CELEBRATING EMANCIPATION DAY

Jul 30, 2016 Editorial, Features / Columnists

Like other English speaking CARICOM countries, Guyana will celebrate Emancipation Day on Monday in observance of the abolition of slavery 182 years ago in 1834. However, there are those who say that this is the 178th anniversary.
The commemoration of Emancipation Day began on August 1, 1838. It is an important day, not only for Guyana, but also in many areas in the United States, Canada and other parts of world. It is a day when Guyanese, especially, Afro-Guyanese, celebrate the freedom of their African ancestors and the beginning of the Guyanese nation. It ended an era of the dehumanization, brutalization and cultural destruction of man by man.
The institution of slavery lasted for more than 400 years. It was the most inhumane in the history of mankind. It was a phenomenon that spanned the globe. It was organized and executed by Europeans in pursuit of the accumulation of wealth and the development of Europe. Slavery brought affluence to the nations of Europe and North America and poverty and underdevelopment to the Caribbean and other regions of the world. It explains the current disparity in wealth between the rich and poor countries.
Emancipation has not only ended slavery in Guyana, it also sparked several radical changes in the social, political, economic and cultural life of the country. It was responsible for the arrival of the other racial groups who were brought to Guyana as indentured servants from India, China, Madeira (Portugal) and other parts of Europe and Africa to replace the African labour force on the sugar plantations.
Emancipation had a positive effect on the development of towns and villages in the country.
The triumph of the African slaves created the opportunity for the development of modern villages and towns inhabited by the majority of Guyanese today. It was the dawn of a new era that gave birth to the trade union movement, the liberation of trade, development and the opening of the hinterland by pork knockers.
The civil service was born and the setting-up of artesian shops and small businesses created new communities. Many earned a living through the planting of cash crops while others with skills were employed.
In Guyana, Emancipation was once a week-long celebration of events of cultural activities, festivals, concerts, parades, galas and a wreath laying ceremony as a tribute to the ancestors. Today it is confined to a day. Most of the festivities are organized by the Africa Cultural and Development Organization (ACDA) and the Cuffy 250 group with the common goal of promoting African culture.
Every year, the ACDA would choose a country from Africa as part of the festival since most Afro-Guyanese do not know their ancestral country. But, in honor of the 50th Independence Anniversary, ACDA has chosen Guyana to showcase its glorious history with a focus on the community of Baracara, a small village along the banks of the Canje River in East Berbice where many slaves had lived.
The theme for this year celebration is ‘African Guyanese achievements in the year of our Jubilee’ with a sub theme, “Building Strong Families through Entrepreneurship.”
Emancipation Day is a holiday in Guyana. Thousands of Guyanese, decked out in African outfits will celebrate in different areas of the country. However, the National Park will be the main venue for an all-day event and activities until nightfall when it transforms itself into an open air party with popular music.
Activities will include exhibitions, the display of African craftwork, artifacts, drawings and paintings, African and indigenous cuisine, colorful booths with posters, photographs, books and other printed materials that provide information on African history.
Happy Emancipation Day to all!

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