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| http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/1955.htm |
Blog #1: History
Belize is a phenomenal tropical country located in Central America, to the East of Guatemala. To the right is a map of the country of Belize. Belize has formed in part by the African Diaspora though its culture, religion, and most evidently its music. A majority of the Belizean people identify themselves as Garifuna, a community with roots linked primarily to escaped African slaves and Caribbean Natives. They have a strong sense of community and culture and are known for their music and dancing abilities.
Belize is a phenomenal tropical country located in Central America, to the East of Guatemala. To the right is a map of the country of Belize. Belize has formed in part by the African Diaspora though its culture, religion, and most evidently its music. A majority of the Belizean people identify themselves as Garifuna, a community with roots linked primarily to escaped African slaves and Caribbean Natives. They have a strong sense of community and culture and are known for their music and dancing abilities.
The Belizean natives in America generally tend to identify themselves with both their Belizean heritage and their Garifuna ethnicity rather than having to choose between "black" or "Hispanic". This in its own right is a progressive movement for the Garifuna people.
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| Belize 2009 |
Below is a video showing the culture of the Garifuna people, from their perspective, in the country of Belize.
Sources:
http://www.africandiasporatourism.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=617:caribbean-artist-aurelio-martinez-to-take-garifuna-music-to-world&catid=93:culture-3&Itemid=134
http://www.africandna.com/ScienPapers%5CThe_African_diaspora_Mitochondrial_DNA_and_the_Atlantic_slave_trade.pdf
http://www.clas.ufl.edu/users/afburns/afrotrop/Garifuna.htm
I wanted to know more about the Garifuna after the video in class. Nice to see someone chose Belize, so we could all get a better idea of their heritage and history. I also liked how you touched on the fact that you saw the "tourist side" of Belize rather than the "real" thing. I think that's something that happens to most of us when we go on vacations-- we're robbed of that substantial experience. Interested in seeing more, and nice video at the end.
ReplyDeleteAnthony,
ReplyDeleteThank you for commenting on my blog. I also wanted to learn more about the Garifuna people and I actually got to meet a couple a few weeks ago during spring break! The only one I talked to on my trip who identified himself as Garifuna was named Robert. He was one of our two tour guides and the other, David, considered himself Creole. They both spoke Creole, which sounds like broken Spanish, and didn’t let the political fight of their two ethnicities effect their relationship. David spent a great deal of the trip explaining to us how the cruise ships were slowly taking over their city. Since we booked our trip through a local Belizean group, he was honest about how the ship was buying up Belizean land and hurting the local economy. It was sad to see, but he spread his message well. Him and I are currently Facebook friends and keep in touch. Again, thanks for the comment, see you in class on Tuesday!