Toussaint 2009, by Fabienne Flessel

In Guadeloupe, blogger Mycho has decided to resume her blogging activity for the occasion. Her short post highlights two important aspects of this celebration of the lost ones, which are the tradition and the family dimension:

Comme d'habitude, les Guadeloupéens vont illuminer les tombes. C'est toujours une occasion de se souvenir de ceux qui ne sont plus là, mais aussi de revoir ceux qui sont bien présents, mais que l'on n'a pas l'occasion de croiser bien souvent. Un moment de tristesse et de joie mêlées.

Toussaint 2009 in Le Moule, by Fabienne Flessel

La collectivité régionale participe à l'opération à hauteur de 20 000 euros.

This is the presentation of the above-mentioned professional integration project:

Depuis samedi [1 novembre 2009], cinquante deux jeunes procèdent au nettoyage des tombes à l'abandon dans le Sud Basse-Terre et en Côte-sous-le-vent.

Domactu also posted about the traditional celebration of “la Toussaint” in Martinique:

Un moment qui rassemble toutes les générations pour honorer la mémoire de leurs morts.

However, in this post, we also learn that the tradition has changed gradually, since families tend to discharge the maintenance of their graves:

Mais c'est aussi l'occasion pour certains de se faire un peu d'argent. Tous les services sont donc bons à prendre.

Nettoyage de tombe, peinture, embellissement des caveaux sont autant de jobs que se partagent petits et grands…

For her part, Martinican blogger Imaniyé has decided to honor her ancestors by taking part in “An mémwa, Véyé Kont pour lézansèt” (Creole for “In memory of the ancestors, a storytelling evening”). Here is what she says about this cultural, historical and religious event:

En ces jours de Toussaint et de Fête des morts, pour la première fois, Amérindiens autochtones et Africains déportés sont honorés au cours de la même cérémonie. C’est très important. Pour les Amérindiens exterminés en 1658, comme pour les esclaves dont la dépouille git dans des cimetières inconnus, partout en Martinique. J’y participe. Je vous y invite.

In this very informative and well-documented post, Pyepimanla explores the celebration of “la Toussaint” among the descendants of the Indian immigrants in Guadeloupe as well as the impact of the recent trend of celebrating Halloween in the French West Indies. This last topic is fiercely debated in a post and comments on Bondamanjak.

From French Guiana, blogger Nuguet expresses his surprise at the fact that a guided tour of the cemetery of Cayenne on All Saints' Day is actually a historical account of immigration and politics in French Guiana. He also had a chance to discover the almost festive spirit of this family celebration.

Finally, blogger Espas Ayisyen Toulouse, a Haitian expatriate in France, republishes a post about the dual celebration of “Toussaint” and “the Guédés” in Haiti:

Le premier jour de novembre est consacré à la fête de La Toussaint. Les fidèles catholiques vénèrent en cette occasion leurs saints et entretiennent la mémoire d’un membre cher de leur famille décédé.
[…]
La fête des Guédés, commémorée le 2 novembre, est typique de la religion vaudou en Haïti. Dans la mythologie du vaudou, les Guédés représentent les esprits de la Mort.

The bloggers from HN2000 also explain the dual celebration, but emphasize the fact that it is not unanimously accepted in Haiti:

En fait, encore une fois les fidèles catholiques et les vaudouisants vont pouvoir rendre nouvellement un hommage ou une nouvelle visite à leurs proches disparus. D’autre en plus, ils vont glorifier leurs dieux, un comportement sévèrement jugé par les protestants.

Grenadian Blah Bloh Blog says:

Although I’m a good 150 miles overseas, I must admit to a great deal of personal excitement over the impending arrival of President Obama in Trinidad; we can only hope he might decide on a spur of the moment rest-stop in Greenz perhaps?

For the past week or so, as advance security measures have begun, Grenada’s Point Salines International Airport has become a hub for the U.S. Air Force. F15 jets and C5 transports occupy a section of the runway, with the F15s maintaining a steady rotation of recon/surveillance flights.

Here’s hoping to hear some good news out of the Summit.

Good news may have to wait, but Blah Bloh Blog certainly spread some confusing news in the form of photos (allegedly of the arrival of The Beast) at Piarco International Airport, although there is no confirmation as to whether the vehicle in question is actually the U.S. President's limousine - but that didn't stop her from commenting:

Lawd, I have to love mi Trini brudders and dem - yuh ent see dem posing wid de man vehicle!! (For what it’s worth, I understand these pictures were taken by T&T police officers, not civilians. I know we Caribbean people good, but we ent so good dat de Secret Service go let we jus’ be liming around de most secure car in de world).

Other bloggers, however, are focused on more controversial issues. From Trinidad and Tobago, Undisputed Truth has the financial impact of hosting the Summit on his mind:

The government of Trinidad and Tobago is spending between $1 billion to $2 billion TT dollars (US$161 million - US$323 million) of taxpayer money on the Summit. So far they are yet to publicly disclose the exact figure.

Trinidad’s GDP is only about US$15 billion. Trinidad is therefore spending about 13% of its GDP just to host the Summit. Prime Minister of Trinidad Patrick Manning has been mentioning his intentions to host the Summit for years. He has translated this into creating state agencies to quickly renovate and construct high-rise buildings in and around Port-of-Spain and the country each costing hundreds of millions of dollars. So the real cost of the Summit may be even scarier.

To put this into perspective, the G20 Summit hosted in London costed just £20 million or TT$180 million or US$29 million. So Trinidad is spending as much as 10 times the cost of the G20 Summit for the Summit of the Americas.

This is an absolute scandal and waste of money…

Barbadian blogger Cheese-on-bread! adds:

All eyes will be focused over the next few days on Trinidad, where President Barack Obama will be attending the 5th Summit of the Americas. I must admit now that although I would have been thrilled to get a glimpse of Mr. President, I don't think we could afford the expense that comes with hosting him. Reports suggest that T&T is spending TT$1.2 billion on the summit…thank God they have oil money. No bosie, it doesn't make sense putting ourselves in the poor house to put on a good show for the Americans.

Part of the President's surveillance has been set up here at the Grantley Adams International Airport, and I imagine all their satellites must be trained on Trinidad at this moment. All the criminals will probably be lying low this weekend…

Over in the French Caribbean, Carib Creole One [Fr] is carefully following Summit developments and ponders on issues of self-governance and inter-Caribbean relations. He also takes a look at the complex relationship between the U.S. and Cuba.

Live in Guyana talks about the “Great Wall“:

The residents of Beetham Gardens, a drab area of rundown government housing and relentless gang warfare, have been cut off from the rest of this sprawling Trinidadian capital.

The government has erected a wall along the neighborhood's frayed edges, blocking the view into a long troubled community that shares space with the murky waters of industrial waste, overgrown weeds and the constant stench of the nearby landfill.

The 5-foot-tall wall is simply a beautifying touch, say government officials, who have spent months prepping for the arrival this week of 33 leaders including President Barack Obama at the largest and most important gathering of hemispheric leaders.

But it seems that Guyana has some Summit controversy of its own. Caribbean American Forum notes that:

The New York Caribbean Guyana Institute for Democracy (CGID)…published a full page ad telling summit participants that ‘There is a crisis of governance in Guyana which has burgeoned from unparalleled corruption, bad and despotic governance and the abrogation of the rule of law. Guyana’s democracy is tenuous at best and the nation stands at the threshold of failed statehood.'

T&T-based Now is Wow Too finds the theme of the Summit (Securing Our Citizens' Future by Promoting Human Prosperity, Energy Security and Environmental Sustainability) incredibly ironic:

T&T GOVERNMENT: Citizens? What citizens? All we care about is hurriedly spending at least $500 million dollars to fix up the country so that it looks good for Obama … and the rest of the world.

Quick! He's flying in today! Forget about the global financial crisis. Let's dish out about $1 million US to rehabilitate the airport so we can accommodate the US Presidential aircrafts and the other jets that are bringing in our important guests!

Paint all the lines, roadsigns, lightpoles, tree trunks … in fact, paint every and anything on the road along the route from the airport to Port-of-Spain! We can't afford to let Obama see any of our infrastructure looking old and ratty! And never mind if the citizens are stuck for hours in traffic while we spruce up. They're used to it.

(… i.e. the traffic, not the sprucing up).

Pave the roads and fix any potholes in areas where Obama and other foreign Heads of State have to pass! Build a wall (… and call it a ‘berm') to hide the 'slums' in the Beetham so our important guests won't see the poverty!

And on that note, drive around and pick up all the vagrants so it will look like we don't have a problem with homelessness and madness. Some of these social outcasts are running away, but hopefully not in the direction of the Summit centre!

As if to address her concerns, public relations blog 5 am at Mango Media Caribbean interviews a spokesperson for the Summit Secretariat, who claims that “we are ready alright [for the Summit]; we have been ready for awhile” - this despite countless stories of a lack of preparedness in the local mainstream media.

In fact, Trinidad blogger B.C. Pires, who now lives in Barbados, is convinced that the best place to be for the Summit is anywhere outside of Port of Spain:

The Summit of the Americas starts tomorrow and the big shots start arriving today, with Barack Obama being the biggest shot of them all, of course. And you won’t be able to move a muscle in town until Barack and the Beast ride out again.

He's not far off - Caribbean Beat Blog, for instance, reports that:

Caribbean Airlines (CAL) has been informed by the relevant authorities that there will be limited disruptions to its scheduled operations during the Fifth Summit of the Americas…CAL is recommending that passengers depart for the airport much earlier than usual, in the event that any traffic pile-ups occur, in order to arrive at the airport three hours ahead of their scheduled flight departure time.

But there is a lighter side to the Summit as well - at least in the eyes of bloggers. As always, Trinidadian This Beach Called Life uses humour to focus on key issues, posting a fictitious diary entry from President Obama:

The trip to Mexico was eventful. We promised to use less illicit drugs and Mexico promised to export less gardeners. I am now on my way to sunny Trinidad and Tobago and can’t wait to see the Hyatt.

I can see a few tall buildings, the Great Beetham Wall and Hugo waving a red flag. Port of Spain looks good from this angle but there are wires hanging everywhere. I wonder if they managed to round up the homeless and hide them from the international press. This was so Third World, the cleaning up for the Summit but denying it wasn’t so. Only a Banana Government would act this foolish. I wonder if there is going to be any protest but I don’t think a semi-dictatorial leader would allow something as democratic as protests to take place during an international event. It would make them look even worse.

Culture is also playing a role - both officially and unofficially. Caribbean Free Radio's flickr photostream displays a photoset entitled “The People Must Be Herd”, along with the following explanation…

As final preparations are being made for the staging of the 5th Summit of the Americas in Trinidad, a group of artists will do a performance installation on the streets of Trinidad and Tobago's capital, Port of Spain.

The silent procession is part of a video installation being created by the band’s designers Ashraph Ramsaran and Shalini Seereeram.

T’in Cow Fat Cow debuted as an independent mas band in 2009, inspired by the song T'in Cow by 3 Canal.

…while Repeating Islands blog has the scoop on the cultural presentation for the official Summit opening later today:

For the opening ceremony, [carnival designer] MacFarlane has put together a 45-minute cultural presentation that traces the development of the Caribbean peoples from the indigenous inhabitants to the multi-ethnic citizenry of the region today.

What the Fifth Summit of the Americas will eventually achieve is still up for debate, but one thing is certain: the multi-ethnic citizenry of the blogosphere will monitor its progress every step of the way.

On the blog Les Scoops d'or, Lagencedecom’ and Scoop announce the launch of a new blog and website competition in the West Indies [Fr]:

Après le succès de l’édition 2008, les Scoops d’or reviennent en 2009 avec un nouveau défi : faire découvrir non plus uniquement les sites internet de la Martinique, mais ceux aussi de Guadeloupe, Guyane et de la Diaspora antillaise.

A cette occasion nous lancons notre site Internet qui permettra à tout un chacun de visiter la première exposition virtuelle des meilleurs sites internet de la caraïbe francophone.

Competing categories include:

Sites Perso/Blog, Sites de Ecommerce, Site ou blogs d’Entreprises, Sites de Media, Réseau Sociaux & Forums

At present, there are about 69 blogs registered in the competition and the leaders thus far are “Massacre sur Facebook” for Guadeloupe, with 88 votes and “Kasper Extended” in Martinique, with 144 votes. In French Guiana, the frontrunner is a blog with a pun on the French name “Guy' Yann“, which has had the most votes so far: 365. Finally, the West Indian diaspora is represented by “Zagriyen.fr” which has garnered only 9 votes - on par with Bondamanjak, a socially and politically-oriented Martinican blog, whose vote tally is also 9 at the time of this posting.

While the votes increase every day, there are great discrepancies in the numbers depending on the territory - French Guiana appears to be the most active, as compared with the poor showing for blogs from the diaspora. This is probably exactly why the “Scoops” team has launched the project - to encourage more interaction among bloggers. One way that the organizers of the contest try to keep the discussion going is by featuring interviews with bloggers in the blog section of the website.

If you want to know more about this fast-growing phenomenon in the French West Indies, “Les Scoops d'Or” can be easily found on Facebook and Twitter.

The deadline for this competition is May 10th 2009, and results in the different categories will be made public from May 11th to 17th in Martinique, Guadeloupe, French Guiana and Paris. Don't forget to press the “J'aime” button to vote for your favorite blog!

Local intellectuals like Raphaël Confiant in Montray Kréyol, politicians and journalists have written open letters to express the shock, sadness and humiliation felt by many non-Béké Martinicans after watching the documentary. One of them, Gilles Dégras in Bondamanjak concludes his statement by insisting on the need for apologies [Fr]:

Aujourd'hui, monsieur Despointes, vous avez l'occasion de désamorcer cette bombe que vous décrivez comme étant plus forte que ‘Hiroshima'. Eh oui cette bombe est mentale, c'est du napalm structurel. […] je vous demande simplement au nom de la caste béké, de présenter au peuple martiniquais et plus particulièrement aux descendants d'esclaves, vos plus plates excuses

Interestingly enough, even other members from the Béké community have broken away from Despointes's words, as explained here by bondamanjak.

However, the population of Martinique asks for more than apologies and strikes back on three main issues:

1. Law
Alain Huyghes Despointes, who spoke the controversial words, is proudly introduced here by the Martinican Association for the Promotion of Industry:

Monsieur Alain HUYGHUES DESPOINTES, pionnier de l'industrie à la Martinique a été promu au rang de Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur le par décret du Président de la République le 13 juillet 2005.

Né en 1926 à Fort de France, ce père de 5 enfants, autodidacte, est aujourd'hui à la tête d'un groupe de 8 entreprises aux Antilles Guyane employant près de 550 personnes.

This honor from the French Republic is a bone of contention for most Martinicans, who consider the decoration totally incompatible with Despointes' views about ethnicity and slavery. As a matter of fact, in 2001, France recognized slavery as a crime against humanity in a law named after a French Guianese deputy: Taubira Law.

Last week, a Martinican lawyer, supported by the public attorney, decided to sue Mr. Despointes for what is being interpreted as his racist and pro-slavery words - and encouraged the population to do the same. Montray Kréyol and bondamanjak suggest procedures to bring the man into court.

2. Economics
Others have chosen another means of protest, which has become quite popular lately in the French West Indies: economic boycott.
Wmaker, maracudja in lepost and M-J T-P in lepetitlexiquecolonial all call for a general boycott of Mr Despointes' various industries.

3. Physical presence
Since the abolition of slavery in 1848, the Békés have lived a segregated life in a secluded Martinique lagoon called Cap-Est - also known as “Békéland”. Bondamanjak features a video entitled Welcome to Cap-Est - a parody of the now famous documentary The Last Masters of Martinique set to the tune of Welcome to Jamrock by Damian Marley. The song suggests that Martinicans are fustrated when they see the luxurious mansions, cars and boats in Cap-Est, as they represent the many symbols of Békés' wealth. The Béké community, meanwhile, appears to be very much aware of and perhaps even concerned about this turn of events - this last post [Fr] by bondamanjak reveals that they have asked for police surveillance in their neighborhood.

One Martinican blogger, blogdemoi explains her interest in watching the documentary after presenting the synopsis [Fr]:

Voilà le synopsis, disponible sur le site de Canal+, concernant ”Les derniers maîtres de la Martinique” (production: TAC Presse):

En Martinique, moins de 1% de la population détient 52% des terres agricoles. Il s’agit des békés, les héritiers des vieilles familles blanches, installées dans l’île avant la Révolution française.

Pour Spécial Investigation, Romain Bolzinger enquête sur une communauté méconnue et discrète qui a traversé les siècles en préservant ses coutumes, ses richesses et ses codes et dresse le portrait d’un département rongé par les inégalités et les rancoeurs post-coloniales.

blogdemoi draws attention to the pseudo-coincidental time of the broadcast - when the neighboring island of Guadeloupe is still shaken by a mobilization which questions the monopoly of a few families, and as another mobilization is scheduled in Martinique on February 5th 2009:

Le timing est presque parfait vu que les syndicats martiniquais appellent à la grève générale ‘contre la vie chère' (selon l’expression désormais consacrée) à partir du jeudi 5 février.

She expresses her fears concerning the consequences of this broadcast, at a time when economic and ethnic matters tend to get all mixed up:

Ca risque de faire mal.
[…]Il faudra aussi s’attendre à des dérives racistes et xénophobes qui refuseront de s’appeler comme telles bien sûr; tout le monde sait que le racisme et la xénophobie ça ne va que dans un sens, n’est-ce-pas ? J’espère simplement, je croise les doigts, que ce documentaire ne mettra pas le feu aux poudres

blogdemoi's concerns may be justified: although the program will only be broadcast in the French West Indies on Feb. 6th 2009, it has already triggered many reactions. Indeed, the program was broadcast on Jan. 31st in continental France and has already crossed the Atlantic thanks to the Internet. bondamanjak and montray kréyol, both from Martinique, expressed their complete shock over the words uttered by a man from one of the richest and oldest “Béké” families, concerning racial mixing and slavery [Fr]:

Dans les familles métissées, les enfants sont de couleurs différentes, il n’y a pas d’harmonie. Moi, je ne trouve pas ça bien. Nous (ndlr : les Békés), on a voulu préserver la race.

Les historiens ne parlent que des aspects négatifs de l’esclavage et c’est regrettable

The man in question has since published a letter [Fr], to say that his words and ideas had been twisted by the journalist, but most people from the West Indian diaspora who saw the documentary in France, feel still miserable about it - like this woman for instance [Fr] :

Bref…ça fait mal…quand même parce qu'on passe (le reste de la population non béké) pour des cons bien gentils qui se font entubés depuis 400 ans !!!

Such bitter feelings are probably one reason why bondamanjak asks the question “DOIT-ON DIFFUSER LES DERNIERS MAITRES DE LA MARTINIQUE AUX ANTILLES?” which means, “Should The Last Masters of Martinique be broadcast in the French West Indies?” The majority of comments on this post say yes, as people seem to think that now is the time for some truths to be officially unveiled.

Here is a review of blogs from Martinique, French Guiana, Haiti and Guadeloupe, which highlights the features of Carnival there.

In brevesdeguyane, we learn about the kick-off of Carnival in French Guiana and discover pictures illustrating the French Guianese tradition of the “Touloulous“. The term originally refers to small colorful earth crabs, which swiftly run and hide under the ground whenever they feel threatened. So what is the connection with those wonderfully disguised women? Lilie Belle in MaGuyane decribes Carnival in French Guiana and provides an answer to the question [Fr]:

Le touloulou se pavane devant les hommes. ils arrivent seuls ou en groupe dans le dancing. Ce qui veut dire que monsieur ne sait pas comment est habillée sa femme. Le touloulou peut narguer son mari ou voir même son patron !! Ce sont les touloulous qui invitent les hommes à dancer. […]Depuis quelques années, il existe la version homme : les Tololos. Ce sont les hommes qui se déguisent et invitent les femmes à danser.

Darlie's words echo Lillie Belle's and Eric Leon 's in 97320, a French Guianese blog, when she states that the launching of Carnival is a much awaited event [Fr]:

Ça y est mesdames et messieurs, à l'instant même, le coup d'envoi est donné, le carnaval haïtien est lancé et c'est parti pour un mois et demi d'ambiance populaire.

In a few words, Darlie explains what (Haitian) Carnival is about [Fr]:

Couleur, Costume, masque, majorette, danse, humour, Charles Oscar, Char, spectacle… un menu très varié et pimenté vous attend mesdames, messieurs dans la capitale haïtienne et à Jamel à partir de ce dimanche jusqu'au mercredi des cendres avant le levé du soleil.

When she talks about diversity, Darlie tackles a core aspect of the French Caribbean Carnival: the expression of its various influences and origins. Nowadays, in Guadeloupe, French Guiana and Martinique, Carnival is celebrated every Sunday with popular parades of well-organized mas bands, of different sorts. Some bands are influenced by European carnival and wear very colorful, feathery, beady, sparkling and shimmering costumes, as in most Latin Carnivals, like the famous one in Rio de Janeiro. These bands always take part in competitions to elect the best band, the best music, the best choreography and eventually the King and the Queen of Carnival. This webpage from “la Mairie de Fort-de-France“, in Martinique shows pictures of this election which gathers different generations: Baby Queen, Mini Queen, Queen and Queen Mother.

The second type of band was first developed in Guadeloupe: they are generally called cultural movements, the aim of which is to bring French Caribbeans closer to their African roots. They promote a Carnival based on spiritual traditions, authenticity and nature and a more traditional music with local drums, made with young goat skins (”mas a pô”). They are announced by whips and incense and do not play rhythmical music, nor do they perform choreographies in the street. Their trademark is marching in a spiritual, almost mystical atmosphere. Here are pictures of “Kléla” (the key), a “mas a pô” band from Guadeloupe.

Those two main types of bands are in the streets from Epiphany Sunday until Ash Wednesday, when Vaval (the effigy of the King of Carnival) is burnt symbolically as the end of Carnival and the beginning of Lent. In Guadeloupe though, people go back for one more parade 15 days later, on “Jeudi de la Mi-Carême” at mid-Lent. The colors of this parade are red and black to show that Vaval is dead but is going to live again the next year.

All photos in this post are of 2008 Carnival and Dimanche Gras in Guadeloupe, courtesy the author. See the whole set in her Facebook album, here.

Thousands of miles away from the Middle East, most West Indians empathized with Gazawis, shown dying or suffering on TV. This empathy is explained by Zandwonis, when he addresses a Guadeloupean politician about the Israeli attack over Gaza [Fr] on January 12th:

Comment à l’époque de la globalisation, du « village mondial » voulez-vous que nous ne soyons pas solidaires des 350 enfants massacrés par l’armée israélienne? Comment voulez-vous que nous Guadeloupéens peuple issu de l’esclavage, peuple installé sur cette terre après le génocide des Amérindiens, nous soyons sourds et muets aux malheurs qui s’abattent sur des êtres humains vivants au Proche Orient ?

This partly explains the general understanding for Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's stance on this issue: he and his government expressed their support to Palestine by expelling the Israeli diplomatic staff. Here [Fr], blogger Mabool quotes Martinican author Raphaël Confiant, who praised the decision. In his speech entitled “African and Caribbean states should follow the example of Venezuela” [Fr], published and reproduced many times, Confiant states his opinion:

Une nouvelle fois, le chef de la révolution bolivarienne, Hugo Chavez, vient nous désigner la voie de la dignité et de la résistance en expulsant l’ambassadeur israélien au Venezuela.

Although a controversial ceasefire has been decided upon, people in the French Caribbean islands have not been pacified at all. This goes a long way to explaining the latest Martinique-based campaign, designed to show support to the victims in Gaza and “retaliate” at the economic level.

In CaribCreoleOne, a question is asked: “Do Caribbean people fund the Israeli war?” For the blogger, the answer is found in two household furniture and electrical appliances superstores, located in Guadeloupe, Martinique and French Guiana, “Conforama” and “But“. It is rumoured that the three heads of the company which owns the two stores in the Caribbean, have some involvement in pro-Israeli lobbying and funding. It is with caution then, that CaribCreoleOne lists the alleged links between the CEOs and Israel, asking this final question:

Peut-on conclure que l'argent que nous dépensons dans les magasins Conforama et But sert à financer les bombes au phosphore qui ont été lâchées sur les civils palestiniens ? La question est d'actualité et mérite d'y réfléchir

Politics
On the heels of a year that seemed to be defined by politics, 2008 also began on a political high note, thanks to Barack Obama's amazing win in the Iowa caucus. From that point on, the majority of regional bloggers caught Obamamania and supported “their” candidate all the way to the White House. While the Caribbean was captivated by Obama's promise of change, Barbadians were orchestrating a political change of their own - some believe that outspoken political blogs may have helped turn the tide of the election by discussing key issues such as alleged corruption and the need for integrity legislation.

Further north along the archipelago, Jamaica's top politician was riling up bloggers, thanks to his “No gays in my government” comment during a BBC interview - but certainly one of the most significant political scenarios coming out of the region this year was the retirement of Cuban leader Fidel Castro after nearly 50 years at the helm of the socialist republic. Despite the change in leadership, however, most bloggers felt that it was business as usual. According to Uncommon Sense:

An unfortunate consequence of that hand-over, reinforced by Fidel's “retirement,” is that the dictatorship survives. A face, presumably Raúl's — I haven't seen the script — will be placed at the top of the flow chart, come Sunday. But the dictatorship survives.

Fidel's “retirement” is not a moment to celebrate. Unfortunately, his legacy will survive his life's work, and his life. It is a historical moment to note but nothing more.

Freedom of Speech
The issue of freedom of speech seemed to plague the region this year; both mainstream media and the blogosphere fought against attempts to silence them. Although there still appears to be some distrust between MSM and the newly active blogosphere in some Caribbean territories, it was interesting to see the two sides come together and make their voices heard. In Guyana, for instance, one blogger - MediaCritic at the Living Guyana blog - made it his business to cover the banning of a journalist by the country's President. His commitment to the cause was so fierce that it prompted GV Caribbean author Nicholas Laughlin to comment:

Living Guyana's sustained coverage of the Moseley ban story — largely ignored by other Guyanese blogs — has rivalled the coverage of Guyana's mainstream media.

Over in Barbados, bloggers were wondering if their means of online expression was in danger, while in Cuba, it appeared that certain blogs may have been blocked. Trinidad and Tobago had to contend with its Prime Minister actually paying a visit to a radio station to complain about two announcers who had made disparaging comments about him, a move that made bloggers even more vocal than usual. Barbadian bloggers also joined ranks with their mainstream media counterparts following the arrest of two journalists - a move that Barbados Free Press says was prompted by the fact that the reporters were covering the case of “a police officer…charged with dealing drugs.”

Human Rights
Closely linked with freedom of speech is the question of human rights. Some of the most memorable stories in the Caribbean blogosphere this year dealt with human rights abuses - from the arrest of Las Damas de Blanco in Havana as they staged a peaceful demonstration for the release of their husbands, to the reinstatement of the death penalty in Jamaica. Cuban bloggers were by far the most conscious of human rights issues, blogging at length about the significance of International Human Rights Day and their island's history of stifling human rights.

Puerto Rico was worried about “the government's latest deed, the application of the Real ID Act to the island's drivers”, which they thought was way too intrusive and bordered on a breach of privacy. Barbadian bloggers cried “foul” after the suspicious and untimely death of I'Akobi Tacuma Maloney, while the issue of the Rights of the Child was linked with concern about Jamaica's escalating crime rate in this post about violence against minors.

Crime & Health
The big crime story in the region this year was undoubtedly “the killing by joint army and police services of Guyana's most wanted man, Rondell ‘Fineman' Rawlins, and his ‘Lieutenant' Jermaine ‘Skinny' Charles”. Bloggers breathed a communal sign of relief that the two men met as bloody a fate as they inflicted on so many innocent people, even as an editorial in the Stabroek News warned that the killing of Rawlins doesn't mean the end of violence - but Jamaica certainly tried to curb its own rising crime rate via a March for Peace, inspired by the increasing number of violent crimes against women and children. The region's own experience with violence - not to mention the fact that several West Indian territories have substantial populations of Indian origin - made it that much easier for Caribbean to empathize with India after the horrific Mumbai terror attacks. And in another kind of war - the war on HIV/AIDS - the Caribbean joined the rest of the world in recognizing World AIDS Day and joining the discussion on everything from education to HIV/AIDS workplace policy.

Disasters
This was the Year of the Hurricane. Monster storms wreaked havoc across the Caribbean archipelago, from Grenada to the Cayman Islands. Gustav, Hanna, Ike, Omar and Paloma are not names the Caribbean is likely to forget.

Cuba and Haiti were hit particularly hard by the multiple storms, which caused loss of homes and of life - and on the heels of these tragedies, Haiti faced yet another in the form of a disastrous school collapse. In the words of Haiti Innovation:

Some emergencies can be predicted. Every hurricane season, we can anticipate that Haiti will likely be hit with tropical storms. Others such as the collapse of a school in Petionville yesterday are unexpected tragedies.

Meanwhile, Trinidad and Tobago and Guyana were battling floods on a regular basis during the region's rainier-than-usual wet season.

The Economy
Perhaps the first sign of the effects of the looming global financial crisis was rising food prices and scarcity of produce. Caribbean bloggers were concerned - and finally the penny dropped with regional politicians - Trinidad and Tobgo's Prime Minister called for “belt-tightening” a few months later.

Cuban bloggers were quite vocal about the US/Cuba embargo, debating whether or not any change to the status quo would actually be felt in the Cuban economy. Guyanese bloggers, on the other hand, suggested that if their government did not sign the new European Union EPA, the local economy would be the loser.

Meanwhile, the French-speaking Caribbean was rife with protests over the skyrocketing price of gas and its effect on the pockets of the man in the street.

Sport
If there was a bright spot in the Caribbean blogosphere this year, it came in the form of regional athletes' performance in the Beijing Olympics. Jamaican Track and Field athletes dominated; the Caribbean celebrated. Usain Bolt was not only a hero - he was a phenomenon.

A few months later came another sporting moment to be proud of - the Caribbean team defeated England in the Stanford 20/20 Cricket Tournament, winning the match by an astounding ten wickets, becoming overnight millionaires in the process and - even for a moment - restoring some pride to beleaguered West Indies cricket fans.

Fond Farewells
Several Caribbean icons passed away this year and bloggers respectfully paid them homage…

Jamaican musicians Alton Ellis and Byron Lee and Guyanese newspaper editor David de Caires, who Nicholas Laughlin describes as “the founder and editor-in-chief of the independent Guyanese newspaper the Stabroek News, and one of the Caribbean's strongest advocates for press freedom.”

The Caribbean celebrated astounding highs and coped with debilitating lows this year - but the most convincing sign that we can deal with whatever comes our way is the fact that we continue to talk about issues and through discussion, better understand our own experiences and challenges in the context of an ever-shrinking world.

Guyanese bloggers do a meme on “Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without…” For Signifyin' Guyana, who started the meme, it's “my dad's ham” and “playing board games with my folks after we've all had a few and then some more.” Guyana 911 chimes in (sometimes cynically) with the following list:

- Christmas clean up.
Whoa.. what happened to this house. Are you moving out?

- Pepper Pot.
Time, tide and Jesus birthday waits for no pepper pot. Is the earth going to stop moving if you don't make pepper pot?

- Black Cake.

- A Christmas Tree.
Cut them all down, but lets not make Christmas cards out of em. No.. instead, we can make furniture. Now that's a revolutionary idea. Furniture… something anyone can actually use.

- Singer commercials.

- Painting over the house and anything else paint sticks to.

- Remittances.

Raptus8 thinks that gift-giving is an inseparable part of Christmas (once the gift is for him):

Since we are speaking about gifts I would like to say to all of my friends and family that you know I have lots of love for you but this year plz don’t expect anything but a Christmas card from me.

I’m broke; yes I’m broke…what? I got a promotion the other day? Yes I did but I’m not wealthy and I want to be, so I’m saving my money. I do hope that you will understand my position and that this will not discourage you from buying that special item you saw with my name on it…

In Jamaica, Iriegal says that while Christmas time is synonymous with family, the global financial crisis is having an impact on remittances and gifts sent to Jamaica from the diaspora:

We know it's Christmas time in Jamaica when the barrels start rolling in.

Tings kinda 'salt' this year though. The economy has made many items scarce and the shipping fee has gone up as well. Seems folks sending ‘gift cards' now.

She also notes that the recession is making itself felt in other ways this Christmas:

Christmas is not Christmas without deh white dem. (Jamaican white rum). We use it for sorrel, Christmas Cake, Christmas Pudding and so on. So why did the people at Wray and Nephew dem lay off their workers right before Christmas. Isn't that shooting yourself in the foot?

Cuts are going on everywhere on the island, just as it is all over the world. The recession that the United States is feeling is a Global thing. Everything trickles down. What is sad is that many of the smaller islands do feel it more. When you don't make nothing, you don't have nothing and people try to take that ‘nothing' away from you, it hurts.

Abeng News Magazine prefers to reminisce, taking a look at Christmas in “Old Jamaica” here and here.

Bermuda's The Devil Island.com knows its Christmas when Jose Feliciano sings Feliz Navidad, saying:

I swear, there is nothing that comes to mind as a more perfect, joyous, happy-making Christmas song.

Trinidadian blogger This Beach Called Life concurs, calling it “the best Christmas song ever” and even posting video of Feliciano singing his signature tune. He goes on to explain:

Jose Feliciano is an an accomplished guitarist and sings with a distinctive voice and style. Feliz Navidad has become a Cristmas classic and is now impossible to separate from the Christmas season. Feliz Navidad is one of the top 25 most played and recorded Christmas songs around the world.

However, fellow Trinidad and Tobago-based blogger Coffeewallah is finding it hard to get into the spirit of the season:

I constantly hear people talking about their ‘Christian' beliefs. It never ceases to amaze me that a lot of these so-called Christian folk are the same ones who bitch the loudest when asked to contribute to a can drive or anything. The same people who will come around and ask you again and again for their children's raffle or whatever, when asked, their response usually is, I gave to something two months ago. I must remember that one for future use. Grinch behaviour coming alive here.

But the staples of a Trinbagonian Christmas somehow manage to bring her around:

The pointsettias were abloom, their spiky red leaves cheerily brightening the usually sombre space. Though the skies were rainy, inside we were snug, with our ponche de creme to warm us, some Christmas music to sing along with…and all was good.

Speaking of Christmas staples, Simply Trini Cooking salutes that time-honoured West Indian Christmas dessert, Black Cake, and includes a recipe should anyone want to try making it.

Barbados Underground posts a reminder about the reason for the season and expresses concern about the commercialization of the holiday:

Christmas 2008 will be celebrated in gloomy economic conditions but Barbadians appear to be following the script of behaviour from previous years…which sees the majority of our population motivated by commercial reasons to celebrate Christmas.

BU's apprehension is echoed by Dominica Weekly, which considers the true meaning of Christmas and goes one step further by asking what God would think of modern-day celebrations.

Christmas celebrations in the French-speaking Caribbean, on the other hand, appear to be steeped in tradition. With December 25th quickly approaching, the French Overseas Departments of Guadeloupe, Martinique and Guyane are vibrating to the tune of their folk musical instruments like ka (a big drum)[Fr], ti-bwa (two bamboo sticks)[Fr] and of Christmas Carols. Welcome to the world of “Chanté Nwel” (Singing for Christmas)!

In the blog Sous le Soleil de Guadeloupe [Fr], Pat and Jac describe the paradoxical situation of the island, gripped with the Spirit of Christmas and raging through the gas crisis [En].

Still, there is one thing at the core of the Guadeloupean traditional celebration of Christmas and it is “Chanté Nwel”. Creole [En]for “Singing for Christmas” or “Singing Christmas (carols)”, it is the very shrine of Christmas in these French territories. “Chanté Nwel” used to be an opportunity for entire families to go around their neighborhood to visit neighbors and sing Christmas carols with them to the tune of the “ka” and the “ti-bwa”. At that time, it was in a safe atmosphere that people would go around their remote villages very late at night.

Although Chanté Nwel cannot be done in the same way as before, people still feel the need to sing Christmas carols together and in a very local way. You haven't celebrated Christmas, if you haven't been to a “Chanté Nwel”! It is such a vivid tradition that even the West Indian diaspora abroad wants to celebrate. On his blog Risbomontréal [Fr], a young Guadeloupean university student describes his joy at receiving an invitation for a “Chanté Nwel”:

Quelle bonne nouvelle que j'ai eu ce matin en ouvrant mon p'tit mac :D ! La news lettre de ces types super cool de Tropikal97 où ils invitent à participer à une super soirée diner/Chanté Noël + Boite de nuit à l'antillaise et tout ^^ !!!

It seems that the Chanté Nwel fever is spreading wherever French West Indians can be spotted: check out this invitation for a Chanté Nwel in Cergy, in the suburbs of Paris, published on the blog Carrefour du Soleil [Fr], by a group of West Indians. Or listen to Cactus, a Guadeloupean folk group that promotes Chanté Nwel in a blog called Cactus Chanté Nwel [Fr]. There is even a video of Cactus performing some Christmas carols, sung in Creole.

Can't manage a trip to the Caribbean this Christmas? Not to worry - the West Indian warmth transcends distance thanks to the voices of bloggers who share their stories of Christmas in Cuba, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, the Cayman Islands, and Puerto Rico. Some posts are more optimistic than others, but the sentiment of the season is palpable: Hope.

In the words of Bahamian blogger Womanish Words:

Suddenly, a choir. Singing Deck the Halls. Outside the dark living room window. And sistas, I mean, singing so beautifully.

I would have loved any carolers, the raw-boned, hollering kind I would have gratefully welcomed in these hard times. Any group of folks generous of spirit so, creative and cooperative and connected so, having spirit enough to gather themselves together and go sing-up Christmas for strangers, I have to love them. Especially now, when money is tight, and fundamentalism is dividing the neighbourhoods with hatred, and all are on guard against violent crime. We opened the door, lit a torch, gave a donation. They were all wearing Santa hats. They sounded like a choir out of Dickens. Perfect harmonies, soaring tenors. Our son asked, “Are they singing for us?” Yes, they were singing for us.

I thought it was a cosmic moment, a sign and a wonder, a message from the World of Spirit. Saying quite literally, go ahead and deck the halls, try Be Happy, celebrate, give. Do this to actively resist the fear, to transform it into something like good living.

All images in this post courtesy janinephoto; used with permission.

In the blog Sous le Soleil de Guadeloupe [Fr], Pat and Jac describe the paradoxical situation of the island, gripped with the Spirit of Christmas and raging through the gas crisis [En]. Interestingly enough, the pictures taken by Pat and Jac, at the biggest shopping center of Guadeloupe [En], highlight just another ambiguity in the Christmas celebration of Guadeloupean people, who live both by the European standards of the fake snow-capped Christmas trees and their local palm trees.

Still, there is one thing at the core of the Guadeloupean traditional celebration of Christmas and it is “Chanté Nwel”. Creole [En]for “Singing for Christmas” or “Singing Christmas (carols)”, it is the very shrine of Christmas in these French territories. “Chanté Nwel” used to be an opportunity for entire families to go around their neighborhood to visit neighbors and sing Christmas carols with them to the tune of the “ka” and the “ti-bwa”. At that time, it was in a safe atmosphere that people would go around their remote villages very late at night.

Although Chanté Nwel cannot be done in the same way as before, people still feel the need to sing Christmas carols together and in a very local way. You haven't celebrated Christmas, if you haven't been to a “Chanté Nwel”!

It is such a vivid tradition that even the West Indian diaspora abroad wants to celebrate. On his blog Risbomontréal [Fr], a young Guadeloupean university student describes his joy at receiving an invitation for a “Chanté Nwel”:

Quelle bonne nouvelle que j'ai eu ce matin en ouvrant mon p'tit mac :D ! La news lettre de ces types super cool de Tropikal97 où ils invitent à participer à une super soirée diner/Chanté Noël + Boite de nuit à l'antillaise et tout ^^ !!!

Who could imagine that snowy Montreal could welcome such tropical events!

It seems that the Chanté Nwel fever is spreading wherever French West Indians can be spotted, as in this invitation for a Chanté Nwel in Cergy, in the suburbs of Paris, published on the blog Carrefour du Soleil [Fr], by a group of West Indians.

On top of everything, I can't explain my surprise when I found out that Cactus, a Guadeloupean folk group, promotes Chanté Nwel in a blog called Cactus Chanté Nwel [Fr]. Here is a video of Cactus performing some Christmas carols, sung in Creole.