Also, remember to check the regularly updated blog, The CAC Review, for current news, essays and other items that are frequently about the Santa Rosa Carib Community.

Courtesy of
THE NATIONAL LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SERVICE (NALIS) of Trinidad and Tobago

 

• IN THE SPIRIT OF THE GLI GLI Stories by Simon Lee Sunday Guardian February 27, 2000 Page 23: Night had already swallowed the palm thick slopes of the Carib Territory on Dominica's east coast when I reached Salybia, the main hamlet.  I plunged into the darkness, feeling my way down a track that leads to the Atlantic shore.  The muted glow of a kerosene lamp in the open window of a board house spurred me on down through the trees.  Further down I fumbled on the dim outline of another board house.  Silhouetted in the window were two old heads. One motioned me to the back of the house.  I called at the open doorway and from the interior gloom emerged Jacob Frederick.

• CARIB POLITICS 500 YEARS LATER Tracy Kim Assing Sunday Guardian January 30, 2000 Page 12: Removed 500 years from their ancestral cultural and traditions, is the Carib community in Arima clinging to an already lost heritage?  The death of Carib Queen Justa Werges on January 16, at the age of 73, left a void in the community as it seeks to locate a new queen.  But as Tracy Kim Assing discovered when she trekked to the foothills of Arima last week, there are many other gaps in the administration of the Carib community.

• CELEBRATE OUR CARIB HERITAGE Sandra Chouthi Features Desk Express Section 2 June 29, 1998 Page 1: The Carib people want to create their own heritage centre, but there is one minor obstacle: they have few artifacts to work with. The Santa Rosa Carib Community Centre at Paul Mitchell Street, Arima, has several items made out of coconut leaves - a shield, a hummingbird, and a catfish. There are also a wooden grater, coulev or cibukan, which the Amerindians used to squeeze cassava, and a sifter, made out of terite. None of these things, however is enough to give the groups of schoolchildren and foreign researchers and professors who visit the centre each year, the information they need about the Amerindians' presence in Trinidad.

• REVISING THE ARENA AFFAIR Trinidad Guardian November 30, 1999 Page 21: Tomorrow marks the 300th anniversary of an event in Trinidad's history about which little is recorded and few people know - a bloody uprising against colonialism by the country's original inhabitants and the cruel reprisal by the governing authorities. It has become known as the Arena Massacre but as Guardian Features Writer LISA ALLEN-AGOSTINI reports, the descendants of the nation's first people are seeking to set the record straight and get the history recorded right.

• HYARIMA Trinidad Guardian November 30, 1999 Page 21--There is a statue in Arima commemorating Hyarima, an Amerindian cacique and the Amerindian people of Trinidad and Tobago. Below is an inscription about the Carib warrior leader.

• HOW ABOUT AN AMERINDIAN HERITAGE DAY Excerpts from a story by Al Akong Independent October 1, 1999 Page 23: the indigenous Caribbean people gave us the sturdy pirogue...Today we hear no cries, no entreaties for recognition, or against oppression, political or other wide, of the Amerindians, who were the original West Indians, Trinidadians too, and were all but wiped out from the Antilles when the Europeans arrived here to run the Caribbean.

• MEDINA IS NEW CARIB QUEEN By Marlise Andrews, Trinidad Guardian,March 28, 2000, Page 6 Valentina Medina, of Mausica Lands, Arima, has been named Carib Queen for life, at an election held on Sunday at the Santa Rosa Carib Community Centre. Medina, 66, was among three others who were nominated as successors after Justa Werges, queen for the past 11 years, passed away in January. She was named after nominees, Julie Calderon, Mary Hernandez and Norma Stephens, withdrew their names for "various reasons."

• WAY OF THE SHAMAN, By Laura Ann Phillips, Trinidad Express, October 11, 2000 This article consists of an interview with Ricardo Cruz, the young shaman of Trinidad's Carib Community.

FROM THE TRINIDAD GUARDIAN:

• "Flower of the Santa Rosa Festival", by Michelle Loubon, Sunday Guardian, 01 September, 2002, and "Guyanese, Trinis, Rescue 'First Nation' Culture", also by Michelle Loubon: "...Baskets, hammocks, grass skirts, straw mats, floor mats and jewel boxes were on display as the Carib community launched a permanent exhibition of indigenous arts and crafts at the Carib Community Centre, Paul Mitchell Street, Arima, Thursday. The event coincided with annual Santa Rosa de Lima and Independence celebrations..."

• The Sunday Guardian, July 30, 2000, "Arima - the way we are": an article providing a brief historical overview of Arima and its Amerindian history

• Speech from the President of the Carib Community, Sunday Guardian, 30 July, 2000: "As President of the Santa Rosa Carib Community of Arima, I believe I am truly blessed and consider it a special honour and privilege to be given the opportunity to bring greetings to the people of Arima on this special occasion of the 112th birthday of our beautiful Borough. According to our historical data, Arima was established as a mission town by the Capuchin missionaries who came from Spain.  The Amerindians from Tacarigua, Caura and Arouca were brought together in Arima some time between 1784 and 1786 for quite a long period of time.  Arima remained a small, quiet town.

FROM THE CATHOLIC NEWS (TRINIDAD):

• “First Peoples of Our Nation”, Catholic News, Sunday, August 22, 2004—Edited version of an address given by Ricardo Bharath, president of the Santa Rosa Carib Community and advocate of Amerindian Peoples at a recent symposium on the First Peoples of our nation. President of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, His Excellency Professor Maxwell Richards attended the symposium. The Santa Rosa community celebrates their feast day today, August 22.

• “Sacrifice of Santa Rosa”, Catholic News, Sunday, August 31, 2003—“… With the church bells pealing and under police escort, the procession began at the church’s Woodford Street entrance, on to Church Street, Queen Street, pass the Dial to the Arima Market, Hollis Avenue, back onto Woodford, thence to the square opposite the church for closing Benediction…”

• "Santa Rosa, Our Guide: Arima Celebrates Patronal Feast", by Raymond Syms, The Catholic News, Sunday, 01 September, 2002: "The Carib community, led by Queen Valentina Medina, stood near the statue, many of them wearing coloured beaded necklaces. Community president Ricardo Bharath-Hernandez sat in the front row. Near him were Arima Mayor Elvin Edwards, parliamentary representative Penelope Beckles and former Mayor Rose Janniere. Jesuit priest, Fr Malcolm Rodrigues of Guyana, who works closely with the indigenous people of his country, was also present. Bidding prayers were offered in English, Spanish and Arawak."

• "Caribs: All We Want is Respect", by Donna-Lisa Pena, The Catholic News, Sunday 18 August 2002: "With the feast of Santa Rosa coming up, Arima parish priest Fr Christian Pereira organised a meeting between parishioners and the Carib community to ensure that all would go well with this year's celebrations. Among those present were Arima Mayor Aldwin Edwards, President of the Carib Community Bharath Hernandez and Carib Queen Valentina Medina..."

• Catholic News, Trinidad, Sunday, September 3, 2000, Top Story: Statue in the Streets, followed up in Parish News----- Fr. Pereira: Santa Rosa feast important to whole country: Preaching the homily, Fr Pereira said it was his "special joy and privilege" to be present, as Carib blood flowed through his veins since his Arima relatives were Carib descendants.

FROM THE EXPRESS (TRINIDAD):

• "Reclaiming the Past", by Caldeo Sookram, The Express, Thursday, 05 September, 2002: "When reggae artiste Burning Spear sings “Christopher Columbus was a damn blasted liar” you can hear the conviction of truth in his voice—One of the biggest lies Columbus perpetrated was against the indigenous peoples he found in this part of the world. What with their tawdry beads, bits of glass and diseases the Spanish all but destroyed the culture and civilisation they found when they first came to their New World.  Now, centuries later, some of this is being healed through cultural exchanges between indigenous peoples. One such exchange is currently taking place between indigenous peoples of Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago.

• “Caribs Revive Ancient Ritual”, by Caldeo Sookram, The Express, 06 August, 2002: “The Carib community in Arima held their smoke ceremony last Thursday at the top of scenic Calvary Hill. Before dawn, members of the small community of indigenous people climbed up a long row of concrete steps to reach the top of Calvary Hill. It was 6 a.m. when the blast of a cannon signalled the start of the ceremony. Carib Queen Valentina Medina and Carib community president Ricardo Bharath gathered with descendants of the natives to perform the rituals. The smoke ceremony was once performed by the Caribs with freedom. That was before the arrival of Europeans and Christianity. It was suppressed during the long years of colonial rule, but practised secretly by the Caribs in their homes. Today, the smoke ceremony forms a significant part of the Carib community celebrations and the public was allowed to see it about eight years ago, Ricardo Bharath explained….”

• “Adonis gets all gingered up”, by Caldeo Sookram, The Express, Thursday, 20 December, 2001: “Christo Adonis learned to make ginger beer from his mother Anastasia Adonis, who at 73 learned from her parents. They are of Carib ancestry and live at Calvary Hill in Arima….Relaxing in his hammock under the roof of his carrat leaf shed, Adonis, describes himself as a medicine man, so he knows about herbs. He is also a tour guide, environmentalist, gardener, parandero et al….However, he gets annoyed when people refer to the indigenous inhabitants as Caribs and Arawaks. ‘They’re the Karinas and Loconos,’ he insists. ‘I really fed up telling people these names but nobody taking me on seriously.’In his shed full of dried calabash, paintings, artefacts and other memorabilia, Adonis sets himself about the task of making ginger beer. “All my friends love this shed. I entertain them here. Anybody who come here, come right in this shed. They like the hammock…”

• “The Pleasures of Pastelles”, by Caldeo Sookram, The Express, Saturday, 08 December, 2001: “Medicine-man Christo Adonis, 43, a descendant of the indigenous Caribs, says there is no written history on the pastelle, but indigenous food like corn (maize) and cassava were staples of the Caribs and Arawaks. ‘They planted corn and cassava, hunted wild animals and caught fish too. They used to boucanier (barbecue) the meat to preserve it. They used to wrap corn in leaves and boil it. They also roasted the corn and ground it,’ he says. ‘But that’s all. They had no links with pastelle’…”

• "Catholics Celebrate Our Amerindian Heritage", by Alwyn de Coteau, The Express, August 2001: "THE PATRONAL feast of Santa Rosa is always an opportunity for the community to remember and celebrate their beginnings as an Amerindian mission. Every year, the Santa Rosa Carib community has pride of place in their festivities. This time an extra dimension has been added to their celebration with the presence of Fr Donal O’Mahony, an Irish Capuchin priest, who will be the chief celebrant at the Santa Rosa festival Mass on Sunday. The Capuchins have a very special link to Arima, which began as a Capuchin Mission in 1749..."

• Carib Queen dies at 84, By Trevor Burnett, Trinidad Express, Wednesday, January 19, 2000.

• "Caribs upset after meeting with PM aborted", Trinidad Express, Tuesday, 22 September, 1998, Trevor Burnett: "In a rare news conference, the Carib community of Arima, led by Councillor Ricardo Bharat, voiced dissatisfaction on Sunday over an aborted meeting with Prime Minister Basdeo Panday previously scheduled for between September 25-26…"

• "Caribs Celebrate Santa Rosa Festival", Trinidad Express, Monday, 24 August, 1998, Trevor Burnett: "Carib men lift their patron Rosa de Lima to begin their annual procession through the streets of Arima…"

• “T&T Caribs on the move”, Trinidad Express, Letter of the Day, Friday, 19 June, 1998, Beryl Almarales: “The members of the Santa Rosa Carib Community have therefore decided to establish a research centre at our headquarters on Paul Mitchell Street, Arima, and to mark the 500th anniversary of the arrival of Columbus on our shores with the opening of this centre…”

• “John Stollmeyer Returns to the Earth”, by Olivia Mejias, Trinidad Express, Wednesday, 06 January, 1999: “…which he is now planning to build an Amerindian hut in Las Cuevas and live there in harmony with the Earth…”

• “Mystery of the Pitch Lake”, by Afiya Butler, Trinidad Express, Monday, 10 April, 2000: “…According to Amerindian legend, the Pitch Lake in La Brea was punishment from the Gods dealt to the Chaima, a powerful Amerindian tribe. To them, the hummingbird was sacred. But one day after an important victory, the chief of the tribe celebrated by killing and eating the bird. This angered the gods…”

• “Remember the Amerindians”, by Kamal Persad, Trinidad Express, Sunday, 04 December, 1999: [look three quarters of the way down this page to find the article] “…The surviving descendants of the Amerindian genocide in Trinidad have been commemorating the last great Amerindian act of resistance and rebellion against Spanish and Catholic imperial domination over the last week and these activities will continue during the month of December…”

• “Raleigh’s Tall Tales”, by Kim Johnson, Trinidad Express, Sunday, 04 July, 1999: [look half way down this page to find the article] “Despite the six-cent commemorative stamps issued in 1935, 1938 and 1953 by the colony of Trinidad and Tobago, Sir Walter Raleigh never claimed to have discovered the Pitch Lake. He knew that the aboriginal inhabitants of Trinidad were long familiar with the pitch lake-pitch is an Amerindian word….Yet his most outrageous tales were swallowed, such as that of the Ewaipanoma tribe, who ‘have their eyes in their shoulders, and mouths in the middle of their breasts, and that a long train of hair groweth backward between their shoulders’…”

• “Trinidad's first governor confused El Dorado with fountain of youth”, by Kim Johnson, Trinidad Express, Sunday, 27 June, 1999: [look 80% of the way down this page to find the article] “Juan Ponce de Leon (1466-1521) sought the Fountain of Youth in Florida. But El Dorado-The Gilded Man, an Amerindian king who annointed himself daily with gold dust- was supposed to live somewhere in Peru. Alas, like any rainbow's pot of gold, his kingdom retreated from its seekers. It migrated east and ended up in North-eastern Venezuela or Guyana. Thus Trinidad became important as the launching pad for its conquest. Antonio de Berrio, Trinidad's first Governor, was already an old retired soldier when he was recruited to the search for El Dorado…”

• “Arawak Artifacts Found at Harris Promenade”, by Vidhisha Mannah, Trinidad Express, Saturday, 03 January, 1998: [look two-thirds of the way down this page] “A number of items which could provide an insight into the lifestyle of the early inhabitants of Trinidad have been unearthed by workmen engaged in the redevelopment of Harris Promenade, San Fernando…”

• “Trinis in Miami to Mark Independence”, by Susan Gosine, The Express, Monday, 24 August, 1998 [scroll down that page to see the article]: “The programme will feature cultural shows which will include dances by the Carib Shiv Shakti Dance Company, the UJAMAA performers and parang singers; cuisine to represent each ethnic group in Trinidad and Tobago; displays of Carnival photographs from the National Carnival Commission; Angostura's butterfly collection; paintings by local artists; video and film presentations on this country's culture; and a display on the indigenous Caribs.”

• “Love and devotion- the old-fashioned way”, Trailblazing with Heather-Dawn Herrera, Trinidad Express, Saturday, January 1st 2005—Extract: “To the original folk, this festive season in Monte Video is much the same as anywhere else. Carib descendents who have managed to survive in a changing world still prefer to live life in their own way, even now. Octave Martinez, brother of a former Carib queen travelled all the way from Arima to Monte Video in his youth. On one of these occasions, he was attending his nephew's wake when his eyes fell upon this beautiful lady. It was love at first sight.”

• “Prayers, offerings mark Carib Recognition Day: It was only three years ago that the Government of Trinidad and Tobago gave due recognition to the Carib community in Arima”, by Caldeo Sookram, Trinidad Express, Oct. 16, 2002, pps. 17, 18.

• “Hammock hang-ups: That gently swaying bed might be breaking your back,” by Caldeo Sookram, Trinidad Express, (no date indicated)—Extract: “The hammock, an ancient symbol of leisure and relaxation, still survives in modern times, even if its construction has become a little more complex. It was once the bed to many a poor people. In fact, the hammock was the bed of the Arawaks and Caribs, the first known settlers of Trinidad and Tobago.”

OTHER SOURCES:

• Ricardo Bharath in Cuba, 04 December 1999, InterPress Service: "PORT OF SPAIN, (Dec. 3) IPS - By the time he leaves for Cuba in mid-December, Carib leader Ricardo Hernandez Bharat is hoping to have the full endorsement of his colleagues of his call for some form of compensation from the Trinidad and Tobago government for years of exploitation of his ancestors. Bharat is going to Cuba on Dec. 13 to attend a meeting of indigenous people from the Americas, dubbed People of the First Nations of the World. The Cuba meeting is being organized by the Canadian-based Elleggua Foundation and will be held in the eastern town of Baracoa..."

• Indigenous Peoples Welcome New Government Concessions By Peter Richards PORT OF SPAIN, July 12, 2000: "When the indigenous peoples of the region gather in Trinidad and Tobago for their 'International Gathering' in August there will be some cause for celebration. The Caribs from Dominica will be informing their counterparts of the establishment of the long awaited 'Carib Model Village' while the Santa Rosa Carib community in Trinidad and Tobago will welcome delegates with the news that that government is moving to have Oct. 14 designated 'A Day of Recognition' of the country's indigenous peoples. 'We see this gathering as not just another celebration or reunion, but as a vehicle that will seek to put in place an organised structure to address the concerns of indigenous peoples of this hemisphere,' says Ricardo Hernandez-Bharath, president of the local Carib community..."

• “Queen of a Forgotten People”, by Mychelle Loubon, in Caribbean Voice, April 2003—an article on current Carib Queen, Valentina Medina, her family and her positions the revival and maintenance of Carib traditions.

• John  Stollmeyer—“Place of Beginnings: The Worldviews of the Amerindians of Cairi and of Medieval Europe.”

From WebArchive.org's "Way Back Machine" 
(please note that these pages may take a long time to load):

• The Carib Santa Rosa Festival - From Catholic News Online, Trinidad, “Top Story: Statue in the Streets”, followed up in “Parish News”. (September 3, 2000)

• "The Carib Queens of Arima" - An article in the Catholic News Online, Trinidad, on the history of the Queens of the Caribs in Arima, Trinidad. (March 5, 2000)