maintain strong links with their homeland.
Though the Garifuna have survived years of
aggression, the struggle for survival continues. As they have done in
the past, the Garifuna intend to do today; continue the
preservation of their culture. Come
join the Garifuna Community in Los Angeles to not only celebrate A Historic Past,
but also lay the foundation for a Brilliant
Future.
|
