The Garifuna (An ongoing project)

The Garifuna are an ethnic mix of Kalinago and enslaved Africans, sometimes called Black Caribs, who inhabited the island of Saint Vincent. It is disputed whether the Africans arrived via shipwreck, mutiny, or escaping from nearby islands. They resisted slavery against English invaders during the 1700s with much success. Saint Vincent was the last Caribbean island to succumb to colonization in 1797. Before being deported to Roatan Island in Honduras, the Garifuna were imprisoned on Baliceaux Island, where over half of the 5000 died of starvation and disease.

Slightly more than 200 years after displacement and near extinction, the Garifuna now has a population of roughly 600,000, mainly on the coasts of Honduras and Belize, but with a significant diaspora in major US cities, including 200,000 in New York City.

In 2001, UNESCO proclaimed the music, dance, and language of the Garifuna a “Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.” Despite this distinction, people today fear the culture is at risk of being lost because of cultural assimilation and a lack of education and awareness. A fight ensues to keep the culture thriving.