The Grenada Revolution Symposium Presentations – Atiba Rougier (Introduction)

Reading Time 2 minsThe Grenada Revolution (1979 – 1983) and its subsequent collapse On 19th October in New York City, a symposium was held in memory of the Grenadian Revolution and those who died on 19th October, 1983. 34 years ago, on Fort Rupert, located in St. George’s on the small island of Grenada, at the bottom of the Caribbean basin, a revolution died. The Symposium, entitled 1st Annual Symposium on the Grenadian Revolution of 1979 – 1983 focused on two points: the revolution itself 1979 – 1983 and the days 18th, 19th, and 20th of October 1983. The relevance… Read More »The Grenada Revolution Symposium Presentations – Atiba Rougier (Introduction)

Nobel Laureate, DEREK WALCOTT; TRINIDADIAN? — Llewellyn Mac Intosh

Reading Time 11 mins  In the year 1977, a calypsonian from Trinidad &Tobago named the Mighty Unknown caused patrons to the calypso tent to be falling off their seats when he performed a calypso called, “Ah Vex”. Unknown, in his cleverly constructed offering, threw four stanzas of piccong at the St Lucian poet whom the calypsonian alleged had had the temerity to be critical of the place which had been good enough to extend to him, its generosity; “Derek you must be fou bé dangé or mad Sit down on river stone and talk river bad You wouldn’t talk about… Read More »Nobel Laureate, DEREK WALCOTT; TRINIDADIAN? — Llewellyn Mac Intosh

Altering the Soundscape of New York City

Reading Time 5 minsAltering the Soundscape of New York City   Author Danielle Brown reflects on Radio Station WLIB which provided the Soundtrack of her youth and more…. This extract was taken from her latest work, East of Flatbush, North of Love: An Ethnography of Home which will be featured in a Community Discussion in celebration of Caribbean American Heritage Month on Tuesday June 13, 6.00 pm @ Medgar Evers College with Roger Toussaint, former president of the Transport Workers Union Local 100, Dr. Lawrence Waldron, City College, CUNY and, the author, Dr. Danielle Brown. Dr. Brown reflects on Radio Station… Read More »Altering the Soundscape of New York City

Maurice Bishop’s 1983 Hunter College Speech, an Historical Turning Point

Reading Time 7 minsBDN Intro Great speeches have marked pivotal historical turning points in the life of movements. A sampling of these great speeches are Sojourner Truth’s “Aint I a Woman” (1851), Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” (Washington D.C., 1963), Ethiopia’s Emperor Haile Selassie 1963 speech delivered to the United Nations (popularized in the Bob Marley song “War”), Dr. Eric Eustace Williams’ 1960 “March in the Rain” speech (demanding the return of Chagaramas), Fidel Castro’s “History Will Absolve Me” (1961), and Ida B. Wells’ “This Awful Slaughter” (1909). Grenada’s revolutionary leader Maurice Bishop’s June 5, 1983, speech to… Read More »Maurice Bishop’s 1983 Hunter College Speech, an Historical Turning Point

Book Discussion on a Pioneering Work on a Caribbean-American Enclave of Brooklyn

Reading Time 3 minsMUSIC SCHOLAR’S NEW BOOK HAS A SOUNDTRACK, READS LIKE A NOVEL, AND CLEVERLY TEACHES READERS WHAT THEY NEVER LEARNED IN SCHOOL ABOUT THE LEGACY OF COLONIALISM. What happens when a Brooklyn-born and bred music scholar of Trinidadian parentage decides to challenge academia and write a book her way? The result is East of Flatbush, North of Love: An Ethnography of Home, a clever and witty portrait of growing up in East Flatbush— a West Indian American neighborhood situated in the middle of Brooklyn—in the decades before gentrification. On Tuesday June 13, 6 p.m., in celebration of Caribbean… Read More »Book Discussion on a Pioneering Work on a Caribbean-American Enclave of Brooklyn

Women Need True Power — Jennifer Gibbs

Reading Time 1 mins March 8 is celebrated globally as International Women’s Day (IWD). Originally organized by the Socialist Party of America, the celebrations first took place in February 1909 and were called International Working Women’s Day.  Big Drum Nation is commemorating the occasion by posting women’s reflections on the struggle for equality. Every year the celebrations embrace a special theme reflecting the urgency of the moment. This year, proceeding from the World Economic Forum’s prediction that the gender gap is unlikely to close entirely until 2186, the theme addresses this unacceptable state of gender inequity as a human rights… Read More »Women Need True Power — Jennifer Gibbs

We salute the women of Grenada who work towards progress, development and equality — Jacqueline Mckenzie

Reading Time 2 mins March 8 is celebrated globally as International Women’s Day (IWD). Originally organized by the Socialist Party of America, the celebrations first took place in February 1909 and were called International Working Women’s Day.  Big Drum Nation is commemorating the occasion by posting women’s reflections on the struggle for equality. Every year the celebrations embrace a special theme reflecting the urgency of the moment. This year, proceeding from the World Economic Forum’s prediction that the gender gap is unlikely to close entirely until 2186, the theme addresses this unacceptable state of gender inequity as a human rights… Read More »We salute the women of Grenada who work towards progress, development and equality — Jacqueline Mckenzie

Women’s Rights are Human Rights — Keisha-Gaye Anderson

Reading Time 2 minsFirst published, March 8, 2017. Republished March 8, 2022 March 8 is celebrated globally as International Women’s Day (IWD). Originally organized by the Socialist Party of America, the celebrations first took place in February 1909 and were called International Working Women’s Day.  Big Drum Nation is commemorating the occasion by posting women’s reflections on the struggle for equality. Every year the celebrations embrace a special theme reflecting the urgency of the moment. This year, proceeding from the World Economic Forum’s prediction that the gender gap is unlikely to close entirely until 2186, the theme addresses this unacceptable state… Read More »Women’s Rights are Human Rights — Keisha-Gaye Anderson

Celebrating all that is Positive about Being a Woman — Ann Farray

Reading Time 1 mins Originally Published March 7, 2017. Republished March 8, 2022 March 8 is celebrated globally as International Women’s Day (IWD). Originally organized by the Socialist Party of America, the celebrations first took place in February 1909 and were called International Working Women’s Day.  Big Drum Nation is commemorating the occasion by posting women’s reflections on the struggle for equality. Every year the celebrations embrace a special theme reflecting the urgency of the moment. This year, proceeding from the World Economic Forum’s prediction that the gender gap is unlikely to close entirely until 2186, the theme addresses this… Read More »Celebrating all that is Positive about Being a Woman — Ann Farray