Children celebrate Garifuna culture at rally
While schools all over the country are devoting social studies classes to studying Garifuna culture this month, some Belize City students were invited to a special rally at the House of Culture. It was a memorable afternoon for everyone, whatever their ethnic background… News Five’s Karla Heusner was there to enjoy the show.
Karla Heusner, Reporting
He may be small, but Layton Arzu is already a giant on the stage. He is part of the next generation of Garifuna performers. Unmasked, he told us why he loves to do the John Cunu…
Layton Arzu, 9 years old
?Because it?s my culture!?
Karla Heusner
?How do you feel when you are up on the stage dancing for people??
Layton Arzu
?Good!?
Sebastian Cayetano, President NGC, Belize City
?I see a lot of potential for our schools. Those children dancing John Cunu, that is so great, the little girls in the Garifuna attire, this is so nice, man. It?s now a matter of teaching the language, even a few words, a few sentences. This is the way to go. We can enrich our cultures this way.?
Sebastian Cayetano, President NGC, Belize City
?I am very pleased with the performances of the children: Muslim School, St. Ignatius, Wesley. They were quite good, very good. And especially St. Ignatius, we can see the effect of the training that is going on in the school by Miss Rosita Balthazar, Denmark Flores, and the other drummers as well.?
Denmark Flores, itinerant drumming teacher
?Hopefully next year we can have more of the kids doing their own stuff as in the singing and dancing and the drumming. So that instead of having people like me on the stage playing the drum, the kids can be up there doing it themselves; as well as for the dancing and the singing. Hopefully that could be plus for next year, so it will be a real children?s rally.?
Ivy Palacio has over sixteen years of experience with children?s choirs, teaching English, Spanish and Garifuna songs.
Karla Heusner
?Are they open, or resistant to doing songs in other languages??
Ivy Palacio, Teacher/Choir Director
?Oh, it’s fine with them. When I told them we were going to do a song in Garifuna, everybody jumped up. And they learned it so quickly. I taught that song for fifteen minutes and they got it. Enjoyed it.?
Demi Peyrefitte, 8 years old
?The first time they told me the song, the teacher told us to sing it and I knew it after a while. But the second piece, I didn?t understand, so I went over it. You can know it if you want to, but you just got to go over it a lot of times.?
Sebastian Cayetano
?Most of our students are not Garinagu, but they are into the Garifuna spirit… and that is the Belizean spirit. You don?t have to be one, but let?s cherish the spirit, share the spirit.?
Students
?Happy Garifuna Settlement Day!?
The children’s rally was a collaboration between the National Garifuna Council Belize City Branch, the House of Culture, and National Institute of Culture and History.
