Bumper crowd, cultural feast at Seville vigil

Whether it was because they were happy that the two-year hiatus engendered by the COVID-19 pandemic was over, or that the significance of Emancipation Day was not lost on them, or that the admission was free, or a combination thereof, patrons turned out for the 2022 Emancipation jubilee vigil in their thousands.

The grounds of the Seville Heritage Park in St Ann was the place to be on Sunday night, it seemed. But it was not just about being there. Patrons got a cultural feast, including a great variety of traditional Jamaican foods. And if you saw people going around sipping something from enamel mugs, that something was hot ‘chawlit tea’. The brew itself was reserved for persons who had bought the commemorative utensils on which ‘Emancipation Jubilee Seville Heritage Park’ and the Jamaica 60 logo are printed.

This explosion of Jamaican culture occurred at a place where the first European settlement was established on the island, and which could be regarded as the starting point of the evolution of the Jamaican nation.

There, some of our ancestors lived and died under the brutal system of chattel slavery, the emancipation from which their descendants are celebrating.

Accompanied by drums that were outlawed during slavery, and other instruments, Jamaique Ensemble,William Knibb High School dancers, Carifolk Singers, Manchioneal Cultural Group, Hatfield Cultural Group, Charles Town Maroons Drummers and Dancers, the Port Morant Kumina Group, the Islington Cultural Groupe, and a Nigerian ensemble thrilled, tickled, and wowed. They did not hold back, for it was jubilee and they were free.

A few minutes after the magic hour, there was a taped reading of the 1838 Emancipation proclamation by Andrew Brodber, after which the Port Morant Kumina Group from St Thomas led a procession to the African Tomb in which the remains of enslaved Africans were reinterred.On the said tomb, the group drummed and danced as they paid homage to the spirits of the ancestors. White rum was then splashed to appease them, after disturbing the peace in which they were resting.

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Floral tributes were made by Minister of Culture, Entertainment, Gender and Sport Olivia Grange; Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Kamina Johnson Smith; High Commissioner of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Dr Maureen Tamuno; and Geoffrey Onyeama, Nigeria’s minister of foreign affairs.

The drums were then paused for the unveiling of two storyboards. One which narrates the story of the African Tomb was unveiled by Senator Johnson Smith and her Nigerian counterpart. The other that explains the role that Minion ‘Sista Minnie’ Phillips played in the return of the remains of two enslaved Africans to Ghana, where they were re interred, was uncovered by her son, Manchester North Western Member of Parliament Mikael Phillips.

Amid the singing, drumming and dancing there were speeches, such as the one given by Orville Hill, chairman of the Jamaica National Heritage Trust’s (JNHT) board of trustees. Among other things, he said, “As a people, we have fought long and hard, similar to our African ancestors, to overcome the challenges of the pandemic. I believe that the spirit that was within them then is the same spirit that is within us now, and that has helped to propel us to our freedom. Therefore, let us reignite that African spirit.”

‘Reigniting the African Spirit’ was the theme for the night.

In reflection, Culture Minister Grange said that as people sing and dance, they should be reminded that the traditional songs and dances “were the platforms on which we built our past, future and prosperity”.She said that we had sung and danced our way out of slavery, and that these songs drove fear into the hearts of the oppressors and “built resolve in our people”. They are songs of freedom that give us “therapy, inspiration, conviction and passion”.

“Tonight, we pause to honour those ancestors whose names we do not know … .We salute them all tonight in these songs of freedom … . We must continue to sing theses songs of freedom with our children and their children,” the minister further said.

Also addressing the gathering were Senator Johnson Smith; Michele Creed-Nelson, executive director of the JNHT; Dr Carey Wallace, executive director of the Tourism Enhancement Fund; and Marsha Smith, minister of state in the Ministry of Finance and member of Parliament for North East St Ann.

When The Gleaner left shortly after 2 a.m., Markland Edwards was warming up as the MC for the second segment of the show. Some people were still strolling in, others were fast asleep on the mound and elsewhere. They were going nowhere, for it was a vigil in Seville.