Place, Time & Memory

FAIN: BC-50565-10

Virgin Islands Humanities Council (St. Thomas, VI 00802)
Wanda Mills-Bocachica (Project Director: May 2010 to January 2011)
Ayesha Morris (Project Director: January 2011 to December 2011)
Annie Smith (Project Director: December 2011 to January 2012)
Opal Palmer Adisa (Project Director: January 2012 to March 2013)
Barbara A. Petersen (Project Director: March 2013 to March 2013)
Jacqueline A. Dennis (Project Director: March 2013 to August 2014)

Funding will support a range of activities on the theme of Memory and Place, including a lecture series, a literary and art competition for young people, publication subsidies for a photographic documentary project, commissioned oral histories, and grants for research.

This thematic proposal focuses on the recognition, documentation and public appreciation of places of memory within the United States Virgin Islands. The over-arching vision is to facilitate the conceptualization of collective and individual memory regarding place and to advance futuristic visions that nurture community cohesiveness and considers the humanity of all members of our society. Five recognized Virgin Islands literary agents will provide their insightful perspectives on different aspects of the theme. Partnership grants and initiatives will also advance the growth of the local cultural heritage tourism industry by facilitating the production of written, graphic and cultural materials that document varied narratives of place. The proposal responds to select recommendations from the successful “We the People” 2007-08 Cultural Heritage Tourism conference. Activities include a lecture series; a youth literary/art competition; photographs; oral histories; and research grants.

Media Coverage

"Page to Stage: VI Humanities Council to present dramatizations of works by VI authors, historical discussion" (Media Coverage)
Publication: St. Croix Avis
Date: 9/29/2012
Abstract: The Virgin Islands Humanities Council will present dramatizations of works by local authors and hold a lecture series during a two-day event set for Friday and Saturday on St. Croix titled, "Place, Time & Memory: Story Toh Tell!"

"Page to Stage: VIHC program brings authors' works to life" (Media Coverage)
Author(s): Tom Eader
Publication: The St. Croix Avis
Date: 10/2/2011
Abstract: Actors from St. Croix and St. Thomas brought to life works of Virgin Islands authors during a Virgin Islands Humanities Council event Friday night at Government House. The event continues Saturday with the screeening of three VIHC videos depicting time, place and memory, as well as a lecture series with question and answer segment.

Humanities Conference Brings Times, Places, Memories to Life (Review)
Author(s):
Publication: St. Croix Source
Date: 10/2/2011
Abstract: With dramatic readings transporting listeneres to far-off times and locales and evoking half-forgotten memories, the V.I. Humanities Council launched its conference Friday at Government House in Christiansted. About 175 residents attending "We the People -- Place, Time & Memory: 'Story Toh Tell!" delighted to poetry, theater and movement. Appropriately enough, some of the poetry read was that of Marvin E. Williams, who was honored posthumously by the council with its Humanist Award
URL: http://stcroixsource.com/print/93627

Auditions for drama (Media Coverage)
Author(s):
Publication: Virgin Islands Daily News - Island Life
Date: 7/20/2011
Abstract: The Virgin Islands Humanities Council seeks actors to audition from July 25 to July 30 for dramatizations of works by Virgin Islands writers on the theme "Place, Time, & Memory," directed by David Edgecombe.

Youth art competition (Media Coverage)
Author(s):
Publication: Virgin Islands Daily News - Island Life
Date: 9/7/2011
Abstract: The Virgin Islands Humanities Council encourages all ninth to 12th grade students in public, private, and parochial schools to submit entries by Thursday for a youth art competition examining the theme, "Place, Time, & Memory."

Quelbe lyrical competition (Media Coverage)
Author(s):
Publication: Virgin Islands Daily News - Island Life
Date: 9/7/2011
Abstract: The Virgin Islands Humanities Council encourages all seventh to 12th grade students in public, private, and parochial schools to submit entries by Sept. 8 for a quelbe lyrical competition examining the theme, "Place, Time, and Memory."

Associated Products

"Garotte: The Illusion of Social Equality and Political Justice in the United States Virgin Islands" (Conference Paper/Presentation)
Title: "Garotte: The Illusion of Social Equality and Political Justice in the United States Virgin Islands"
Author: H. Akia Gore, Ph.D.
Abstract: This presentation, based on the book of the same title, provided a historical accounting of the struggles by Eastern Caribbean nationals to achieve social equality and political justice in the United States Virgin Islands
Date: 10-01-11
Conference Name: We the People 2011: Place, Time, & Memory - Daniel L. Heftel Lecture Series

The Free Gut Neighborhood of Christiansted (Conference Paper/Presentation)
Title: The Free Gut Neighborhood of Christiansted
Author: Elizabeth Rezende, Ph.D.
Abstract: This conference power-point presentation used current and historic photos along with research to document one of the first free black communities of St. Croix
Date: 10-01-11
Conference Name: We the People 2011: Place, Time & Memory - Daniel L. Heftel Lecture Series

David Hamilton Jackson and the U.S. Navy (Conference Paper/Presentation)
Title: David Hamilton Jackson and the U.S. Navy
Author: William W. Boyer, Ph.D.
Abstract: Every year, on November 1st, “D. Hamilton Jackson Day,” otherwise known as “Liberty Day,” is celebrated in St. Croix. Crucians are reminded then about Jackson’s achievements in advancing civil liberties in the Islands, especially his contributions to freedom of the press, the first labor union, repeal of voting restrictions, right of public assembly, expansion of education, etc. But much less is known about how he was treated by officers of the all-white U.S. Navy during the 14 years of Navy rule. I researched the National Archives in Washington and found some interesting impressions of Jackson by Navy officers during U.S. military occupation. Such impressions are important in assessing the barriers that confronted Jackson and others in their courageous efforts to advance the liberties of their fellow Virgin Islanders.1
Date: 10-01-2011
Conference Name: We the People 2011: Place, Time & Memory - Daniel L. Heftel Lecture Series

The Virgin Islands Reparations Movement (Conference Paper/Presentation)
Title: The Virgin Islands Reparations Movement
Author: Shelley Moorhead
Abstract: Shelley Moorhead, president of the African-Caribbean Reparations and Resettlement Alliance shared an overview of the reparations movement in the Virgin Islands, from it early beginnings to the present.
Date: 10-01-2011
Conference Name: We the People 2011: Place, Time & Memory - Daniel L. Heftel Lecture Series

Kill the Rabbits: A Stage Adaptation (Script)
Title: Kill the Rabbits: A Stage Adaptation
Writer: Tiphanie Yanique
Director: David Edgecombe
Producer: V.I. Humanities Council
Abstract: It is the night of Easter Sunday. I’ve already been to chapel and received God on my tongue. I sit in the cell with my lights off. Everyone’s light is off. I wait for the man with the cross to begin his walk. He’s been doing it once a year for the whole 12 years I’ve been in here. Carnival is coming in a few weeks. During Carnival I can hear all the music and try hard to get a glimpse of Xica.
Year: 2011

Do Lord Remember Me - 10 min. excerpt (Script)
Title: Do Lord Remember Me - 10 min. excerpt
Writer: James de Jongh
Director: David Edgecombe
Producer: V.I. Humanities Council
Abstract: “Firsthand memories of former slaves, recorded in the late 1930’s under the Federal Writer’s Project, form the basis [of this] moving evocation of shared servitude”
Year: 2011

The House That Freedom Built (Film/TV/Video Broadcast or Recording)
Title: The House That Freedom Built
Writer: LaVaughn Belle
Director: LaVaughn Belle
Producer: V.I. Humanities Council
Abstract: This trailer/documentary-in-progress highlighted the Free Gut community of St.Croix, through the eyes of La Vaughn Belle, a woman who is digging up the area's rich history as one of the first free black settlements in Christiansted as she tries to rehabilitate one of it's dilapidated one-room structures - a house that she now owns.
Year: 2011
Format: DVD

Jack Delano Photo Collection (Exhibition)
Title: Jack Delano Photo Collection
Curator: V.I. Humanities Council
Abstract: Jack Delano (August 1, 1914 – August 12, 1997) was an American photographer for the Farm Security Administration (FSA) and a composer noted for his use of Puerto Rican folk material. In 1941, the Ukranian-born American photographer landed in the United States Virgin Islands, ready to begin an assignment for the federal government. These are some of the photos that Delano took during his visit to the islands. The Humanities Council’s collection is a result of a grant funded in the 1990s, but reshown at the We the People 2011 conference because of its all-encompassing relevance to the theme of Place, Time, & Memory
Year: 2011

Sandra Michael Collection (Exhibition)
Title: Sandra Michael Collection
Curator: Evelyn Pena-Felix
Abstract: Moko jumbies are a cultural group that originated in Africa. The enslaved brought their culture with them from Africa. The Moko Jumbies are a form of Masquerading. They all wear masks to hide their identity. The mask is essentially a dramatic device enabling the performer to stand apart from his or her everyday role in the community. Sandra Michael’s grandmother Ms. Elizabeth Clarke was a masquerader on foot and her grandfather Mr. William Robinson was a Moko Jumbie. Her handmade Moko Jumbies fashioned from colorful fabrics spoke to the We the People 2011 theme of "Place, Time, & Memory."
Year: 2011

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