Dear Editor,
With reference to the “Inaugural Caribbean Festival of Arts (CARIFESTA) as Prism: 20th Century Festivals in the Multilingual Caribbean” (August 5th to 7th, 2022), the organizers of the 3-day international symposium to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Carifesta 72 were saddened by the thrust of Mr. Lloyd Sharma’s letter of July 19, 2022, to the Editor of Stabroek News, titled “Indo-Guyanese academics, performers have been excluded from Guyana Folk Festival’s celebration of 50th anniversary of Carifesta.”
The presenters in the symposium are self-selected. That is, they all responded to a public and multilingual Call for Papers and Participation which was issued on May 3, 2022. That Call was circulated internationally to many of the academic and non-academic associations that Guyanese, Caribbean, and other international academics participate in professionally. On May 8, 2022, Stabroek News amplified this call in the article, “Virtual symposium examines Carifesta at 50 -call made for papers and participation.” The Call for Papers and Participation closed on June 1, 2022.
The presenters in the three-day symposium “Inaugural Caribbean Festival of Arts (CARIFESTA) as Prism: 20th Century Festivals in the Multilingual Caribbean” bring many perspectives to examination of one of the seminal moments in the history of the post-colonial Caribbean.
The symposium will be the first space to bring together artists, scholars, and participants to remember and analyze Carifesta ‘72. It aims to be the beginning of ongoing conversations about the possibilities, achievements, and missteps of Carifesta ’72 as well as articulating visions for the role of culture in the creation of just and caring societies.
The three-day international symposium commemorating the 50th anniversary of Carifesta ’72 is one of the signature events of the 2022 season of the Guyana Folk Festival.
The Guyana Folk Festival has been organized by the Guyana Cultural Association of New York for the past 22 years.
Sincerely,
Vibert Cambridge, A.A., Ph.D.
PS: Please stay tuned for details on how you will be able to participate in the symposium.
