Students celebrate November 19th with music and dance

Across the country tonight, Garinagu, and the Garifuna at heart, are preparing to mark this year’s Settlement Day with dance, music, food, and tradition. Here in the city, some of our youngest citizens left the books behind to experience that culture first hand. News Five’s Jacqueline Woods reports.

Jacqueline Woods, Reporting
With November nineteenth only three days away, the spirit of celebration is intensifying throughout the country. As part of Garifuna Settlement Day activities, a number of students in Belize City took break from their regular classroom schedule to join in the festivities.

Melanie Cadle, Teacher, Central Christian School
?Well since Garifuna Settlement Day is approaching I think we should increase the awareness and I have a lot of Garinagu children in my classroom and I am trying to let them have that confidence and be proud of who they are. So basically it is for them to embrace their culture and to let the other students see what the Garinagu culture is all about.?

The standard six students of Central Christian School worked for several weeks researching information to display about the Garifuna culture and people. The exhibition included drumming and dancing much to everyone?s enjoyment.

Melanie Cadle
?I must thank my students because they helped a lot in the decorating and doing stuff that we needed, to make charts and to make the hudut and all of that.?

Our next stop took us to the Excelsior Junior High where other students from neighbouring schools were also invited to take part in that institution?s outdoor mini variety show.

Imogene Bowden, Bursar, Excelsior Junior High
?Since last week we have been teaching the students about the Garifuna, being this month of November is the celebration of Garifuna and the nineteenth. And so what we taught the students in class we want to show them with doing this. Tomorrow we will be cooking food, we have the dance. We had Mr. Cayetano on Monday.?

?Tomorrow we have an all day activity. We are doing a mock re-enactment ceremony and then we go from the school compound here at Excelsior over to St. John Vianney, our neighbourhood school, for a mass. And after the mass we will be parading back to the school and we will be having an all day drumming and we are also preparing food on the compound.?

Reporting for News Five, Jacqueline Woods.