IN GARIFUNA LAND

By Sharon Van Bramer

Dangriga is the largest town in southern Belize; it makes an ideal base from which to explore the tiny Central American country. It is located 90 kilometers from Belmopan, the nation's capital and 170 kilometers from Belize City. The Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Reserve and the ancient Maya city of Caracol are close, and the fabled cays of South Water, Man-o-War and Tobacco are just offshore. However, what makes Dangriga a destination in itself are the Garifuna.

    The Garifuna, who refer to themselves as Garinagu, founded Dangriga over one hundred and fifty years ago. Today, with its population of 8,100, it is one of the largest Black Carib communities in the world. The Garifuna have a hybrid culture that is intimately linked to the history of the Caribbean Basin, and are one of the reasons that Belize has more of a Caribbean than a Latin atmosphere.

    Long before Columbus set out for America, the Windward Islands were inhabited by Carib and Arawak Indians. The Caribs eventually absorbed the Arawaks, only to then have to face the English and French. The British fought the Caribs from 1625 to 1660, when they signed a treaty granting the Indians sovereignty over the islands of St. Vincent and Dominica. Eight years later they broke the treaty and colonized the islands.

    In 1635, two Spanish ships carrying Nigerians sank just off St. Vincent, and some people made it ashore. The Indians and black mixed, and by 1773, the majority of the population on St. Vincent were a people called the Garifuna.

    Hostilities between blacks and whites escalated on St. Vincent throughout the 18th century. In 1796 the Garifuna launched an all-out assault against the whites, and ultimately were defeated. Five thousand Garifuna were captured, and their leader, Chief Joseph Chatoyer, was killed. The British deported around 2,000 Garifuna to Roatan, a Bay Island off the coast of Honduras. Many people died during the crossing, and the survivors were only left with enough supplies for three months. Over the years, Garifuna migrated to the mainland, and in 1832, a group under the leadership of Alejo Beni moved into what is now the Stann Creek District of Belize.

    Today the Garifuna people live in Central America along the eastern seaboards of Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala and Belize, and in the Bay Islands of Honduras. In Belize, they exist outside the mainstream of national life.

    The Garifuna are conservative and devoted to their roots. Their music and dance are unique expressions of their worldview, and of their talent for percussion. They are also gifted artists of the naïf or primitive school, and several well-known painters live and work in Dangriga.

    Garifuna culture is matriarchal; a mother is the center of her family, which in turn is the basic unit of society. Women are the repositories of the culture's ancient wisdom, and it is even believed that they can communicate with the dead. Garifuna believe the dead can directly influence the living, and the women are periodically 'possessed' by relatives eager to talk. This is done at a formally organized encounter called a dugu. They also believe they can direct the forces of good and evil through spells, which underscores the Garifuna's West African roots.

    Garifuna speak a Carib-Arawak language salted with words from Spanish, English and French. Most Garifuna are at least bilingual, speaking English and/or Spanish in addition to their own language, and some also speak regional Maya dialects like Kekchi or Miskit.

    Dangriga has little infrastructure, and most people fish, farm or work in the arts. There is a small professional class of teachers, nurses and civil servants, but unfortunately for the city, well-educated people often migrate to the United States, where they can earn more money. Remittances make up a large part of the income for many families, and almost everyone has at least one friend or relative who headed north to make their fortune.

    Dining in Dangriga is a treat: Garifuna dishes includes fish, chicken, pork, corn and manioc or cassava, and they work wonders with coconuts. Though the town is rustic, one can find original works of art, palm crafts, Garifuna handmade dolls, calabash maracas and drums, which their makers say last for a century.

    The architecture has not changed in a hundred years. There are some solid, cement-block houses, but the majority of homes are bleached, wooden-plank structures built on stilts to allow the air to circulate - cheap tropical air-conditioning, and great flood protection.

    Dangriga straddles the North Stann Creek River, called the gumaragaru in Garifuna, for 'here the sweet water is close at hand.' The town is famous for its drinking water, which some say is the best in Belize. Fishing skiffs ride the tide along the river's banks and women sashay down the dusty streets with all manner of merchandise on their heads.

    Dangriga comes alive during holidays and festivals, and Christmas is a veritable carnival. Nevertheless, the most important day of the year is November 19, the day Garifuna celebrate their 1835 migration to Belize and reenact 'The Landing.'