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Caribbean: French Literary Prizes

Fabienne Flessel — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:50:23 +0000

This week, two of the most prestigious French literary prizes were awarded to two French-speaking authors of African descent: The French-speaking Caribbean blogosphere has been buzzing over this double satisfaction, in this post from Haiti, this one from Guadeloupe and this one from Martinique [Fr].

French Caribbean: “La Toussaint”

Fabienne Flessel — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 23:23:36 +0000

Toussaint 2009, by Fabienne Flessel

In the French-speaking Caribbean, celebrating “La Toussaint”, All Saints' and All Souls' Days, are as much an opportunity for family reunions as the Christmas season is. Here is a review of what the blogosphere says about it this year [all links are in French]:

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.

As usual, Guadeloupeans will be lighting up candles on the graves. It is always the opportunity to remember the dead ones but also to meet the living ones, that we don't see that often. It's a moment of mixed pain and joy.

Toussaint 2009 in Le Moule, by Fabienne Flessel

Traditionally, the “Toussaint” season is an opportunity to do some grave maintenance as families clean, repaint and flower their graves. Domactu explains that when a grave presents none of these enhancements, it is a synonym of family disfunction and the issue sounds important enough for the local authorities to devote some money to fill in for missing families:

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

The region's administration partakes in the project and devotes as much as 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.

Since Saturday [November 1st 2009], fifty-two young people have been working on cleaning deserted graves in the Southern part of Basse-Terre and 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.

It is a moment which brings together all the generations, in order to honor the memory of their dead ones.

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…

It is also a chance to make some money. People are therefore ready to accomplish any tasks.

Grave cleaning, painting, burial vault ornamentation are the casual jobs that young and even older handymen share…

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 season of All Saints' and All Souls' Days, indigenous Native Americans and deported Africans are honored jointly for the first time ever. It is very important for the Native Americans who were wiped out in 1658 and for the slaves, whose remains lie in unknown yards, everywhere around Martinique. I will be there. This is my invitation.

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 first day of November is devoted to the celebration of “la Toussaint”. It is an opportunity for the Catholic faithful to honor their saints and remember their beloved dead relatives.
[…]
The celebration of the The Guédés on November 2nd, is typical of the voodoo religion in Haiti. In the voodoo mythology, the Guédés symbolize the spirits of the dead.

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.

Once again, the Catholic faithful and the Voodoo followers will be able to pay homage or visit beloved ones. Furthermore, they will glorify their gods, an act which is severely condemned by the Protestants.

This post was also translated by the author.

Martinique: Free your mind, free your hair

Fabienne Flessel — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 17:48:22 +0000

Blogger Imaniyé from Martinique reports the creation of a Facebook group [Fr] by people who are eager to defend the rights of Martinicans to comb their hair as they want and above all to twist it into dreadlocks, without being discriminated against.

Guadeloupe, Martinique: Soccer & Religion

Fabienne Flessel — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 18:58:34 +0000

A video showing an interview of the famous French soccer player Thierry Henry in which he expresses his affiliation to Islam, has caught the attention of Martinican blogger Bondamanjak [Fr/Fr Cr] and triggered impassioned comments from readers.

Martinique: Debating over the statutory change

Fabienne Flessel — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 18:56:47 +0000

Martinican MontrayKreyol discusses the popular debates [Fr] over the change of institutional status of Martinique as a French overseas department.

Global: International Creole Month

Fabienne Flessel — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 15:18:07 +0000

October has become the month of the worldwide celebration of Creole language and the Creole blogosphere is paying attention.

What is Creole, exactly? This is probably one of the most debated topics among linguists worldwide - it is an incredibly complex and diverse language. The fruit of migrations and population mingling, Creole language has been, since the distant times of slavery, a vernacular language, either prohibited or underrated. But things started to change in the 1980s, as explained by the Creole-oriented Reunionese blog, Renyone [Cr, Eng]:

In 1981 scientists having Creole as their mother tongue started asking themselves questions about the methods that could be used to promote the Creole language, following a scientific symposium organised by the international committee for Creole studies working on the theme: a Creole / Creoles, continuity and creativity in the Creole world.

Renyone gives more details about the establishment of what has become a tradition in most Creolophone countries [Eng]:

In 1982 the Seychelles government organised a Creole week.
[…]
The first international BANNZIL KREYOL day took place on the 28th October 1983. Ever since, the 28th October has been celebrated annually in all Creole countries the world over.

Since then, the preservation of this vernacular language, sometimes called a dialect, has been a great concern for many people as shown by this statement of objectives published by the International Organization of Creole People. A Facebook group named “Annou Palé Patwa” (Creole for “Let's speak Patois/Creole) relays this concern since in a topic entitled Creole Month, a Trinidadian user wonders about this year's celebration [En]:

Well October is Creole month the world over, what can we do to promote it in Trinidad?
[…]
What do you think will be the best way to go if we were to do something national?

Initiatives to promote, preserve or celebrate Creole are local field work as much as governemental policy. Here is a post published by Dominican blogger Living Dominica two years ago in which we can see that in some countries, this celebration is not just a token gesture [En]:

This month is Creole time here on Dominica, which is my very favorite celebration. This time of year is a festival honoring all things Dominican. Everyone gets into the spirit of things in the days leading up to Independence Day (Nov. 3) and the World Creole Music Festival (Oct. 26-28)

Mentioned above, the World Creole Music Festival was born 13 years ago from the Dominican government's will to associate the International Creole Month to its celebration of the Independence of the island on November 3rd 1978.

From all this, it is quite obvious that Creole Month and Creole Day, October 28th, are not uniformly celebrated worldwide. Here are some posts about 2009 Creole Day events:

From London, the group MBMB “Minm Biten, Minm Bagay” (Guadeloupean and Martinican Creole phrases which mean “it's all the same”) wrote a post in order to invite people to the event that took place on Sept. 27th 2009 and also to recall previous editions of their “MBMB Kreyol Day”.

In Canada, the Creole-oriented organization Kepkaa invites people for “Mwa kréyol la nan Monréyal” (Haitian Creole for “Creole Month in Montreal”) in a post entitled “Ann fété kilti kreyol nou yo” (Haitian Creole for “Let's celebrate Creole cultures together”). Another Canadian event was announced on Miss Creole Canada Pageant and relayed on Facebook, it was the first of its kind, crowning of a Miss from Creole heritage, which took place on October 17th, as part of the celebration of the Creole Month.

In Paris, blogger Anba pyé mango-la announces a cultural evening called “Tan Kréyol” (Creole for “Hear Creole”) where the oral transmission of Creole is given a place of honor [Fr Cr]:

Senn-la wouvè ba tout moun : poèt, chantè, slamè, makè, kontè, mizisyen… .

The mic is open to everyone: poets, singers, poetry slammers, writers, storytellers, musicians….

In Guadeloupe, the local authorities have organized a month-long program taking place in different locations, in order to celebrate “Mwa òktòb kréyol an mouvman” (Creole for “October, Creole in motion). Here are the two main points of this program posted by guadeloupe.coconews [Fr Cr]:

1. Prèmyé dékatman ba tout moun
2. Dézyèm dékatman èvè zanfan-lékòl

1. First session of activities opened to everyone
2. Second session of activities reserved to pupils and students

Finally, from Martinique, montraykreyol publishes a post which questions the Creole Month celebration there and most precisely the relevance of celebrating Creole in a week-long festival [Fr Cr]:

Es ou ka kwè ki an sel simenn pou défann kréyol adan tout lanné-a sifizan ?

CLAUDE MARLIN : Dapré mwen non, sa ja an pal pou kréyol-la menm manniè ki tout travay-la ki za fet asou lang-lan. Men fok pandan tout lanné-a, ni travay ki pou fet, fok véyatif toulong, pas menm si kréyol ka rantré latélévizion, laradio, nan piblisité kontel, bien délè sa ka an kréyol toubònman, tjòlòlò ek sa pé désèvi lang-la.

Do you believe that one week a year to defend Creole is enough?
CLAUDE MARLIN : I don't think so but it's already a great thing for Creole as everything else that has been done about the language. Yet, things must be done all year long and we have to be careful all the time, because even when Creole is spoken on TV, on the radio or in commercials for exemple, most of the time it is rough or broken, which can be harmful to the integrity of the language.

The thumbnail image used in this post, “Openness and Collaboration”, is by psd, used under a Creative Commons license. Visit psd's flickr photostream.
This post was also translated by the author.

Guadeloupe, Martinique, St. Maarten, French Guiana: Autonomy?

Janine Mendes-Franco — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 15:08:55 +0000

Repeating Islands notes that the French Overseas Territories “are to vote on more autonomy in January 2010.”

Martinique: Gas Station Assault

Janine Mendes-Franco — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 13:23:21 +0000

Repeating Islands republishes writer Raphaël Confiant's account of his experience of “physical aggression at a service station in Martinique.”

Martinique: Dance the Bèlè

Janine Mendes-Franco — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 13:53:30 +0000

Repeating Islands features Leïla Bizet and her bèlè, “a traditional folk dance practiced on islands like Dominica, St. Lucia, Guadeloupe, and Martinique; hailing from the days of slavery, it has become a time-honored symbol of African legacy.”

French Caribbean: Farewell Mickael

Fabienne Flessel — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 12:19:47 +0000

The news of the death of the King of Pop was like an earthquake felt around the world. The shock wave reached the French Caribbean, where bloggers from Martinique, Guadeloupe, French Guiana, all pay homage to the late artist.

Martinique, Guadeloupe: Sarkozy Visit

Janine Mendes-Franco — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 12:34:54 +0000

Repeating Islands notes that French President Nicolas Sarkozy is scheduled to make a trip to Martinique and Guadeloupe later this week “to address overseas ‘issues' after the general strikes” that took place in the French Overseas Territories earlier this year.

Caribbean: Following the path of the Caribs

Fabienne Flessel — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 16:03:39 +0000

Since the beginning of 2009, French West Indians have questioned their identity, their national heritage and their present-day situation in different ways. Kintamingo Ema, a Martinican blog, presents an initiative which mixes a social insertion, historical and archeological project with an identity quest. Dubbed “Kintamingo Ema, sur le chemin de nos ancêtres” (Kintamingo Ema, following the path of our ancestors), the project was launched by Association Karisko , an association focusing on social integration, as explained here [Fr]:

Ce sont les jeunes du foyer d'insertion de Sainte-Marie qui ont bénéficié de cette formation.

Young adults from the insertion structure of Sainte-Marie are the recipients of this vocational training.

They benefited from the knowledge and experience of the Caribs, by learning to build a canoe and then ride it from Martinique to Antigua. But before reaching to all these islands from le Prêcheur in Martinique, many young adults in search of a professional project and practical training participated in the creation of the Kanawa (the native name for a canoe). The social integration building site quickly became a genuine shipyard, where the traditional skills of the native inhabitants were used to create this massive canoe. A comment on CocoNews post gives us more details concerning the measures of the canoe [Fr]:

Le kanawa pèse plus d'une tonne ( à vide !) , 18 mètres de long et 27 rameurs.

The Kanawa weighs more than a ton (empty) (about 2200 pounds) and is 18 meters long (about 60 feet) and needs 27 rowers.

One of the team members has posted pictures of the construction site and lists the 4 steps involved in the making of the Kanawa: cutting the tree, transporting the trunk, preparing the top of the trunk and finally digging it up. Here is a diaporama describing all the different steps of the making.

CocoNews Guadeloupe introduces the project to its readers and reveals the itinerary of the ride [Fr].

@ CocoNews Guadeloupe

The journey was scheduled as follows: leave le Prêcheur in Martinique on May 21st and go back to le Prêcheur on June 1st, after stops in the Caribbean islands of Dominica, les Saintes, Guadeloupe (Basse-Terre then Grande-Terre) and Antigua. The trip included about thirty people, including historians, athletes, sociologists and writers, but it was also open to anyone else who had an interest in the project. This post lists all the participants.

Quite apart from its social integration and historical aspects, this project has had an important impact at the level of memory and conscience. To understand this better, CocoNews quotes one of the objectives of the project [Fr]:

L'objectif de KYTANGOMINGO EMA est la réouverture symbolique et matérielle de la route de navigation maritime des temps anciens,…

The objective of KYTANGOMINGO EMA is the symbolic and material opening of the old-time seafaring…

But the best way to understand the motivation behind the project is to read about the experiences of the passengers and rowers [Fr]:

L'aventure Martinique-Antigua a été pour moi une expérience très valorisante humainement parlant. Découvrir les îles des Caraïbes comme nos ancêtres amérindiens et pouvoir ressentir les moments forts de leur arrivée sur une terre inconnue

The Martinique-Antigua adventure was a very enriching human experience for me. Discovering the Caribbean islands as our native ancestors did it and being able to experience the strong feelings they had when they landed on these unknown lands.

The general success of the initiative has gone a long way to inspire the team in its plan for next year: reaching Puerto Rico by kanawa.

Martinique, Guadeloupe: Emancipation Celebrations

Janine Mendes-Franco — Thu, 07 May 2009 13:26:17 +0000

The French overseas territories of Martinique and Guadeloupe will soon be commemorating the anniversary of the abolition of slavery, according to Repeating Islands.

Martinique: Flooding Deaths

Janine Mendes-Franco — Wed, 06 May 2009 13:43:41 +0000

Repeating Islands reports that four people have died as a result of torrential rains and flooding in Martinique.

French Overseas Departments: Questioning the “Estates General”

Fabienne Flessel — Mon, 04 May 2009 18:09:14 +0000

Guadeloupean Mycho blogs [Fr] about her doubts concerning the “Estates General of the French Overseas Departments” to re-think the status of its distant departments, while bloggers Anba pyé mango-la and indiscrétions [Fr] also report on developments.