Emancipation Celebrations In Trinidad And Tobago - The Experience Of A Lifetime

During the last week in July, leading up to August 1st, Emancipation Day in the English-speaking Caribbean, the people of Trinidad and Tobago, led by the Emancipation Support Committee, pay homage to ancestors who struggled for centuries for our freedom, in a manner befitting the level of sacrifice and achievement, and homage to the African builders of civilization on whose backs they stood.

Sounds of traditional drums, modern steelpans which evolved from the same creative source, calypso which took shape as a witty weapon against the planter class and other folk expressions echo through the land at various celebratory functions. Artistes from other parts of the African world, including Africa itself, add to the enthralling mix at the Lidj Yasu Omowale Emancipation Villlage, the main centre of activities for the period.

In song, dance, visual images and speech Africa is always present in this multi-dimensional festival. The wisdom of words and the rhythms of art blend to create a happening that is educational, entertaining, exciting and inspirational.

Many aspects of the commemoration attract visitors from outside, singly or in combination. There are those who at first are just seeking high-quality pan-African entertainment. They get it. Every year the festival lives up to its reputation with outstanding performers from Trinidad and Tobago, Africa and other parts of the African Diaspora. Other guests come for a soul-enriching immersion in a spiritually and intellectually stimulating environment infused with the cultural heritage of Africans; or a chance to bond with Africans with a common sense of purpose from all over the African world, in some cases to build mutually beneficial relationships with persons sharing compatible interests in academic, cultural or business fields. Business executives come specifically for the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Symposium, thinking, before they become overwhelmed, that the other components will just add some pleasure to the experience.

Confronted with the crisis of our youth, there are those who welcome the opportunity to interact with positive African youth constructing their world view through work, cultural expression, the utilization of traditional knowledge as well as modern technology, and dialogue - which is what is in evidence on the specially-designated Youth Day, organized and managed by the youth. Art afficionados get the chance to view the creative outputs of the country’s finest painters and sculptors. More intellectual stimulation is provided by workshops and fora designed to help shape the African future, the most prominent session here being the panel on Africa and its Diaspora. Visual displays that focus on important areas of self-knowledge such as African History, and African contributions to science and technology from ancient to modern times, reinforce the learning environment.

Those whose sense of mission centers on the children will be delighted to see their engagement in workshops that use imaginative discussion, story telling, audio-visual material, the internet and other media to give them deeper knowledge of themselves, involve them in artistic production, teach them skills such as walking on stilts, pan tuning, African drumming and dance in sessions conducted by local masters and internationally famous artistes who come for major performances and gladly share their talent with the youngsters.

Everyone finds something of interest in the Trans-Atlantic Expo, an Trade International Market and Trade Exposition where creative products from Trinidad and Tobago, other parts of the Caribbean, including Haiti, and a number of African countries, are on display.

One of the most popular highlights of the period is the Emancipation Day parade on the morning of August 1. Some 20,000 participants on the street, and tens of thousands more who crowd the sidewalk, create a spectacle of colour dominated by African motifs, textiles and designs adding visual vibrations to the rhythm of ancestral drums and chants, and modern African musical expressions of the diaspora. Exponents of the African martial art, capoeira, draw spectator attention with their dramatic flips and “sequencias”. Moko Jumbies tower above the parade displaying their spectacular agility on stilts. Formal dance troupes entertain with their choreographed routines.

The parade reflects the rich social texture of emancipation. All strata of the local population and guests from abroad share a profound experience of ancestral reverence and joyful celebration of the triumph of the human spirit over tyranny. Participants include Ministers of government, among them the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, foreign diplomats, community organizations, religious organizations, performing groups, visitors from abroad, and thousands of individuals and small groups who join to make their statement of what emancipation means to them.

The truth is, no matter what inspires the initial attraction to the festival, the multi-dimensional whole eventually captivates the participants completely leaving an indelible impression.