NY-based Guyanese urged to promote Guyana’s history, culture
Guyanese have had a historical, impacting contribution to New York City and Ohio-based professor Dr Vibert Cambridge, a son of the soil, is encouraging various generations of Guyanese resident in the Big Apple to promulgate and feature that rich history.Dr Cambridge made the call while addressing an audience at the 15th award ceremony of the Guyana Cultural Association (GCA), held at the Brooklyn Borough Hall in Brooklyn, New York Wednesday evening last.
A section of the audience at the event
Speaking to the large gathering of countrymen and women, Dr Cambridge who is President of the body, noted that the GCA is working as part of its mandate to generate content, including research and documentation of the Guyanese presence in New York, stretching way before 1966 when Guyana attained independence from Great Britain.
”In 1902 we had Guyanese here; in 1919 we had Rudolph Dunbar as a student here,” he said, as he called on the young generations of today to assist the GCA in telling “the story of the Guyanese presence in New York “.
The award ceremony was undertaken to honour persons who have contributed to the development of the arts in Guyana and it also recognized the contributions of several outstanding Guyanese based on the US.
According to Dr Cambridge, the GCA celebrates individuals who embody core values which promote originality and contribute to innovation within the arts.
The past 15 years have been marvelous, he said, and have been inspired by works of many outstanding Guyanese including the late Wordsworth McAndrew, whose spirit, he noted, showcased and celebrates the multiple roots of Guyana’s cultural heritage.
He said that that as the late Godfrey Chin would say “our mission is to preserve to promote and to promulgate Guyana’s heritage and creativity.”
He said that the work of the GCA is guided by the belief that Guyanese folk heritage reveal common threads which connect.”
Members of the National Dance Company perform during a reception following the award ceremony
“It is very easy to find the thing which separates us,” he said, noting that the GCA believes that when one seeks those common threads, one establishes and deepen thrust.
“Without intersecting trust there can be no sustainable development in Guyana,” he added, noting that that it was his only political statement for the night, as the audience laughed.
Dr Cambridge noted that over the past 15 years, the GCA has worked on preserving original research on Guyanese cultural heritage. He pointed to the body’s work aimed at reviving the masquerade art in Guyana, noting that there are a number of tangible efforts to support the art form.
Dr Cambridge noted that masquerade transcends grace and efforts are being undertaken to revive the form in Guyana . He said at the moment Essequibo possesses more masquerade bands than any other part of the country, including Berbice where no band can be found.
He noted that Dr Paloma Mohammed is pressing the study of masquerade lyrics in Guyana and according to him, she noted that there is much more to the few lyrics which is usually heard annually “Christmas comes once a year and everyone should have their share,” a sour ginger beer chorus, he said.
In terms of promotion, the GCA’s annual symposium is an area which he pointed out as is key to sharing Guyana’s rich heritage.
He spoke of the “we bridging” initiative, a collaborative approach involving persons in Guyana, New York and the wider diaspora, which points to a strategy for closing in on the cultural deficit. To this end , Dr Cambridge noted that in future, the GCA will give priority to partnerships, noting that body is looking forward to strengthening relations with the Brooklyn Arts Council and the University if Guyana, among other entities.
At Wednesday evening’s event, several persons were presented with awards including Guyanese Online advocate Cyril Bryan for his leading focus on expanding and enhancing the interests of Guyanese everywhere. Writer and Educator Cyril Dabydeen was also presented with an award for his contributions as short-story writer novelist as well as an advocate for race relations.
Egbert Carter , an expert in engineering field was also recognized for his work as a cultural enabler while Beverley Drake , one of Guyana’s first female pilots was also recognised at the event.
The highlight of the evening was the presentation of a lifetime award to Claire Ann Goring, an artist and cultural advocate who advanced Guyana’s festive and graphic arts for almost four decades.
Members of the National Dance Company also graced the event and its members who travelled to the US via assistance from the Department of Culture, Youth and Sport later entertained visitors to the event.
