Caribbean American Heritage Month
Georgia Report for 2009

We survived another year observing the Fourth Anniversary of Caribbean American Heritage Month. The planning committee was somewhat nervous as we planned the activities, given the present state of the economy. However, as in previous years, everything came together as we had another unforgettable year.

Opening Reception at Atlanta City Hall Atrium

This lovely venue of Atlanta City Hall was again made available to us for this year’s Opening Reception on May 31st. We had the largest attendance ever – approximately twice the number of people we had last year. There were also several elected officials in attendance. Barbados was the featured Caribbean country, and largely with the effort of the members of the Metropolitan Cricket Club, the different Barbadian groups teamed up with our committee to make Barbados shine by food contributions, attendance and sponsorship.

We had the same activities as last year– the national dress, country displays, Caribbean food tasting, but again, there were additional country participants. The attendees had a special treat with the stellar performance of Ron Bobb Semple as the embodiment of the Honorable Marcus Garvey. Mr. Bobb Semple traveled from Florida to be part of the occasion.

Spiritual Reflection

Area churches and other religious establishments were again invited to observe the Month during the first full weekend in June. One of metro Atlanta’s historic churches, Big Bethel AME Church, was the site of Caribbean American Heritage Sunday during the last Sunday in June. If other religious establishments held special services in June, we were not made aware of it. It should be noted that at least two churches in the metro area organize Caribbean programs at other times during the year.

Caribbean Cultural Variety Show

This year, the committee collaborated with the Lou Walker Senior Center to hold this event. The center has a large Caribbean membership from DeKalb County, with a waiting list several years long, and felt it was a great opportunity to get the seniors involved. The event was spectacular and a wonderful display of Caribbean folk arts. Cultural groups from different organizations approached us about showcasing their culture, which made it much easier for planning purposes. In addition, there were stunning performances from some Lou Walker seniors. We already have an invitation from the center for a repeat performance next year.

Caribbean Film and Literary Festival

The Atlanta-Fulton County Public Library and the Auburn Avenue Research Library joined with us in a big way to put on a week-long Caribbean Film Festival at the Central Library and a Literary Festival at the Auburn Avenue Research Library. Both were quite successful. The kick-off for film festival was a screening of the film Hit for Six, which was filmed in Barbados The literary festival featured Dr. Anthony Kellman from Barbados and Naomi Sims, a Jamaican author.

Caribbean Day at the Atlanta Braves

This was designed to be a fundraiser for our group, as well as an effort to reach out to mainstream groups in the community. With a specific number of ticket sales, representatives from the Caribbean would have had the opportunity to display their flags on the field during half time at the baseball match, but we did not quite make the numbers. Again, it was a good attempt to reach out to other groups and definitely worth repeating next year.

Resume Critique and Job Readiness Seminar

We held this activity earlier in the year, with moderate success. The committee decided to repeat the event during June with the hope that it would generate more interest, given the additional publicity. The seminar was open to all, but was an extension of the mentoring internship program for youth. Several professionals were on hand to assist. Unfortunately, attendance was not great. It is still worthwhile repeating the seminar, or perhaps doing it in conjunction with another organization.

For several years, the committee has been striving to include more meaningful activities in addition to arts and culture. These have included town hall meetings with panelists to discuss issues important to the Caribbean community (e.g. immigration, education, AIDs in the Caribbean). We have also organized business seminars, discussion groups with the Carter Center, an interfaith service. Surprisingly, there has been less support for these activities. Given the amount of time and effort involved in putting these activities together, not to mention the disappointment of the invited experts who are trying to impart important information to a handful of people, the committee prefers to wait until members of the community requests these activities. One of our goals is to organize a trade seminar with the help of some major players in the metro area.

Mentoring-Internship Program

This year we met with an established mentoring group, the Meeting of the Hearts Mentoring Program in DeKalb County. They work with the schools to mentor high school youth whose parents are incarcerated. We discussed with them the possibility of a collaborative effort to find internships with Caribbean and other businesses. However, while they have a surplus of mentees, we could not find as many businesses as last year willing to take interns. So the program is still in limbo.

Caribbean Comedy Festival and GCAHC Awards Presentation

The special activity of the Month was the Comedy Awards Presentation. Our mentor for the comedy segment was Von Martin, who had been hosting the Caribbean Comedy Festival in Washington, D.C. for the past 25 or so years. We managed to bring from the Caribbean comedians Elva Rudduck from Jamaica, Nikki Crosby from Trinidad and Tobago, and MacFingall from Barbados (thanks to sponsorship of Barbados Tourism Authority). After performing in Atlanta, the comedians traveled to D.C. for the annual Comedy Festival. This was a first for Atlanta, and people are still talking about the show. We definitely plan to repeat this event, again collaborating with Von Martin.

We used to occasion to recognize our two major sponsors, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, and Kroger, for sponsoring GCAHC for three consecutive years. We also gave awards to three area restaurants: Royal Caribbean Bakery, Liz International Roti House, and Kool Runnings Restaurant, for their service to the community.

Outreach

Attorney Tracy Lettsome joined with Jason Walker’s organization and others to participate once again in Congressman John Lewis’ Multicultural Festival. a Caribbean display, food tasting and cultural performances. It is good for our image for us to be associated with these kinds of community events.

Sponsorship

Not surprisingly, our sponsorship was reduced this year. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport was our main sponsor, with Kroger sponsoring us at a reduced level this year. Publix also came through with a gift certificate. Barbados Tourism Authority was a welcome sponsor of our comedian from Barbados. Coming on board for the first time as a Patron was Antiguan native and local entrepreneur, Mr. Egbert Perry, of Integral. We definitely hope to cultivate that relationship.

Next Year

One of the additional tasks inherited by the committee this year is teaming up with the U.S. Census Bureau in order to get a complete and accurate count of Caribbean nationals. Although other local groups and individuals are also working in this area, the GCAHC is the largest coalition of Caribbean nationals in the metro area and has made an effective start in this task. The focus right now is the planning of a major Caribbean Census Day one month before the Census on April 1, 2010.

At the same time, we still have to plan our events for Caribbean American Heritage Month. Looks like we are going to be extremely busy! Among the ideas being bounced around right now, in addition to our annual events, is the Comedy Show and to help stage a Caribbean play.