Siri Briggs Brown, Ph.D., Director of African American Studies and chair of Social Science and Ethnic Studies at Merritt College in Oakland, California, arrived in Belize this week with a group of her students to learn more about Belize and Black Nationalist movements here.

The group of 12 was particularly interested in learning more about the United Black Association for Development (UBAB), which was founded in 1969, the year UBAD also founded Amandala.

Belizean Egbert Higinio, who organized the trip to Belize City and Dangriga from overseas, said that this year the class’ field work includes the study of the history of Black people in the diaspora.

The students attended a presentation by Amandala titled, “History of UBAD/Black Power movement in Belize”, at the UWI School of Continuing Studies today.

Professor Siri and her students were also keenly interested in current affairs and the present plight of their brothers and sisters in Belize.

During the course of their visit with us, the group also learned about the ongoing programs of the UBAD Educational Foundation; and they had a chance to visit the Library of African and Indian Studies and to see the youth partake in the computer-based literacy program initiated through RESTORE Belize.

To view the UBAD presentation given to the students, you can visit http://www.slideshare.net/adeleramosbz/the-history-of-ubad or http://youtu.be/7R9I3bGoFho.