The talent, skills and heart of the Caribbean people is evident. It’s like the month of June is blossoming with talent and ideas and people of all walks of the Caribbean life, coming together and trying a new thing in this age of lockdowns, restrictions, plague and pestilence.
Two major events are happening this month that the entire diaspora can either enjoy from afar or participate in directly if they have the time and ability.
The first is the Caribbean Literary Conference (CARICON) being hosted virtually this year, which will have authors and writers from all over the Caribbean diaspora sharing their talents, creative work and ideas on becoming a writer. Caribbean Magazine Plus had a chance to interview a few of the authors as well as the event organiser and it is well put together, considering the time and space we are in.
The second is the first ever Caribbean-American Festival being held in Brevard County, Palm Bay, Florida. Lots of artists will be on display and there is a month of events lined up from cultures from Haiti, Jamaica and all over. It promises to be a blast so the organiser told CMP and we wish them all the best.
But this just shows you how much talent and energy can be squeezed out of the Caribbean people once given half of a chance. Of course, all of these events are being coordinated by people from the diaspora who live in developed countries, but what if we could have that type of support for our cultural innovators and pioneers on the ground at home? What a success story we will be and more enrichened by it too.
This month of June is a reason to look upwards, not down at the plague. We have a lot to celebrate and appreciate as well as to be thankful for.