African-Guyanese evolved as a distinct cultural group with its own interests and institutions within Guyanese society and was erected in early times on four foundations of village life – the church, farm, home and school. Former President David Granger, speaking on his weekly programme – The Public Interest – argued that the values of cohesion, co-equality, education and self-determination that underpinned African-Guyanese cultural identity were built on these very foundations. ‘Creole’ values generated a balanced, cohesive, harmonious, religious and self-satisfactory society.
The former President explained that the energetic evolution of African-Guyanese culture was clearly evident as early as four years after Emancipation in 1842 with the foundation of the British Guiana African Association and the publication of its newspaper – the Freeman’s Sentinel – which set the standard of creole representation. The Association precociously petitioned Queen Victoria in May 1842 for ‘…reparative justice’ with a litany of grievances and called for redress of “vexations which are secretly accumulating over the heads of the coloured people, which have forced them to combine for their mutual protection.” The newspaper “…encouraged the ex-slaves to build and unite the family and to fulfill their duties to the African community.”
Mr. Granger pointed out, further, that the economic foundation of the African-Guyanese community was strengthened with the establishment of innovative investments by rural Cooperative Credit Banks to overcome the lack of access to capital by raising funds to support peasant farming in 1905. Some persons retained the ancestral tradition of raising funds through informal schemes such as ‘box-hand’ to circumvent the difficulties in sourcing funds from formal banking institutions.
Cultural retention is evident in Guyana today in creative works in art (including sculpture), dance, drama, dress, family relations, folklore, food, literature, music, personal names, oral traditions, speech, storytelling and religious rituals. Patterns of speech are exemplified in the everyday use of words – ananse, cas-cas, fu-fu, kaanki, kokobé, kwe-kwe, metemgee and expressions – such as ‘eye-pass’, ‘cut-eye’; ‘hard-ears’ and ‘suck-teeth’. Personal male and female day-names – Kwasi/Akwasiba; Kwadwo/A’dowa; Kwabena/Abena; Kwaku/Akuwa; Yaw/Yawa; Kofi/Afuwa; Kwame/Amma – have remained common especially in villages over the past two centuries.
The former President added that African-Guyanese robust material culture was derived from skills acquired during the era of enslavement. Plantations required artisans – carpenters, coopers, sail-makers, smiths and wheelwrights – who transferred their talents towards improving their post-Emancipation properties. They manufactured artefacts, carts, bateaux (boats), casks, vats, musical instruments (banjos, drums and flutes), instruments, tools, utensils and structures which included churches, homes, schools and monuments.
Mr. Granger expressed support for the efforts of independent, non-governmental organisations. The programme of activities for the UN International Decade for People of African Descent, one objective of which is to “… promote a greater knowledge of and respect for the diverse heritage, culture and contribution of people of African descent” should be fulfilled. He argued that the African-Guyanese sub-culture is best propagated by seizing the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for African-Guyanese to concentrate their collective energies on consolidating the foundations of a good life for the present and future generations. 󠄀
