‘It’s our pride’: Caribbean community gathers for celebration in Dartmouth – Halifax | 24CA News
Many folks flocked to the Dartmouth waterfront on Sunday afternoon to get a style of the Caribbean expertise as The Jamaican Cultural Association of Nova Scotia (JCANS) hosted a day’s value of occasions complemented by conventional meals, leisure, and academic displays.
The tenth annual Caribbean Diaspora Multicultural Celebration, held at Ferry Terminal Park, provided a number of academic shows along with cultural actions.
Elmo Burrows, a member of JCANS, mentioned it was a “must” for him to get entangled within the day’s occasions.
“It’s our pride,” he mentioned. “We love Jamaica, we love our country, it’s our mission to spread the green, gold, and black. It’s in our blood.”
Elmo Burrows, proper, stands subsequent to Avrian Dolcy, who DJ’d on the occasion.
Vanessa Wright
Burrows mentioned the celebration feels extra like a household gathering than only a common pageant.
“There are lots of Jamaicans that are coming, living in Nova Scotia … and we want them to know that we are here, we have a presence, and we are looking to build our community.”
Olive Phillips, the president of JCANS, mentioned the times’ occasions are designed as a celebration of freedom, liberty, emancipation, and Jamaican independence.
“It doesn’t matter your ethnicity or background, together we can do great things,” she mentioned.
Panels showcasing biographies of excellent Nova Scotians of Caribbean ancestry had been on show for these in attendance to watch.
Phillips mentioned the panels are the results of a analysis mission into Caribbean Nova Scotians and their contributions to varied professions.
“We have quite a number of them,” she mentioned. “We’re working to hopefully educate the younger generation that we can do just as good as anybody else.”
Phillips mentioned the historical past is “very strong” between Jamaica and Nova Scotia, citing the federal authorities’s February designation of the Jamaican Maroons in Nova Scotia as an occasion of nationwide historic significance.
About 500 households of Jamaican Maroons, who had been descendants of previously enslaved folks of African ancestry, had been forcibly transported to the then-British colony of Nova Scotia from Trelawny Town, Jamaica, in 1796.
Despite receiving an inhospitable reception upon their arrival in Nova Scotia, the Maroons maintained a powerful sense of neighborhood and tradition as they tailored to life in several environment.
JCANS additionally helped facilitate the show of a Pier 21 Museum exhibition honouring Jamaican-Nova Scotian roots, titled, “Jamaican Nova Scotian Connections: From the Maroons to the Present Day”.
Dwayne Provo, Associate Deputy Minister of African Nova Scotian Affairs, reiterated the significance of Sunday’s occasion by noting that Caribbean contributions to Nova Scotia “have been significant”.
Dwayne Provo stands in entrance of an exhibit through the day’s occasions.
Vanessa Wright
“Anybody who’s been here for any time understands they’ve helped to shape and build this province,” he mentioned, noting his private connections to the Maroon heritage. “We’ve all been here and have contributed significantly for a number of years, matter of fact, centuries.”
Provo mentioned along with recognizing the historical past, it’s important to make use of these gatherings as a possibility to debate the way forward for what these neighborhood relationships appear like.
“Being able to be here today and being able to share, whether it’s a meal or a conversation or a hug, those are the important pieces as we start to build on what tomorrow looks like for the youth,” he mentioned.
In addition to the meals and academic factor of the day’s occasions, dwell music started to fill the air as native artists like Zamani Folade, DJ Amazona Sound, and the Nova Dream Drummers took centre stage.
Phillips mentioned regardless of experiencing her fair proportion of challenges over the past 10 years, as time goes on, her group continues to obtain elevated assist.
“We want to share not just our history and culture, but we also want to go towards the future building together … we believe in building the community,” she mentioned.
She mentioned she’s very proud to see how far the occasion has come after 10 years.
“It’s a decade, it’s an achievement, it’s a milestone, and we look forward to the next 10,” she mentioned. “They (Caribbean community) see the value in spreading your culture and just getting people to know that we are the same under our skin.”
The day’s occasion additionally acted as a precursor to Jamaica’s 61st Independence Day celebrations, which fall on Aug. 6.
Following Sunday’s celebration, JCANS will sit up for internet hosting an occasion highlighting related themes subsequent week — as their tenth annual Caribbean float parade, which inspires Halifax residents with ancestry from any of the island areas to take part, takes place Aug. 7 on Gottingen Street.
— with recordsdata from Vanessa Wright
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