There will be much to celebrate during this year’s August Emancipation Festival.
“We’re celebrating not just the 70th anniversary of Festival, but we’re celebrating 190 years of emancipation, 190 years of our freedom from slavery,” Junior Minister for Culture and Tourism Luce Hodge-Smith said during a launch ceremony held Friday at the Market Square in Road Town.
Though rain delayed the 5 p.m. start of the event, it did not appear to dampen the spirit of the officials, performers and others who gathered around the stage as Ms. Hodge-Smith encouraged the community to participate in the upcoming festivities rather than simply being spectators.
The event also included the launch of the Festival slogan — “Celebrate our freedom and live in unity as BVI Festival turns 70!” — and theme: “Celebrating 70 years of BVI Festival through our platinum jubilee as we showcase a legacy of cultural traditions, history and diversity.”
“The slogan and the theme we unveil today embody the spirit of progress and the unity that defines our nation to remind us that we are not bound by the limitations of the past, but rather empowered by the possibilities of the future,” said BVI Tourist Board Director Clive McCoy. “It is a call to action urging all of us to continue building upon the foundations laid by those who came before us.”
Performances
Attendees not only heard from these speakers and Premier Dr. Natalio “Sowande” Wheatley, but they also enjoyed some performances as the sun went down.
Vendors at various kiosks sold food while music from different artists played throughout the evening.
There were also performances by Nouveau Royale, a dance group that performed a soca dance, and moko jumbies from the BVI Optimum Sky Dancers.
“When you think about the horrors of slavery, when you think about what our ancestors went through, … we should be jumping for joy every opportunity we have to celebrate our ancestors and to celebrate freedom,” Dr. Wheatley said.