The Yurumein, or the re-enactment of the arrival of the Garinagu, signals the onset of Garifuna Settlement Day festivities, celebrated in Stann Creek since 1941, but observed nationally as a public and bank holiday across Belize since 1977.
All across the country, and even among Garinagu living abroad, the arrival of the Garinagu to Belize’s shores almost two centuries ago was celebrated on Wednesday with as much fanfare as it ever was.
The most festive center for the celebrations is said to be Dangriga – the place where 300 Garinagu settled when they came to Belize’s shores on Wednesday, November 19, 1823. There were a total of 500 Garinagu who migrated from Honduras to British Honduras, after Alejo Beni received permission from Sup. Major-General Edward Codd (1823-1829).
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Dean Barrow, visiting Dangriga for the first time to witness the celebrations, was the guest speaker for formal ceremonies there.
The official activities are spearheaded under the banner of the National Garifuna Council, and its countrywide branches organize similar activities all over Belize, in places like Punta Gorda, Orange Walk, and Belize City.
One of the earliest settlements of the Garinagu was actually at Yarborough in Belize City, starting in 1802, when 150 Garinagu came, led by the Beni family. One of the last strongholds of the Garifuna culture and the home village of the late Andy Palacio, Barranco (previously known as Red Cliff), in Toledo, was established in 1802.
There have been several activities leading up to the celebration of Garifuna Settlement Day this year, among them the launching of the documentary Punta Soul (Nyasha Laing), the Umalali Concert (Stonetree Records); “Battle of the Drums” in Punta Gorda, various food and culture fests at every major locale, concerts featuring leading Garifuna artists – Chico Ramos, Lugua Centeno, and Pen Cayetano, who also unveiled his oil-on-canvas – the Belize Bowl Race earlier this month, and the climax of the season – the official “fedu” or celebrations of November 19th.
A most notable feature of the celebrations is the participation of many of Belize’s other ethnic groups in acknowledging the contributions of the Garinagu to Belize’s growth and development.
In Orange Walk, the Hispanic community came out in support of the Garifuna community living there, some beating plantains to make the very popular hudut (a traditional fish dish), while others took to the dance floor as drummers beat the rhythms that caused them to jump to their feet.
Garifuna Settlement Day is a time for sharing the richness of the culture: the history, the language, the foods, the dances, and the beliefs and values of the Garifuna people.
The Garinagu were exiled by the British from St. Vincent (Yurumein) in 1797, after having lost the war due to the death of Paramount Chief Joseph Satuye (Chatoyer). They were numbered at 5,000 at the time of the war; some estimates put the present-day number as high as 500,000 living in Belize and abroad.
Garifuna Settlement Day activities were instituted by a Honduran-born social activist – Thomas Vincent Ramos, whose mother was originally from Dangriga. Ramos, himself, married a Dangriga woman in 1914 and migrated to Belize permanently in 1923. He became naturalized in 1954 – a year before he passed away. His annual tribute forms an integral part of the annual festivities, and is held every year on the anniversary of his death on November 13th.