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Garifuna Council announces activities for Garifuna Settlement Day

Garifuna Settlement Day falls on Saturday, November 19th this year, and the National Garifuna Council (NGC) San Pedro Branch has launched several events that will be held to commemorate their culture and heritage. With the assistance of Foreva Fancy Boutique and the San Pedro Roman Catholic Church, the events will serve to promote and raise awareness on the rich Garifuna culture. This year's celebrations are being held countrywide under the theme "R�siti, P�ntati, Gabafuti, I�nrahowa meme la Rich, Proud, and Powerful, let us continue to preserve it."

Have you ever wanted to indulge in cultural cuisine like boil up or hudut, or even delicious sweet potato pound? Your opportunity is here, as the NGC San Pedro Branch will be hosting a food expo on Saturday, November 12th at the Central Park. All are invited to come out and support the council by purchasing these staple Garifuna meals and desserts.

On Sunday, November 13th, the council will partake in their spiritual devotion by hosting a Garifuna Mass at the San Pedro Roman Catholic Church (SPRCC). The Garifuna Choir will be present to help praise and worship at this event.

Another cultural show is scheduled to take place on November 18th, at a location yet to be determined. Following this show, there will be a dance to set the tone for Garifuna Settlement Day with Punta Boys and the Caribbean Kings.

A reenactment of the first Garifuna settling in Belize will take place on Saturday, November 19th at the Central Park. Afterwards, the council will parade around the town's core, with live cultural music with the dominate sound of drums, and punta dancing.

This year will mark the 73rd year of Garifuna Settlement Day being observed as a public holiday, as well as the 184th anniversary of the Garinagu's arrival to Belize.

Click here to read the rest of the article and see more photos in the San Pedro Sun


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National Garifuna Council San Pedro Branch begins Settlement activities

Garifuna Settlement Day is slated for Saturday, November 19th, and the National Garifuna Council San Pedro Branch (NGCSPB) began their celebratory activities on Saturday, November 12th and Sunday, November 13th.

Residents enjoyed a 'Food Expo' at the Central Park on November 12th. From 12PM to 3PM, council members sold their traditional foods and desserts to the public. Delicious hudut, fish sere, boil up, and even sweet potato pudding was available for the purchase, all while the unique sounds of Garifuna music.

Later that night at 8:30PM, hundreds of individuals converged at the Central Park on November 12th for Foreva Fancy Boutique's exclusive, "Culture Meets Modern Fashion" fashion show. President of the NGCSPB, Alex Noralez welcomed guests, leading them in a special Garifuna prayer. Master of Ceremonies Phillip Ramsey invited the crowd to experience the rich Garifuna culture through music, clothing and faith. For musical entertainment, the council performed live drumming with maracas and turtle shells. The Garinagu have several varieties of dance, and two forms were displayed by the San Pedro Dance Academy during intermissions.

On Sunday, November 13th, the NGCSPB held a Garifuna Mass at the San Pedro Roman Catholic Church at 10AM. The mass was certainly a celebration of the culture, with the council dressed in their traditional clothing celebrating mass. The Belize City Garifuna Choir sang to the rhythm of the Garifuna drums, adding a wonderful cultural touch to Sunday mass in San Pedro.

Click here to read the rest of the article and see LOTS more photos in the San Pedro Sun



Garifuna Language and Dress

Belizean children learn a bit about Garifuna language and attire via Adele Ramos


Dia de Garifuna Livingston Guatemala

Take a look at Garifuna Settlement Day celebrations in Livingston, Guatemala (2013).


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Marty Offline OP
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Video: GARIFUNA SETTLEMENT DAY COMMEMORATION

on Open Your Eyes....


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Beautiful Garifuna Settlement Day in Southern Belize: Hopkins and Dangriga

On Friday, I headed out EARLY from San Pedro to Hopkins in Southern Belize to celebrate Garifuna Settlement Day. A holiday to honor the Garifuna culture - one special culture out of many in this tiny country.

I set out at 5am�got to the municipal dock and�there were about 10 people there. Not the HUGE celebration I had envisioned. LUCKILY some folks I know from San Pedro pulled up and made a quick call - let's all drive the 20 mins to Dangriga.

We were off. And what I found was a huge crowd that had been partying all night long�and a boat arrival that happened about 1 hour late�

The procession started with two dug-out dories. Probably the same boats the original Garifuna settlers used. And it was followed by twirling motor boats entering the rivers mouth.

Click here to read the rest of the article and see more photos in the San Pedro Scoop


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Ambergris Caye celebrates Garifuna Settlement Day

On Saturday, November 19th, Ambergris Caye joined the countrywide celebration of Garifuna Settlement Day. Under the theme 'Risiti, Pantati, Gabafuti, Funrahova, meme la (English: Rich, proud, and powerful, let us continue to preserve it) the local branch of the National Garifuna Council (NGC) San Pedro branch held several activities ranging from cultural presentations and drumming, to the re-enactment of the arrival of the Garifuna people to Belize.

This year's island activities started on Friday, November 18th. People gathered at the Central Park shortly after 8:30PM to observe the festivities. During a short ceremony, President of the NGC Alex Noralez welcomed everyone to the event and thanked them for their continued support. He invited all attendees to join in the celebration and enjoy the show. Mayor Guerrero also delivered a few words, expressing the town council's support for the local Garifuna community, and wishing everyone a happy Garifuna Settlement Day. Immediately after, the audience was entertained with several dance presentations. Garifuna dancers delighted everyone with traditional Paranda, Chumba, Hunguhhunguh, Bow-le-le and Punta dances. A non-stop drumming session followed, which merged with the live performance of Caribbean Kings and Punta Boys. The crowd stayed to celebrate until the wee hours of the night, bringing in the 19th with much merriment and fun.

Early in the morning of the 19th, the traditional 'Yurumei' took place; this is the re-enactment of the arrival of the Garifuna to Belize. The singing and drumming of the group could be heard clearly as they reached the beach via boats. Upon disembarking, the group marched towards to the San Pedro Roman Catholic Church for a mass of blessing. Shortly after, a parade took place through the main streets of San Pedro town. Many residents came out of their homes to take a look as the group paraded by singing and drumming.

Click here to read the rest of the article and see more photos in the San Pedro Sun



Happy Garifuna Settlement Day 2016

Click photos for more pictures!


215 years of Garifuna presence in Belize

2016–Garifuna communities across Belize as well as those overseas marked a milestone on Saturday, November 19th in celebrating an enduring movement that has grown from a local celebration birthed in Dangriga in 1941 led by Garifuna icon Thomas Vincent Ramos to a cross-border celebration which serves to connect people even outside the Garifuna culture.

The focal point for the celebration is still the culture capital of Dangriga, but local celebrations were also held in places such as Belize City and Orange Walk, and overseas communities like New York.

Perhaps the most notable shift that is now clearly evident in 2016 is the mixture of the traditional with the contemporary; paddles are replaced by outboard motors and traditional Garifuna drummers are showcased alongside marching bands, depicting how the rich Garifuna culture continues to find an unparalleled place in a changing world, echoing the UNESCO declaration celebrating the culture as "a masterpiece of the oral and�intangible heritage�of humanity."

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In this year's Dangriga parade, young people featured prominently. National security forces such as the police and the military are often staffed by Garinagu, and members of the police and Belize Defence Force marched alongside children of the Pomono Police Cadet, who showcased the cultural colors of yellow, white and black.

The annual reenactment of the Yurumein in celebration of Garifuna Settlement Day in Belize and the attendant festivities are not just significant to the Garifuna nation and the diaspora, but also to the nation of Belize, since it cements the fact that the British-and not the Spanish rulers of this sub-region-were the ones administering the lands now known as Belize even before the 1859 treaty between Britain and Guatemala, despite controversy in Guatemala over that age-old accord.

When the Garinagu migrated in waves to Belize's shores in the 19th century, they were seeking refuge from Spanish rule, and there was an explicit acknowledgement that they were seeking succor from persecution, marginalization and attempted genocide when they voluntarily came under the flag of the British, despite the 1797 exile by the British from Yurumein/St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

What had happened in the interim was an unsuccessful attempt by the British to get the Garinagu to fight in the Battle of St. George's Caye, suggesting that an alliance began to be formed a few years after the St. Vincent exile of 2,248 Garinagu. It is against this backdrop that the move to what is now known as Belize came.

The first historical milestone was 1801, when seafaring Garinagu who were living in Honduras, and who traveled the coast back and forth to Mexico, were offered temporary stays of two days at Yarborough in Belize City. In 1802, the first wave of migration was allowed by the British, and 150 were allowed to stay at Yarborough that year.

In speaking at official ceremonies on Saturday, November 19, 2016, in Dangriga marking the 193rd anniversary of the arrival of Garinagu to the town revered as the country's culture capital, Opposition Leader Johnny Brice�o said: "For us in Belize, one of the most profound occurrences in our nation's history occurred in 1802, with the arrival of the first Garinagu who came here tired from their travels, having been cast out from their homeland�"

Brice�o added that, "�three decades later, a second and larger group would join them on these shores on a bright November day - a day we all celebrate now as Garifuna Settlement Day. In the many days since that historic day - many trumped up the courage of their ancestors to fulfill their dreams to build Belize not only for themselves but for all of us."

The second and more notable wave came in 1823, when it is reported that 300 settled in Dangriga, 125 in Punta Gorda, 28 in Seine Bight, and the rest elsewhere in southern Belize. At the time, the Yarborough Garifuna population had reportedly grown to 375, bringing the total population to about 875. Major-General Edward Codd�(1823-1829), gave permission for the Garinagu (then called Caribs) to settle southern Belize. This development was pre-1859.

The 1786 Treaty had only established Belize's southern boundary as the Sibun River, and the only formal treaty to acknowledge the Sarstoon as Belize's southern border came in 1859; however, that very treaty acknowledged that border areas spelt out in the document had existed on and before January 1850.

E. Roy Cayetano, Garifuna historian, noted on the occasion of Garifuna Survival Day (on April 12 this year) that "all the Garifuna communities, traditional Garifuna communities are established south of the Sibun River."

"In case you don't know why, I expect you know by now," Cayetano said, adding that, "There are implications for our rights in this country."

Although much has been written and said about Garifuna culture and history, not much has been said about the implications of this milestone in solidifying sovereignty over the southern portion of Belize, another cause for Belizeans to pay tribute.

Last year, Prime Minister Dean Barrow announced Government funding to pay for the T.V. Ramos bust that was sculpted by Steven Okeke, as well as funding for the cultural retrieval work of the Gulisi Community Primary School in Dangriga.

On Saturday, he announced in his Settlement Day remarks that this year, after a visit with the National Garifuna Council (NGC), the lead organizer for Garifuna Settlement Day events as well as Garifuna cultural retrieval, he has committed to an increased government subvention to the NGC to help embark on full-time service to the Garifuna community. He also announced support for the acquisition of a lot in Belmopan for an office for the NGC's Belmopan branch and publicly reiterated his promise to Cynthia Cayetano of the Belize City branch of the NGO to fund an extension of the Gulisi teaching project to the old commercial capital of Belize City. Finally, he announced the reinstatement next year of the post-ceremony, post- parade school children's treat for Garifuna Settlement Day.

"Of all the multiple strands that make up the national Belizean culture, none is more dynamic, none is more vital, none is more vibrant, none is richer, none is more life-affirming than the Garifuna culture," Barrow said.

"Inspired by their ancestors, the Belizean Garifuna refused to be victims of a cruel colonialism and today we find the success and achievements of our Garinagu in every walk of Belizean life," Brice�o said.

Amandala



Garifuna Settlement Day - Main Stage Party in Dangriga, Belize

Garifuna Settlement Day is a public holiday in Belize, celebrated each year on November 19. In this video you will see Garifuna Artist from Belize such as Guwie.

In this video is the Main Stage Part - 18th Night bring in 19th Yurumein (The reenactment of the arrival of the Garifuna people in Dangriga, Belize. For more.

Beautiful village southern coast in Belize. After the LIVE Musical street and beach parties that went on throughout the night until morning. Punta Drumming.

The coastal town of Dangriga in the Stann Creek District of Belize comes alive with the celebration of Garifuna Settlement Day. A colorful, lively and big parade.



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