A group of cultural ambassadors from the territory returned from Cuba this week after bringing traditional West Indian entertainment from the USVI for the first time to the newly opened country.
Groups from the Virgin Islands were invited to participate in this year’s Fiesta del Fuego (Feast of Fire), an annual colloquium and people-to-people cultural tour of Cuba.
The fiesta celebrated its 36th year — with the 2016 festival dedicated to Ecuador — and it was the first time the USVI participated in one of the Cuban Ministry of Culture’s most important cultural events.
Organized by the Casa del Caribe — an organization and museum that honors the African cultural heritage of Cuba — the festival is a colorful and vibrant celebration of the dance, music and traditions of Latin America and the Caribbean.
This year’s celebration included the participation of more than 200,000 artists and intellectuals from 18 countries who participate in events in 40 spaces around the city of Santiago de Cuba to exchange ideas and share the history, religion and culture of the region.
Two groups from the U.S. Virgin Islands were invited to participate: Group I consisted of the V.I.’s Rising Stars Steel Orchestra’s Pan in Motion Group and two mocko jumbies from the Caribbean Ritual Dancers; Group II was there in support of the territorial delegation and comprised a cross-section of professionals that included educators, artists and retired professionals.
While in Santiago, both groups were invited and hosted by the West Indian Society of Guantanamo. Pan in Motion and the mocko jumbies performed and invited the people of Guantanamo to tramp through the town.
The V.I. delegation also adopted the West Indian Society of Guantanamo to assist with repairs of their headquarters and to help them reconnect with their families in the Virgin Islands and in the Eastern Caribbean.
In 1952 the USVI flag was presented to the West Indian Society of Guantanamo, and this year the USVI delegation replaced the old flag with a new one.
In honor of the reunion, delegation member Sen. Myron Jackson agreed to fly the old flag on the grounds of the V.I. Legislature.
Every year the delegation returns to Cuba, they will return with the old flag as a reminder of their connection and how far they have come.
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