Boycott Disney, Pirates of the Caribbean

Starting in February of 2005, we began to post a number of items regarding Walt Disney's proposed plans for showing Island Caribs as blood thirsty man eaters. In Dominica, where parts of the film were shot, then Carib Chief Charles Williams loudly protested the movie and condemned select members of the Carib Territory for collaborating with Disney. The Government of Dominica warmly welcomed Disney, guided by the incredible notion that a media giant showing local natives as cannibals would promote tourism to the island. The movie was also shot in St. Vincent. Since then, Chief Williams was deposed by the Government of Dominica (although to what extent Williams embarrassing the government over this issue played any role in the government's decision is unclear for now). Other indigenous communities, including Tainos, Garifuna, and the Caribs of Trinidad, also vigorously protested the movie in the news media. Indian Country Today in the United States ran an editorial that was very critical of Disney's plans.

Now, the movie is about to hit theaters and, if anything, it appears to be worse than was first imagined. A trailer for the film clearly shows the Caribs roasting live people on spits and holding captives to be eaten...in a stark reminder of some of the most vile imperialistic imagery produced in the early colonial era. Such images are getting a new lease on life thanks to Disney, which with the resources that rival those of a colonial power, has now dedicated itself to popularizing and internationalizing images of the Caribs as "cannibals". You can see the movie trailer at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAx02SQ5Mjs&mode=related&search=pirates%20of%20the%20caribbean%20dead%20mans%20chest. Images that follow are stills from the trailer, accompanied by one colonial illustration that seems to have been part of the corpus of visual imperial denigrations that the movie so cheerfully enhances.

Let us keep in mind that such depictions were used to enslave and murder the ancestors of today's Caribs, there was never anything innocent or "fun" about these portrayals. In addition, generations of Carib descended school children in the Caribbean have been taught that their ancestors were savage cannibals. Shame over ancestry was inculcated as a matter of routine. In my own field research experience, I have encountered individuals in their forties and fifties who told me very directly that the main reason they did not wish to self-identify as Caribs is that people in the wider world see Caribs as cannibals, as inhuman man eaters, and they found the stigma unbearable. Disney is playing its part in centuries of ethnocide.

This action on the part of Disney, flying in the face of countless protests, is not accidental, nor just uninformed carelessness. Let's place these images in their current context as well. This is a time of renewed generalizing about the "non-West" as the "uncivilized" world of inhumane acts of savage atrocities. Anti-immigrant attitudes are on the rise in many Western countries. Anyone "brown-skinned" is deemed a potential terrorist. This is not inflammatory exaggeration on my part: for a glimpse at the tip of the iceberg, look at reports produced within the Canadian media itself:

http://www.cbc.ca/news/viewpoint/vp_mallick/20060616.html, and,

http://www.cbc.ca/news/about/burman/20060614.html.

Many white citizens adjoining Native reserves seem to feel empowered now to express openly derogatory views about Natives, even joining in the occasional riot where they can bash some in the face. A peaceful gathering of Natives in Canada is widely depicted as "terrorism". You don't believe me? Please have a look at pages from the Caledonia Citizens Alliance where members of the public submit their feedback on the issue of the Native reoccupation of their territory.

Images specifically of charred bodies, hung like roasted offerings, have also been popularized in the international press, especially when showing the "horrid" acts of Iraqi insurgents in Fallujah who captured and killed four American mercenaries in March of 2004.

All of the raw material, daily news, centuries of inherited stereotypes, revived bigotry, fear, hatred and paranoia are all out there ready to be fused in people's minds who are thus predisposed to making a series of associations. One line of association is that linking Al Qaida with all Muslims, then immigrants, "brown skin," Natives, and finally Caribs. The other line of associations to complement the first: terrorism, insurgence, resistance and cannibalism.

This is the world we are inheriting, folks! Either we deal with these issues head on, or sit back and let the tide of a new nazism wash over us with the help of our own quiescence.

Disney's concept of family "fun" is about as light hearted as showing groups of Jews as rats. Disney won't do exactly that, since that is anti-semitism, and numerous holocaust memorials tell us "never again." But really, never again? That seems to be either unduly hopeful or just terribly naive.

You are encouraged to actively protest and boycott Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest and any and all Disney products. Such cultural imperialism cannot be allowed to pass without consequence.

Indigenous Protest Against Disney

This editorial appeared in Indian Country Today on April 14, 2005, and is reproduced here with the written permission of the editorial department of the newspaper. The original version can be found at http://www.indiancountry.com/content.cfm?id=1096410746. The CAC Review's Creative Commons license does not apply to this article.

Disney's Carib Indian cannibals deserve boycott

Posted: April 14, 2005
by: Editors Report / Indian Country Today

Walt Disney Pictures is premising its sequel to its film ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' on the supposed cannibalism of Carib Indians. This is disgusting. It is a bit beyond the time when the present-day children of the Carib people of the Antilles need to be hit in the face, one more time, with the wanton and highly-disputed idea that they descend from cannibals.

Leaders from at least three communities of Caribs - Salybia in Dominica, Santa Rosa in Trinidad and a community in St. Vincent - have registered their strong objections to Disney executives, who have not responded in any positive way to the critique. Scholars and others are adding their voices to the challenge.

While the controversy over the Caribs' alleged cannibalism is as old as the conquest of the Americas, most observers agree that the Disney movie, slated for worldwide audiences, is beyond the pale as a vehicle to inculcate the historical stereotype upon even more generations of Carib and Caribbean children.

Filming of the sequel is scheduled to begin this month in Dominica. Its predecessor, the first production in the ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' series, was a 2003 blockbuster that grossed $653 million worldwide. Some 3,000 Caribs live in the Carib territory on the island of Dominica, which has a population of 70,000. Tens of thousands of Carib descendants, now known as Garifuna, live on the coasts of Belize, Honduras and Guatemala, as well as in the North American diaspora.

Chief Charles Williams of the Carib community in Dominica has denounced the concept of his people being depicted as cannibals. This stereotype has ''stigmatized'' Caribs for 500 years and is still used both as a form of personal insult and as justification for mistreating his people, Williams said; the movie will further ''popularize'' the historical insult against his people.

Among other Native leaders, the chief of the Carib community at Arima in Trinidad, Ricardo Bharath, also strongly condemned the planned movie. He was joined by Adonis Christo, the community's shaman or medicine man. The oral tradition among their people doesn't support cannibalism as a historical fact, they asserted.

''Do you want to know who the real cannibals are?'' Bharath asked the Inter Press Service. ''They are the ones in modern-day society who are eating down our mountains, raping the environment, polluting the waters,'' he said. Stated Christo: ''Our people defended their families and friends. They defended their homes. They defended their lands.''

There are early references by Europeans to ritual cannibalism among the first encounters with the Caribs. But Brinsley Samaroo, head of the History department of the St. Augustine campus of the University of the West Indies, is among those who believe the claim is largely a European invention of ''manufactured history.''

In the historical record, one finds a letter from a Dr. Chanca, who accompanied Christopher Columbus during his second voyage to the Caribbean. Chanca speculated that some young men held prisoners by a Carib group were being fattened to the slaughter for feasting.

Neither the wanton killing and rape by Spanish colonists of the first group of Caribs encountered - recorded during the same trip by others on the ship - nor the Caribs' fierce, valiant defense of their territories and people are apparently proper subjects for a Disney movie.

The St. Vincent and the Grenadines Historical and Archaeological Society has called for a boycott of the sequel by moviegoers if Disney does not modify the script. Paul Lewis, the society secretary, charged that perpetuating the image of Caribs as cannibals sets back a serious effort in the region to provide a more ''honest share of [Caribbean] history'' to the indigenous people.

The governments of St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Dominica, who will benefit somewhat from the production activities in their countries, have not objected. In fact, the tourism minister of Dominica has defended the proposed film, which would bring some economic benefits to people on the island and which is, as he put it, only a ''work of fiction.''

Some Caribs, as can be expected, have applied for work as extras in the movie, a fact that has made some crow that this somehow exonerates Disney for its production. But that is all just public relations. Reality is that a huge company like Disney should know better in 2005 than to besmirch a living people with its most negative historical stereotype.

Clearly, Disney moviemakers need to consider the negative impacts of the dramatic storylines they choose to project to such a huge audience. It is not acceptable to create and recreate villains out of Native people while exulting and romanticizing the lives of pirates who in real life were murderers and thieves without regard for anyone. Call it what you may, ''fiction'' or dramatic or poetic license, it smacks of racism to us.

Statement from Chief Charles Williams of the Dominica Carib Territory re: Disney

Fellow Dominicans, my Kalinago brothers and sisters people of the Carib Territory, every Carib brother and sister around Dominica where ever you may be.

Disney is preparing to film the second part of the movie titled Pirates of the Caribbean part two. At the moment they are casting interested persons for backup role in the film.

Some time late October / early in November I as Carib Chief was approached by officials from the ministry of tourism and the N D C informing me of the proposed film, they did indicate that there was a sensitive part of the film and that Disney would be meeting with me as Carib chief to discuss.

Some two weeks later a team including Paul Toulon of Digital Designs, Disney local representative, the film Director/ producer cast director and others came to talk to me on the issue.

The discussion started and I realized that they wanted permission from me for my Caribs (Kalinago) people to participate in a film that is highly discriminatory against us. I was told that there is this film titled Pirates of the Caribbean part two, supposedly consisting of a
section with a role that has some features of cannibalism.

I realized that the discussion needed more than just me, so I called in councilors Irvince Auguiste Kent Auguiste and Christabel Auguiste, whom I was able to reach at the moment via telephone and Dr Worrel Sanford Margaret Rose Burton, Gerod Langlais other community members.

The discussions went on and we were told that the film is a fiction movie, something to do with ghosts, it has strong element of cannibalism in it, they cannot hide it, they cannot change it, they must film the movie, they will dress us beyond recognition and we will not be mentioned.

Some members of our team present in the discussion felt that Disney is a rich corporation and perhaps this was an opportunity for us to get something from them, some felt that we needed to do some more investigation, and said we should follow up with some resource persons before we can decide.

We also felt that perhaps a disclaimer at the end of the movie would help. Disney's' people then said they would follow up with us for confirmation on our decision.

On the week of the 26th of November Disney was planning to have their cast done at the kareena Cultural village, and I told them we were not ready, because the council was still divided over the issue.

On the 29th of November 2004 the matter was taken up at a special council meeting and the four councilors who were present along with the Carib Chief voted overwhelming not to participate in that film, some time later during our meeting the parliamentary representative joined us and strengthened the councils position by saying "that is nonsense and we should not prostitute ourselves and spoil our image for nonsense such as this, he went further to say that we should contact the prime minister for his take on the matter and that he too would talk to the PM for the same reason.

On Saturday the 11th December a meeting was planned several members of the community were invited including parliamentary representative who did not appear, principal of all the schools, and other prominent members of the community, again to meet with four members of the filming team, the director the producer the cast director and the extra cast director.

They explained that the movie is fiction, there is strong element of cannibalism in it, there is an encounter with a pirate on the beach, there would be savages who wants him to lead their clan and to do so they have to kill him to get his spirit to do so, they spoke of the chase, the capture, hanging of people in a cave upside down saying we are all there to be eaten, roasting of someone like on a barbeque fire, and the scenes of mountains and gouges is needed so to fire their bow and arrows.

They said they cannot hide the fact there is cannibalism in the movie one will not see blood and actual flesh eating but cannibalism is strongly implied, they cannot show us the script because it is not Disney policy to do so, they cannot change the movie, they must film it, they will be filming in the Soufriere, Indian River Portsmouth, Vieille case, Hampstead and Londonderry areas. They won't be filming in the Carib Territory.

They will as far as possible employ people in the catchment areas and was offering just $10.00 E C per hour.

Later on I learnt that they wanted specially the red Amerindian looking people to participate in the movie who would be filmed practically nude. I also understood and if we were not willing to participate they would seek people from the Pitite Soufriere and Pitite Savanne areas, and was also considering getting the Caribs of St.Vincent. [NOTE FROM MAX FORTE: I can confirm, thanks to a correspondent in St. Vincent, that Disney has rented an entire Bed & Breakfast there to accommodate crew who will be shooting there in March.]

After the film officials were dismissed a discussion was held again to ascertain our peoples position, in the end from among over two dozen people present only five voted in favour of the movie the rest were undecided.

It was further planed that a team of five people would meet on the same Saturday night since I as chief had offered to give a final answer the following Monday only one person attended the last meeting, taking into consideration all that was said and done I as chief informed, Disney filming team through Mr. Paul Toulon that we were not interested in participating in the film; copies of our decision was also sent to the ministry of tourism and the N D C.

It must be noted that at a meeting that was held with cabinet, the minister of tourism raised the issue and when I as chief stood up to defend our position for not agreeing to participate councilors Elvis Francis & Irvince Auguiste claimed that was the chiefs decision not theirs.

The matter was again raised at the council's statuary meeting on December 29th I as chief explained that we have to understand that we through our ancestors were the ones whom the pirates encountered in the 15th 16th and 17th century when they came, and we were labeled savage cannibals because we stood and fought for our rights, and this is documented in every history book around the world that speaks of the Caribbean history, we are stigmatized up to this day as cannibals, every time that some conflict arises between blacks and Caribs right here in Dominica it is thrown into our faces "we ate the Arawaks but wont be able to eat us blacks".

Today Disney wants to popularize that stigma once more, this time through film. And to my amazement councilors whom the people trusted as leaders, councilors who served in the office of kalinago chief, councilors who have served for several terms as leaders of the people, councilors who took an oath to serve the kalinago people are betraying their own blood brothers and sisters and rallying them to participate in a film that so unjustly discriminates against us.

I say shame on them, for a few dollars you all are betraying your own flesh and blood, every year during Carib week they stand and pledge solidarity messages on community platforms, this one opportunity proves how weak and in genuine we are to our cause to fail to such a small test such as this.

Perhaps I should add that even after the strong statement of the parliamentary representative during our councils meeting, the day in cabinet he has asked me to tow the line.

I dare say people with no morale background, people who do not believe in principle, people who do not understand their history, people who do not understand what is the meaning of representation should never stand and offer themselves as leaders, for they do not understand the role of leadership.

I therefore call on all Dominicans, all who understand what is it to be suppressed, all native and indigenous people, nationally, regionally and internationally to condemn that act of victimization and stigmatization by all those who promote and support it, money is not always the answer, love and cordial respect is worth much more for peace and tranquility to prevail in the world we live in.

I thank you.

Chief Charles Williams.

Dominica's Minister of Tourism Defends Disney, Feb. 18, 2005

ROSEAU, Dominica (AP) — The tourism minister on Tuesday defended plans for an upcoming Disney movie expected to portray Dominica’s Carib Indians as cannibals, calling the film a work of fiction that could bring economic benefits to the poor island. The government has said Disney is planning to use the island as a shooting location for the sequel to the 2003 blockbuster “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.” Production could begin in April. On Sunday, Carib Indian chief Charles Williams said he was informed by Disney producers that parts of the script portray the group’s ancestors as cannibals — a characterization Caribs have long denied. Williams is calling on Disney to remove references to cannibalism, which he says would malign the group. Tourism Minister Charles Savarin called the criticism unwarranted. “Nobody is saying that (the film) is an accurate historical report of what happened in Dominica,” Savarin said in a statement broadcast by private Kairi FM radio. “We have to get beyond our history and not continue trying to live in the past.” Savarin said Dominica, one of the poorest island’s in the Caribbean, stands to benefit greatly from exposure in the movie, but warned that criticism could prompt Disney to film elsewhere. He urged critics “not adopt a position which will have a negative impact on the welfare of the society.” Walt Disney declined to say if the film would refer to Caribs as cannibals.

National Garifuna Council of Belize Protests Disney's Cannibalism

Walt Disney Company "Pirates of the Caribbean 2 and 3" portrayal of Garinagu as cannibals angers the GARIFUNA NATION worldwide

From: Michael Polonio - President, National Garifuna Council of Belize

To: Chief Executive Officer, The Walt Disney Company

500 S. Buena Vista Street Burbank,

CA 91521

Subject: Pirates of the Caribbean 2 and 3

The National Garifuna Council (NGC) is the legally constituted and recognized representative organization of the Garifuna people of Belize, who, along with other Garinagu in Honduras, Guatemala and Nicaragua, are direct descendants of the "Black Caribs" of St Vincent and the lesser Antilles as we are referred to in the English language. We are also, therefore, descendants of the Calinago, the people you call Caribs. It has been brought to our attention that the Walt Disney Company intends to film a movie called "The Pirates of the Caribbean" in which the Caribs or Calinago, the ancestors of the Garinagu (as we refer to ourselves in our language) are portrayed as cannibals. We understand that preparations are underway to commence filming in Dominica in April of this year.

We note on your website that Walt Disney has portrayed itself as a company which upholds the highest Business Standards and Ethics in the conduct of its affairs and, therefore, are at odds to understand why you are involved in the perpetuation of this brutal and unjust myth and wrongdoing against the Calinago (the Caribs) and their descendants. There is no credible scientific evidence or reliable report that the people in question were cannibals.

Our Calinago ancestors were a warrior race who migrated to the lesser islands of the Caribbean from the Amazon region of South America and, as with any warrior race, they engaged in ritualistic practices to encourage fearlessness among warriors. They fought to the death to defend their islands against invaders in the colonial era which followed the arrival of Columbus to our shores, an unfortunate event that changed for the worst the natural evolution and development of indigenous societies of the world in the period that followed.

The myth about cannibalism was started because the Calinago were not intimidated by the European invaders and waged war in the defense of their territory and way of life. For 30 years they held back the British Army, the most modern fighting forces of the world at the time. After the eventual defeat the British suppressed and attempted to wipe the Calinago/Garifuna and their culture off the face of the earth following the conquest of the island of St. Vincent in 1796. Fortunately for mankind, our people and our culture have survived, against all odds, among the descendants of the Garinagu (the Black Caribs) who were forcibly exiled and abandoned on the mainland of Central America in 1797.

If the Walt Disney Corporation is indeed about integrity and truth, then we ask that you desist from filming this movie as currently scripted and that you hold honest, truthful, respectful and constructive consultations with the living descendants of the Calinago (Caribs) in Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua, St Vincent (known as Yurumien in our language) and Dominica. Ours is a story of epic proportions that needs to be told and we would not mind collaborating with your company in honestly and truthfully relating the Calinago/Garifuna/Carib story.

In May, 2001, the importance of the Garifuna culture (the culture of the Garinagu) to mankind was recognized in the United Nations Proclamation of the Garifuna Language, Dance and Music as Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity. Walt Disney would be making a mockery of that United Nations recognition with the filming and release of your movie portraying our ancestors as cannibals, the worst categorization and dehumanizing assertion that can be made against a proud people whose culture is a testament to good citizenship and independence of spirit.

The National Garifuna Council associates itself with the sentiments of Carib Chief Charles Williams of the Garifuna Territory of Dominica, who asserted that "our ancestors stood up against early European conquerors and because they stood up. We were labeled savages and cannibals up to today. This cannot be perpetuated in movies." We urge you, in the strongest possible terms, to reconsider your position.

The National Garifuna Council of Belize

Tel: 501-502-0639

Email: ngcbelize@btl.net

www.ngcbelize.org

cc: Honourable Said Musa, Prime Minister of Belize

Honourable Francis Fonseca, Minister of Attorney General and Minister
Education and Culture - Government of Belize

Honourable Assad Shoman, Minister of Foreign Affairs - Government of Belize

His Excellency Russel Freeman, Ambassador, Embassy of the United
States of America, Belize

Honourable Roosevelt Skerrit, Prime Minister, Commonwealth of Dominica

Honourable Ralph Gonsalves, Prime Minister, St. Vincent and the Grenadines

Chief Charles Williams, Carib Territory, Commonwealth of Dominica

Lic. Celeo Alvarez Casildo, Presidente ODECO, Honduras

Hon. René M. Baptiste -Minister of Tourism and Culture , St. Vincent
& the Grenadines

Hon. Sylvia Flores - Minister of Human Development, Belize

Her Excellency Ms. Lisa Shoman, Belize Ambassador to U.S., Washington

His Excellency , Mr. Andy V. Palacio, Ambassador for Culture, Belize

Disney's Carib Indian cannibals deserve boycott

ICT [2005/04/14]--Disney's Carib Indian cannibals deserve boycott



An editorial in Indian Country Today (see the link above) rightly encourages a boycott of Disney over its slander against the Caribs. While claiming that the movie, Pirates of the Caribbean 2, is simply "fiction, not history" and "entertainment", Disney has obviously chosen to reinforce a particular kind of fiction, that is, a historical fiction of the kind perpetrated by European invaders and slave traders of the colonial Caribbean. This is tantamount to saying that because the Nazis constructed a fictional view of Jews as a plague of rats in 1930s Germany, as shown in Nazi propaganda films, we are free to reproduce this fiction today arguing, "it's just fiction". To the extent that some would inevitably enjoy seeing a people portrayed as rats, one would then be able to argue that it is also "entertainment". Disney's fiction is not pure, original, fiction--it is a mirror of the past. Given the sense of shame that many modern day Carib descendants have been made to feel as a result of centuries of well worn allegations of the "savagery" of their ancestors, Disney is playing its little part in continuing ethnocide.

Dominica Caribs Exoticized as Cannibals: More News and Other Links

Following from the previous posting on Disney Corp.'s plans for casting the Caribs of Dominica as cannibals in its sequels to "Pirates of the Caribbean", readers may be interested in seeing how this news story has spread across the Internet, as well as examining what other sites are posting in criticism of the cannibalistic festish exhibited by Disney and others.

(1) Other news reports:

"Carib Indians protest 'Pirates' sequel". Last Updated Mon, 14 Feb 2005 17:50:02 EST. CBC Arts:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/arts/national/2005/02/14/
Arts/pirates050214.html

Daily Telegraph: "Disney accused of bad taste over Carib cannibals in pirate movie". By Tom Leonard in New York (Filed: 15/02/2005).
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/02/15/
wcarib15.xml&sSheet=/news/2005/02/15/ixworld.html

'Cannibals' round on Disney film. Associated Press in Dominica. Tuesday February 15, 2005
The Guardian:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/
story/0,3604,1414698,00.html

"Pirates row over cannibal claims". Yahoo! Movies: http://uk.movies.yahoo.com/050214/242/fcfh5.html

"DOMINICA: Official defends plans for upcoming Disney film expected to portray indigenous group as cannibals": A Package of News Briefs From the Caribbean, The Associated Press Published: Feb 15, 2005 :
http://ap.tbo.com/ap/
breaking/MGBLDIZW85E.html

Carib Chief argues over 'Pirates' sequel
Filed: 12:39 GMT, Monday 14th February 2005 -- by Daniel Saney:
http://mobile.digitalspy.co.uk/article.php?id=19236

"Movie Makers Upset Native Indians". CONTACTMUSIC.COM, 2/15/2005:
http://www.mickeynews.com/News/
DisplayPressRelease.asp_Q_id_E_2155Upset


(2) Some important notes from other websites and blogs:

Nalo Hopkinson's Blog:
http://www.sff.net/people/
nalo/writing/2005/02/caribs-of-dominica-to-be-portrayed-as.html

"Pirates in Dominica: Caribs as Cannibals"--"As the plot for Pirates of the Caribbean II has Dominica's Caribs practising cannibalism, what's the basis for the idea that they ate human flesh?...":
http://www.piratesdominica.com/
caribsascannibals.cfm

WIKIPEDIA: Cannibalism (also contains an interesting series of sections on various subtopics related to cannibalism)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cannibalism

................................................................................

Carib Community of Trinidad Joins Indigenous Condemnations of Disney

americas.org - Arrr, Matey! The Curse of the Racist Sequel?



Arrr, Matey! The Curse of the Racist Sequel?



Published by Inter Press Service, 2/28/05



PORT OF SPAIN - The 2003 blockbuster movie grossed 653 million dollars in theatres around the world, and the producers of the "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" are eagerly gearing up to film the sequels.



Filming of the scenes for the first of two installments is scheduled for April, and like the original, they will be shot in the Caribbean.



However, unlike the original movie, which was filmed in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, the first sequel will also involve the Caribs of Dominica, whose ancestors were among the early inhabitants of the Caribbean.



But the project, due to be released on Jul. 7, 2006, is already proving to be a problem, as the descendants of the Caribs, historians and others are objecting to scenes depicting these indigenous people as involved in cannibalism.



Brinsley Samaroo, head of the history department of the St. Augustine campus of the University of the West Indies (UWI), dismisses the claim of cannibalism as a "European myth".



He told IPS that it was nothing but "manufactured history" by the Europeans who came across the Caniba, a tribe found in North and South America.



"The Caniba tribe was very hostile, as would be any group whose territory was being invaded. They were resisting the Europeans very stoutly and in order to warn other Europeans about this, the early explorers spread the myth that the Caniba tribe eat people," he said.



"They called them cannibals, derived from the name of the tribe," he explained.



Samaroo is lending his support to those who have publicly called on Walt Disney Productions to remove that aspect from the "Pirates of the Caribbean 2".



Disney has so far made no public statement on the issue, and did not respond to an IPS request for an interview.



The governments of St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Dominica, whose impoverished economies would receive a boost from the activities associated with the filming of the sequel, have also been silent on the controversy.



Several of the estimated population of 3,000 Carib descendants in Dominica have applied to be extras in the film, which again stars Johnny Depp, but that has not stopped the Carib chief, Charles Williams, from taking a stand against the project.



Williams contends that Disney executives were insistent on including scenes where Caribs would be portrayed as cannibals, and to appear naked or semi-naked in the movie.



The Carib chief said that Caribs have been "stigmatised up to this day" as cannibals and Disney wants to popularise that stigma through the movie.



He said that this portrayal "cannot be perpetuated in movies," and his condemnation is gaining support from other Carib descendants and organisations across the Caribbean.



The St. Vincent and the Grenadines Historical and Archaeological Society has called on movie-goers to boycott the sequel unless the "grossly offensive" scenes depicting the Caribs as cannibals are removed from the script.



According to the society's secretary, Paul Lewis, perpetuating the image of Caribs as cannibals is totally unacceptable to all Caribbean peoples.



"Caribbean scholars and schoolteachers have been waging a ferocious battle for a long time to give the indigenous peoples of the region a fairer and more honest share of its history," he said in a letter to the local media.



Ricardo Bharath, who heads the Carib community in Arima, the Amerindian word for water and the third largest town in Trinidad, has also condemned the sequel.



"I think it is not right. I want to support the chief (in Dominica)," he told IPS. "In all my involvement in the community I have had no experience of our people being described as cannibals. I have listened to stories from the elders, a lot of anthropologists and archeologists and they all stated they found no evidence of cannibalism of our people in the Caribbean region."



"Do you want to know who the real cannibals are? They are the ones in modern-day society who are eating down our mountains, raping the environment, polluting the water courses," he said.



Adonis Christo, the shamaan or medicine man of the Arima Carib community, insists that "the Caribs were hunters, fishermen and farmers. They were nomadic."



"They defended their people, families, and friends. They defended their homes. They defended their lands," he added.



The Caribs here have been researching their history, preserving and practising traditions of their ancestors, including the annual "Smoke Ceremony" each Aug. 1, where they pay tribute to their forefathers with various offerings including tobacco and farine, which is made from cassava and water.



On Oct. 14, the Caribs observe "Recognition Day", joined by their counterparts in Dominica, Suriname and the Arawaks from Guyana.



"We don't eat people. We only eat wild meat," says Valentina Medina, the titular Queen of the Carib Group in Trinidad. (END)

Disney and Carib "Cannibals" Continued

The following is from an article in The Los Angeles Times reproduced on http://www.williams.edu/go/native/caribs.htm.

'Pirates' sequel raises ire of indigenous leader

Movie to portray Caribs as cannibals
By CAROL J. WILLIAMS
Los Angeles Times
April 29. 2005

BATAKA, Dominica - Sabers rattled and epithets rang across this lush tropical island long before the first crew arrived this month to film the Pirates of the Caribbean sequel.

Somewhere in the middle of the movie, natives are supposed to capture Johnny Depp's character, Captain Jack Sparrow, and spit-roast the swashbuckling pirate with fruits and vegetables "like a shish kebab," said Bruce Hendricks, the Walt Disney Pictures executive in charge of production.

"It's a funny, almost campy sequence," he said of a film also populated by ghost pirates and zombies.

But some of Dominica's Carib inhabitants are offended by what they consider an insinuation that their forebears were cannibals. They have called on the 3,500-strong population that is the last surviving indigenous group in the Caribbean to choose between fleeting fame and tribal honor. Chief Charles Williams asked his community to boycott the project, but most have welcomed the financial infusion.

The group is a minority on Dominica, whose 70,000 people are mostly of African descent. Disney argues that the film is fiction, but Williams says it draws on history. "Pirates did come to the Caribbean in the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries," he said. "Our ancestors were labeled cannibals. This is being filmed in the Caribbean."

History books still cast the Caribs as cannibals during the time of the European settlement of the Caribbean that began in the 15th century but didn't reach Dominica, a tiny island in the eastern Caribbean, until 200 years later. But the indigenous people, the chief argues, were defending themselves. "Today, that myth, that stigma is still alive," Williams said, denying that the Caribs ever ate those they vanquished.

As newly elected chief of the Carib Territorial Council, Williams was approached by a delegation of Disney executives in October to discuss Carib collaboration on the film, for which about 400 locals have been hired as grips, caterers, drivers and extras. When the chief learned of the scene depicting Depp's character on the barbecue spit, he said the Caribs would boycott the production.

Other Caribs say the chief is taking offense where none was intended. "He didn't have the right to make that decision for the entire community," said Christabelle Auguiste, the only woman on the seven-member tribal council. She regards the filming of a potential blockbuster in her homeland as an opportunity to show off the island's stunning natural attractions and to raise international consciousness about the Caribs and their traditions.

"Throughout the years, there's been this picture painted of us as cannibals. The fact that some people might have had an arm or a leg in their homes didn't mean they ate people. They were kept as tokens of war," Auguiste said of her ancestors and their clashes with European invaders.

Disney Rears Its Cannibal Head Once Again: Cannibal Trinidad, 1900s

Hopefully, but doubtfully, a report such as this will finally dispel those optimists (opportunists?) who posted comments on this blog against some of our suggestions that Disney's renditions of cannibalism among indigenous peoples of the Caribbean would be learned and perpetuated as if it were fact (see our debates on Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean). The argument raised by some of these commentators, schooled in the arts of dull acquiescence, was that children--yes, children--would have the intellectual acuity necessary to discern fact from fiction, myth from reality, propaganda from honesty, and pure "entertainment" from truth.

Thanks to Dr. Roi Kwabena for forwarding the following comment from another Trinidadian resident in the UK:

I am a Trinidadian living in the UK. Last night (Sunday 4th November 2007 ) I was horrified when my children drew to my attention a segment of a popular children's Disney TV-Series "Lizzie McGuire" where a young actor presents information from his script stating "do you know that less than a century ago there were cannibals in the country of Trinidad and Tobago" he goes further to insinuate that "back then there was lots of pirate activity in that region".

There you have it: cannibals and pirates in Trinidad, in the 1900s. With entertainment and education of this quality, who needs the brazen imperial propaganda of cable news?

___________

Caribs of Dominica to be Portrayed as Cannibals in Disney Film

According to a recent report from the BBC News (Monday, 14 February, 2005 -- see: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/4263227.stm), Disney is planning to shoot a sequel to "Pirates of the Caribbean" in Dominica, in which the Caribs of Dominica will be featured as cannibals.

The plan is being vigorously protested by the new Chief of the Carib Territory, Charles Williams, who came to office in July of 2004.

Five centuries after the beginning of European colonialism in the Caribbean, we are still witnessing very crude attempts at branding aboriginals for the sake of profit. Previously, branding someone a "cannibal" would be sufficient justification under various royal decrees for the enslavement of such "fierce" and "savage" people, that is, assuming they were even recognized as human beings. Continuing this tradition of imperialism, it is now hoped by Disney, apparently, that they can continue to reap revenues by trading in this dated imagery.

At a time when the leader of the world's biggest and most arrogant military superpower feels free to proclaim that the U.S. is engaged in a struggle against "barbarism", waged by those in the "civilized world", this should not be too shocking. "Space" for this renewal of imperialist ideology has been opened up from the top down in American society, providing some of the strongest legitimation for these rehashed assaults on the "Non-Western Other".

The same brush that would tar the peoples of Iraq, Iran and North Korea, would eventually tar all other representatives of some sort of primordial barbarism, including indigenous peoples. It is more ironic than ever, at a time when Ward Churchill is being persecuted with the willing complicity of some American Indian leaders, that some of these same leaders were openly supportive of Bush's plans for invading Iraq, and heralded American Indian troops in Iraq as heroes to be celebrated. The glaring parallels between 1492 and the invasion of Iraq were completely lost on them. Instead, we are asked not to protest a war for fear of "hurting the feelings" of the parents of these troops...as these troops took part in the pummeling of a half-starved nation that had just clawed its way through more than a decade of genocide.

That Disney Corp., should dress up this history of unforgivable European cruelty in a manner that its audiences might see as funny and entertaining only adds more evidence to how far backwards we have let public discourse slide.

Pirates of the Caribbean, at the very least, should be protested and boycotted.

Garifuna Protest Disney, Anaheim, CA, June 24

Garifuna American Heritage Foundation United
GAHFU
Cheryl L. Noralez
Phone (562)366-9396
cnoralez@garifunaheritagefoundation.org
P.O. Box 10054
Long Beach, CA 90810

Press Release

June 20, 2006

Garifuna American Heritage Foundation United organizes a protest against the World Premiere of Walt Disney Pictures’ Pirates of the Caribbean - Dead Man’s Chest.

Long Beach, California – Tuesday, June 20 2006: GAHFU’s President and Founder Ms. Cheryl Noralez announced that on Saturday, June 24 2006 between the hours of 2:00 to 4:00 pm, her organization along with a group of concerned Garifuna leaders in the Los Angeles area will be protesting the premiere of Disney Pictures’ Pirates of the Caribbean – Dead Man’s Chest at Disneyland in Anaheim, California.

GAHFU, Inc. is a non-profit organization based in Long Beach, California. Our purpose is to preserve the uniqueness of the Garifuna culture, history, language, music, arts & crafts and values by working closely with the Garifuna community not only in Los Angeles County, but throughout the world. We seek to enhance and showcase the image and vision of the Garifuna people through education, music and the arts.

“It has been brought to our attention that the Walt Disney Company intends to film a movie called The Pirates of the Caribbean in which the Caribs or Calinago, the ancestors of the Garinagu (as we refer to ourselves in our language) are portrayed as cannibals.” These are the words of Michael Polonio, of the National Garifuna Council of Belize.

We believe that not only the Garifuna people have been wrongfully portrayed in the movie as cannibals but also other indigenous people of the Caribbean who are closely related to us as in the case of the Taino people; therefore, we have invited the Taino community in Los Angeles to participate and they have promptly accepted the invitation to stand united with the Garinagu.

We are inviting all of the indigenous people of the Caribbean to join us in this protest. The meeting place to protest will be at Harbor Blvd.’s front entrance of Disneyland in Anaheim, California starting at 1:30 pm. We strongly urge participants not to bring sticks, drums, shakers or anything that could be used as a weapon to the event. Also, teenagers are encouraged to come with their parents to join us for this peaceful protest.

“Eibugaba lidan ligemeri Inaruni - Walk in the light of truth “- James Lovell

Cheryl L. Noralez, President & Founder
GARIFUNA AMERICAN HERITAGE FOUNDATION UNITED
www.garifunaheritagefoundation.org
events@garifunaheritagefoundation.org

Garifuna Protest at Disney: Photographs

Photographs for the Garifuna protest of Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean can be viewed online at:

http://www.picturetrail.com/gallery/
view?p=999&uid=5555295&gid=11089644

The protest was against the release of Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean sequel. This took place on Disneyland's Main Street on Saturday June 25, 2006 from 2:00 to 4:00 pm in Anaheim, California.

Cannibal Stories

The following statement was originally produced by CAC editor Pedro Ferbel-Azcarate:

The misidentification of cannibalism for ancestor worship, reported in Columbus' 1493 log, can be seen today as a classic case of cultural misunderstanding.

Using multidisciplinary lines of evidence we can see that Columbus misunderstood the cultural practice of Native people in storing the bones of their ancestors in calabash gourdes in their homes. He mistakenly believed this was a practice of cannibalism. There is scant archaeological evidence of cannibalism in the Caribbean. We would expect to find butchering marks on long bones of human remains if there was a significant practice of cannibalism. The lack of such evidence makes archaeologists reject cannabalism as a common practice in the Caribbean.

It appears that the mythology of cannibalism was promoted by such early European explorers as Columbus as a means to portray the Indigenous people of the Caribbean as savages. This denigration of Native peoples led to the European justification to enslave them, take their lands, and create a racist system whereby people who were not of European origin were given alower social status.

The portrayal of Native Caribbean Americans as cannibals and savages in a new Disney movie aimed at children perpetuates negative stereotypes and a false understanding of colonial history. Disney Corp. should be ashamed by their intentions to put profit above the dignity of human communities. Disney should retract their portrayal of Indigenous Caribbeans as cannibals and savages and should offer a formal apology to Chief Charles Williams and the Carib people of Dominica, as well as to all Indigenous people of the Caribbean.

The real adventure story is about the survival of Indigenous Caribbean people to the present day, a story rarely told. After 500 years years of resistance, the Native Carib (Kalinago) and Taino have survived to the present day.

Disney and its Cannibals

I recommend that readers click below to read a concise, critical examination of the Disney affair in Dominica and now St. Vincent, written by Karl Eklund. Karl is a retired nuclear physicist with a fascination for Carib history and archaeology and he resides part of each year in St. Vincent.

See:
http://karleksblog.blogspot.com/2005/02/disney-and-caribs.html

Global Conference of American Indian Nations: Native American Chamber of Commerce in Houston

[The editors of the Caribbean Amerindian Centrelink do not endorse this event nor vouch for the legitimacy of the source or the information presented below. It is presented to readers for their information, should they wish to follow up on this news. In particular, the editor posting this note wishes to criticize the poor judgment shown by the organizers in situating the event in a Disney theme park, and of aligning indigenous organizations with transnational corporations that have done little to earn the glowing characterizations presented below. This event appears to be an attempt to coopt and purchase indigenous leadership in a likely effort to gain access to indigenous resources. That an entire day should be set aside for "native skateboarding" while calling this a global conference--of the Americas--is another of the remarkable features of the message below.]

PRESS RELEASE

CELEBRATION OF SPIRIT

Houston, TX – for immediate release

A first-ever gathering of American Indian Nations featuring a trans-global conference of tribal leaders to be held at Disney World in Orlando, Florida, on August 20-24 has been announced by the Native American Chamber of Commerce in Houston. Some 3,000 Indians from the U.S and Canada are expected to celebrate this event in dance, song, sports, food and golf.

The four-day event will feature prominent leaders and native celebrities from many of the 565 Indian Nations recognized by the federal government, as well as many from Canada and the Americas.

Major U.S. firms practicing social responsibility and supporting diversity, such as Lockheed Martin, Wal-Mart, IBM, Marathon Oil, UPS and BNSF are among the dozens of U.S. Corporations signed up to sponsor the event. All proceeds less expenses will go to education and native achievement centers.

In what may also be a first for the Native American, the inaugural day of the event will feature presidential candidates invited to speak about their positions regarding native sovereignty and rights at a formal dinner for tribal leaders and prime sponsors.

“Given the many challenges facing the American Indian and Alaskan Native today – unemployment, poverty, education, housing, contaminated lands – it will be important for our next president to clearly speak to an agenda which will address these needs,” said Carroll Cocchia, Chamber President.

In the following days, the Indian pageant will feature a special day for native business people and entrepreneurs to do what Indians have done from time immemorial – trade. A third day will feature native skateboarding. A final day showcases a huge selection of Native dancers, drummers, story tellers, artists, craftsmen and native foods to celebrate the depth and breadth of the Indian culture.

Inquiries can be addressed by email to Carroll Cocchia: cocchia1@sbcglobal.net.

Forwarded to the CAC on 15 February 2008 by:
Jerry Ashton
Media Chair
Celebration of Spirit
Disneyworld FL
August 20-23 2008
jerry@americanindiantv.com

▼▲▼▲▼▲▼▲

Trinidad Express: Caribs Speak about Disney

"We Do Not Eat People"

Click on the link to read a report in the Trinidad Express on local Carib reactions to Disney's plans to cast their ancestors as cannibals.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Commentary by Claire Yashar

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
Claire Meurens-Yashar, BA/BS Anthropology
Research in Taino/Arawak Iconography, Myths and Legends
July 17, 2006

Pirates of the Caribbean, a 2006 Walt Disney Picture is, as are all movies, pure entertainment and not reality shows nor documentaries. As an entertainment medium, it has earned a two star rating[out of four] by the Tribune Movie Critic, Michael Phillips, and three star rating by Matt Pais, the Metromix Movies Producer.

Directed by Gore Verbinski, screenplay by Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio, this “fun” film has, however, a hideous side. It implies that the Caribbean Natives, the Arawaks, are and were cannibals; a slander they had to endure from generations to generations. The implication is as demeaning to today’s Caribbean populations as it was to the gentle people who greeted Christopher Columbus.

Five hundred years ago, this contemptuous portrayal of the inhabitants of the New World, was a convenient way to justifying enslaving them and treating them like cattle. It implied them to be sub-humans savages in the most derogatory sense of the word.

Today, perpetuating this myth is unjustifiable and in poor taste. It is a throwback to the racial antagonism of the indefensible ideology of the twentieth century when the blacks were the target of racial slurs, segregation, demeaning treatment, brutality, and considered racially inferior to their white counterparts.

If we allow these kinds of racial slurs to go without remark or rebuke, then I am sorry to say, we haven’t learned anything yet about humanity. If we have any capacity to be touched by the cries of pain and anguish from centuries past, we must leave the theater perturbed. Once again, the film industry has exploited the native people by slanderous implications of cannibalism. The original inhabitants of these islands are victims of cinematic self-sabotage since, as extras, they represented themselves and by extension, their ancestors. Mr. Walt Disney, who was one of the most honored film makers of his time, would not be proud to have one of his production be an embarrassment to the film industry.

Government of St. Vincent Planning Sale of Island Central to Garifuna History

Thanks to a number of colleagues, especially Joseph Palacio, Paul Lewis, and Wellington Ramos, for forwarding this news over the past three weeks (my apologies for the delay in posting these items). This news concerns moves by the Government of St. Vincent & The Grenadines to possibly sell off the island of Balliceaux:

Garifuna may lose the right to visit the island of Balliceaux

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

By: Paul E. Lewis

KINGSTOWN, St Vincent: If Dr Ralph Gonsalves, Prime Minister of St Vincent and the Grenadines, is allowed to have his way, the Garifuna and all Vincentians may soon lose the right to visit Balliceaux . This small island, which is located on the south-east coast of St Vincent was the scene of the internment of the black Caribs after their defeat by British forces in the Second Carib War in 1795-96. Now the government wants to sell/lease a privately owned island to foreign developers for hotel construction. Never mind the government does not own the island, it has assiduously sought foreign financiers to develop this small and historically neglected island in the hope of saving its disastrous economic policies. Chances are, however, these islands might have acquired a new owner in recent times, unknown to the general public.

Balliceaux, long neglected by central governments, has played a pivotal role in the history of the defeated black Caribs, now know as the Garifuna. The Treaty of Paris (1763) gave Britain control over St Vincent and ushered in a period of 33 years of concerted efforts by Westminster to parcel out land to Englishmen. Such efforts to control the best lands on the island for sugar production and general colonization and to destroy the culture of the native Caribs resulted in two so-called Carib Wars of 1772-73 and 1795-96.

The struggle by these indigenous groups led by the more numerous black Caribs, a hybrid group of shipwrecked and escaped Africans on the one hand, and island Caribs on the other, against the rapacious French and British colonials, resulted in the Caribs in St Vincent being the last of the indigenous people in the region to hold out against rampant European imperialism. Paramount Chief Joseph Chatoyer, first National Hero of St Vincent and the Grenadines, is the most visible symbol of that struggle to maintain the sovereignty of lands that today are being ‘returned’ to its 18th century usurpers.

The British-Carib Wars were culture conflicts -- a clash of values and lifestyles between two widely differing peoples and cultures that hardly understood each other, and made little effort to do so, especially in the case of the British. One side desired to be left alone in its unique cultural milieu, while the other was determined to conquer that group’s land and change the society, if necessary in complete disregard of the others wishes. This culture clash pitted a society with relatively high technological capabilities, notions of economic progress and a commitment to the application of reason, science and military power, against one in communion with nature. Notions of intuition, a communal lifestyle, and a belief in the supernatural and non-christian deities informed and conditioned Carib society. In another sense, it was a conflict between an acquisitive society and a self-abnegating one.

The Carib Wars were wars of liberation. However, the numerically superior British forces and advanced military equipment defeated the locals, and approximately 5,000 Caribs surrendered and were subsequently interned on Balliceaux, a small island off the mainland. Disease, melancholy and starvation reduced the population to 2,500 when the remainder were rounded up in British naval ships and, under the leadership of Captain Barrett of the HMS Experiment, were shipped off to Roatan Island off the coast of Honduras , there to begin a period of wandering and subsequent settlement in many Central American republics, including Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Belize . The survivors of British injustice formed the nucleus of the modern Garifuna community in the Diaspora.

In defeat, the indigenous enemies of the British were treated differently from their French allies. While the French were accorded the usual treatment and sent back to Guadeloupe, the Caribs were required to surrender unconditionally, this included loss of entire homeland, culture and ultimately their lives. By late October 1796, approximately 4,195 black Caribs, 44 slaves and 102 “yellow Caribs,” were sent to Balliceaux -- the last two categories were subsequently returned to the mainland.

The genocidal act of British authorities on Balliceaux resulted in the deaths of thousands from a “malignant fever”, variously diagnosed as either typhus or yellow fever. Nancy Gonzalez in Sojourners of the Caribbean: Ethnogenisis and Ethnohistory of the Garifuna, has noted that while the primary disease for many Englishmen in the Caribbean was yellow fever, the descriptions of the illness matched that of typhus. And while contemporaries claimed that it was not an important disease in the tropics, Barbados had reported an outbreak in 1795. Be that as it may, more than half of those interned fell to typhus or yellow fever. The death rate compared favorably to the mortality rates of New World natives when they were initially exposed to contacts with Europeans in 1492. Many Gaifuna died within a week on contracting the mysterious illness and death was frequently accompanied by pain that included fevers, petchial ulcers, emaciation and weakness (Gonzalez). The Garifuna were also affected by overcrowded conditions and a paucity of clean drinking water.

The British decision to return light-skinned Caribs to the mainland divided the indigenous community since one obvious consequence was the breakup of family groups. It was a political act too that “rewarded” those who were assumed to have supported the British -- a devious and mischievous decision by the British. Later some planters continued to press for the removal of all Caribs, again for other reasons, to Central America. However, no more deportations took place after 1797 and the remanding Caribs were “pardoned”, given lands, but denied all political rights.

Historically, Battowia was blessed with relatively more water than Balliceaux that in turn had more of an abundance of pasture land. The Linley family capitalised on this good fortune and for many years worked as farmers, producing cotton, sugar, and raising stock animals as cash crops. The family built small boats to facilitate the transport of goods to market on the mainland. But the islands were never settled in the true sense and, and apart from the great ‘Disastrous Migration’ of the Internment years when the owner, a Mr Campbell was paid £1,731.15 by the government for the use of the island (Adams) , neither Balliceaux nor Battowia was ever settled, and the Linley family had always retained control of the islands. But having survived for over 200 years in ‘splendid isolation’, a progressive government of ‘right thinking’ individuals were determined to end this somewhat rustic but idyllic life for those who lived on Balliceaux, by pulling this land of farmers and their itinerant helpers into the maelstrom of 20th century economic development and corporate politics -- another demonstrable manifestation of ‘good governance’ by Ralph Gonsalves.

On or about January 4, 2008, immediately after Dr Ralph Gonsalves was accused of rape and sexual assault by a female police officer, he departed for Europe to seek investment funds to develop the island of Balliceaux. There had been no public discussion/debate on development for Balliceaux or Battowia. Transparency is not his style. But force of circumstances catapulted him into bearing gifts to the nation. In this case it was development for one of our sacred places -- Balliceaux. This tendency of the PM to pull something out of the hat whenever he is in a spot of difficulty has become his modus operandi.

The B & B Project must be placed into a wider political context: (1) the desire of the Gonsalves regime to turn this 150 square mile island into a first world country in quick time, but without the requisite human resources and material infrastructure to do so, (2) to leave his mark in the annals of Vincentian history as the greatest political leader, and (3) to transfer the development agenda of the nation into the hands of white foreigners. The Portuguese Gonsalves considers himself to be the ‘blackest politician” in SVG, yet he seems to favour white entrepreneurs since “Vincentians can’t manage anything.”

Gonsalves, a leader of the radical student movement of the UWI, Mona Campus during the 1970s, a self-professed ‘black power’ advocate, a fierce critic of the Tom Adams government in Barbados, and a solid supporter of Marxist Leninist principles in his younger days and who still considers himself an “old communist,” has jettisoned all political principles and now seeks comfort in the entrepreneurial efficacy of the white expatriate developer class! Balliceaux will be offered to the Gods of Neocolonialism -- the new economic credo of this regime -- complements of the ‘blackest politician’ and ‘second best run black government in the world!’

Last week a foreign-born local businessman with media interests, himself a substantial landholder in SVG, took some potential European investors to Balliceaux and Battowia to view the ‘investment.’ The title to the islands is vested in the hands of the Linley family and not in the government of Ralph Gonsalves. All potential investors must be aware of such legal implications. The likely orchestrated visit of potential buyers might be used by the government to ‘strong arm’ the owners of Balliceaux and Battowia to sell the islands for the economic benefits of foreign operators. The sale would not be in the long term interests of the people of St.Vincent and the Grenadines. But the fact that Gonsalves announced to the nation in January that he was proceeding to Europe to secure development funds for a number of projects, including Balliceaux, strongly indicated that a sale may have taken place or was about to be concluded. If that is the case, and if as reported the recent visit of those Europeans “looked serious,” then Balliceaux and Battowia could soon slip out of the control of Vincentians and into the hands of a European commercial house. And if Joseph Linley, the court appointed controller of Balliceaux, has effected such a sale , then the government must ensure that certain guarantees are put in place that would protect the interests of Vincentians. It is critical that government:

1. Establish a memorial park to the Garifuna People, and institutionalize an annual commemoration ceremony
2. Guarantee Vincentians access to the island, including significant heritage and natural sites
3. Guarantee that Banana Bay and other archaeological sites remain in situ and not be disturbed to construct jetties etc.
4. Conduct extensive archaeological Investigations on Balliceaux and Battowia
5. Impose a ban on the construction of large living structures
6. Monitor that all beaches remain public beaches
7. Monitor and enforce all applicable environmental laws

Many Vincentians believe that both islands hold too important a place in the historical record, and are too valuable as the home of rare birds and wild life to be cavalierly given to foreigners for commercial exploitation. If, on the other hand, no deal has been struck then there is still time for the government to reconsider its position. There is a growing consensus that the 1796-7 site of the severe suffering of the Garifuna people should be a heritage protected zone , set aside permanently for the use of all , especially the Vincentian people. The ideal solution would be for the government of St Vincent and the Grenadines to purchase the island as a National Heritage Park. It should not be sold to foreign developers.

We must be concerned about turning over a site of such huge historical and archaeological significance to foreign developers for purely commercial exploitation. Insufficient archaeological excavation, especially at Banana Bay, has been done to give us a satisfactory picture of the internment period, and to square the historical records as to the number of people who were effectively corralled into that small space. Questions such as: Were there really 5,000 people living simultaneously on the island? What diseases did most of the Garifuna die from? What artifacts did they take with them to the island? What can these artifacts tell us about the black Carib society of the 1790’s? Apart from the investigations of Bullen and Bullen (with the assistance of Early Kirby), and the earlier investigations of Fewkes, no follow up work has been done since.

There is the real fear that any hotel development will effectively shut out all relevant activities of locals and visitors alike: An inability to use the beaches, experience the exquisite landscape, and a denial to visit the site of the fallen Garifuna brethren will be a psychological blow to the Garifuna at home and abroad.

Such fears are real because a hotel development in Balliceaux would most likely go the route of Mustique – a playground for the rich and famous and perhaps not so famous too! Privacy and exclusivity would b be the operative words to describe such a development and locals visiting the island will not be appreciated. And, will known burial sites remain in situ or be bulldozed to put up fancy homes for the new ‘settlers’? Any such development will be tragic and a severe indictment of our government that is making some tentative steps under Minister Baptiste to show greater respect for our heritage.

Baptiste, however, cannot do it alone, and it is difficult to find anyone else in the cabinet with some degree of sensitivity and commitment to cultural issues. The lack of response from some Garifuna groups in SVG in relation to indigenous issues has concerned many Vincentians in recent times. The Garifuna Cultural Foundation headed by Zoila Ellis Browne, Belizean born wife of Mike Brown, Minister of National Mobilization , has said nothing and is not expected to say much about this issue, just as it kept silent during the 2005 Disney-Carib controversy over the filming of Pirates of the Caribbean when Disney producers insisted on writing scenes of Carib ‘cannibalism’ into the movie . So I call on Minister Baptiste, the only Minister with any “cultural worth” to protest against the sale/ lease of Balliceaux to any foreign developer.

The sad part though is that when there is a conflict between heritage preservation and economic development, the preservation and protection of the nation’s heritage s not given equal weight in the discussion. Too often the heritage agenda seems an ‘inconvenient moment ‘for the politician who is too busy ‘wheeling and dealing’ to stay in power; and the cry of economic development is always made to resonate more with the voters. But when we give away all our lands to foreigners and the critical decisions are made elsewhere, what tin pot politician with a hugely inflated ego will have the political and economic clout to influence a board meeting of a multinational firm in London, Paris, New York or Rome?

Today there is the real danger of the region losing ‘effective’ sovereignty to multi-national corporations when it hands over (selling/leasing) significant strips of territory to persons with unknown international connections. Such individuals, if not properly screened and effectively monitored, can bring more harm than good to our small and vulnerable island states in the Caribbean. We do not wish to be drawn into the vortex of the dangerous international drug cartels. The Regional Security System (RSS) and the local Coast Guards are still unable to adequately handle drug trafficking in the region, hence the importance of British and American naval forces in the region; and with so many islands now effectively controlled by foreign interests- Palm Island, Mustique, Canouan and now the prospect of both Balliceaux and Mayreau drifting further away from the control of the mainland, alarms bells must be sounded both at home and abroad.

The sale of Balliceaux is symptomatic of Caribbean peoples’ plight to retain control of their living spaces. Moreover, it is a slap in the face of organizations and experts who have counselled governments to be more cognizant of indigenous citizens’ rights to land ownership. The recent remarks of Dr Len Ishmael, Director-General of the OECS Secretariat, who in her address to the 46th Meeting of the OECS Authority in Dominica 16-18, January 2008, expressed alarm at the tremendous land sales to foreigners that was slowly disenfranchising locals from owning property. Ishmael noted that locals are not only being alienated from the ‘quiet use and enjoyment’ of their lands, but further criticized developers who were “acting in ways to intimidate locals from using beaches on which their resorts have frontage.” More importantly, she asked a number of fundamental questions:” What are we doing in the name of development? At what price is development? Is no price too high? Is the alienation of the rights of islanders a realistic price for what we define as progress? After the land is gone, what’s left?” After Balliceaux is gone, what’s left, Mr Prime Minister? These are some of the questions that the government of SVG must answer before it goes ahead with any more development projects.

Balliceaux can better serve the interests of the people of SVG if it is purchased by the government and converted into a heritage park for the enjoyment of all. We need not develop every square inch of land. And the sustainable development of both islands as national parks can bring enjoyment to the people and revenues to the public coffers. The government must find another way to reduce its deficit of over $1.2 billion EC Dollars. Selling Balliceaux and Battowia is not the solution to its financial woes, or the personal difficulties that the Prime Minister faces over multiple allegations of rape and sexual assault charges leveled against him by women at home and abroad.


THE GOVERNMENT OF ST VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES SELLING BALLICEAUX IS AN INSULT TO THE GARIFUNA PEOPLE WORLWIDE

May 5, 2008

By: Wellington C. Ramos

The island of Saint Vincent and all the other territories in the Caribbean, the Americas and the rest of the world existed long before the Europeans decided to venture into these regions and colonized them. The Europeans have always defended their colonization of these territories by saying these people were cannibals, pagans, backward and needed to be converted to Christianity. During the colonization, slavery and genocide that was committed by the Europeans against many of the native cultures of these regions causing their lives to be disrupted indefinitely. The Garifuna people who were labeled as “Black Caribs” by the British were living in that area since the early 1600’s and were first sighted by the French colonizers. Before the French came into that region, the Spanish attempted to conquer that region but they were defeated by their ancestors the native Kalinagu Indians.

The French were aware of the Spanish attempts to engage these people and were defeated so they came with a different strategy which was to try and convert them into becoming Christians and then colonize their territory. The Kalinagu Indians became suspicious of the French waged a war against them and forced them off the island. Yet, despite this defeat, the French claimed that this island and it’s people belong to them and ceded this island along with other territories in the Treaty of Paris signed with the British in 1763. Saint Vincent at the time was the largest agricultural producing nation in that region and the food that it produced was needed to feed the French invading forces. After the treaty was signed with the French, the British aggressively sought the colonization of this island. The native Kalinagus and the Garifunas decided to resist all attempts by the British to take over their native lands.

After many years of war the British defeated the Garifunas and the Kalinagus and interned them as Prisoners of War on the island of Balliceaux. The were subsequently deported to Roatan Honduras on April the 12th, 1797. Only a few thousand Garifuna people survived and they were handed over to the Spanish Crown. Most of the Garifuna people names were changed from French names and original Garifuna and Kalinagu names to Spanish. Today, a majority of the Garifuna people have Spanish names and they reside in the countries of; Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Belize and the United States. The Garifuna people have maintained their culture despite their ordeal with the Spanish, French and British colonial experience.

Today the Garifuna people’s music which is called “Punta Rock”, an upgraded version of one of their cultural dances called “Punta” have played a major role in internationalizing the Garifuna Culture. Famous Garifuna musicians and artists such as; Pen Cayetano the inventor, Andy Palacio, Chico Ramos, Muhubub Flores, Arielo Martinez, James Lovell, Poots Ti,Ti Man Flores, Paul Nabor Centino, Wrekless, Paula Castillo, Maimie Martinez, Rhodel Castillo, Aziatic, Guwie Augustine, Alvin Payne, Junior Aranda, Gabaga, Koro Velasquez, Brother Nate Francisco, Machete, Isawel Flores and many other Garifunas have all contributed to the continuing development of Punta Rock music. Even though Punta Rock and Jankunooh dances are highlighted the most, the Garifuna culture have more different type of dances and music that play a vital role in their culture. Garifuna music and dances that are utilized by Garifunas depending on the type of cultural activity they are engaged in at a given time and moment.

Since the Garifuna people were deported from their homeland, the government of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines have failed to do something significant to have an on-going cultural exchange program with the countries in Central America where the majority of Garifunas currently reside and practice their culture. Saint Vincentians could be sent to Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala and Belize to conduct cultrural researches and engage with their people in order to learn the language, religion, arts, crafts and all aspects of the Garifuna Culture. Embassies and Consulates should also be established in these countries now if there isn’t any.

Instead of trying to sell the island of Balliceaux, the Saint Vincent Government should establish a Garifuna Village and Museum on the island where the Garifuna people from Saint Vincent and the rest of the world can visit and witness all cultural activities taking place daily and the exhibits of the sites could be seen before they were deported. The revenue this will bring through tourism to the Government and people of Saint Vincent will far surpass the sale of the island. This would also accomplish the dual goals of preserving the culture and providing jobs and economic stimulus to the Saint Vincent economy. If the government was to make the mistake and sell this island, it will outrage the Garifuna community at large and a movement will emerge to stop that drastic move. I am now appealing to the people and government of Saint Vincent to think twice before they make this huge mistake.

■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

"Developing" the Carib People of Dominica?

As readers will have seen in the previous post at http://cacreview.blogspot.com/2006/04/carib-cultural-village-opens-in.html, the Government of Dominica seems to have developed an instrumentalist and top-down view of the "role" to be performed by the indigenous population of Dominica. Added to the Government's recent overthrow of the elected Carib Chief, this seems to be more than just distant conjecture.

It seems clearer now that the Government desires to not only politically control the Carib population--a Government embarrassed internationally by Chief Williams' campaign to denounce the entry of Disney onto Carib soil in a venture that would feature Caribs, once again, in a colonial light as mindless cannibals--but the Government also clearly wishes to use the Caribs as an economic tool. The Caribs seem to be slotted as mere window dressing in a professed strategy of developmentalist diversification, thus reduced to playthings for foreign tourists, and reduced to "resources" in the calculations of economists.

This is not an unusual strategy for any government that has inherited and upheld the colonial heritage at the basis of the putatively independent state. "Recognition" and "celebration" of the Carib presence, by a variety of contemporary Caribbean states, are tactics revealed in the light of day as instruments of control and containment. While on the one hand they are useful for countering outmoded assertions of extinction, on the other hand they are equally useful for ensuring the centrality of the state as a legitimate arbiter of authorized identifications.

Unfortunately, if established and recognizable historical patterns are anything to go by, one will find a few indigenous collaborators who are willing to suck up to those in power and who hunger after the tourist dollar. What is lost in the process is consciousness of how the "development" process often is a mere gloss for older campaigns once referred to by terms such as "civilization" and "assimilation." Obedience to both capital and the state may appear to be a tactic of survival, at least in the short-term; in the long-term, it is nothing but negotiated surrender. One is reminded here of Peter Tosh's famous line, "peace is the diploma you get in the cemetery."