DE CONCH
JULY 2013 GULLAH/GEECHEE NATION INTERNATIONAL MUSIC & MOVEMENT FEST EDITION
Gullah/Geechee Nation Appreciation Week in Beaufort, SC!!!! Mayor Saluka and the Town Council of Bluffton, SC were the first to present Queen Quet, Chieftess of the Gullah/Geechee Nation (www.QueenQuet.com) with a proclamation for “Gullah/Geechee Nation Appreciation Week” in Beaufort County, SC. The entire county also declared a week to celebrate the Gullah/Geechee Nation’s rich heritage. The week will be from July 27-August 4, 2013 and will entail supporting historic sites, Gullah/Geechee businesses, and the Gullah/Geechee Nation International Music & Movement Festival™ 2013 themed “Emancipation een de Gullah/Geechee Nation!”
To hear the presentations of the proclamations tune in to:
http://youtu.be/52oOS7dY_Ns
http://youtu.be/nizoENCLvpQ
WWW.GULLAHGEECHEENATION.COM
P.
ST. HELENA LIBRARY ON ST. HELENA ISLAND IS THE SITE OF “GULLAH/ GEECHEE REUNION DAY” AUGUST 3RD
WWW.GULLAHGEECHEE.INFO
Wha Gwine On July Commemorate the founding of the Gullah/Geechee Nation and Queen Quet’s enstoolment on July 2nd throughout the Gullah/ Geechee Nation. July 5 Navassa Homecoming in NC
Cum Jayn We!!! Gullah/Geechee Nation International Music & Movement Festival™ 2013 Emancipation een de Gullah/Geechee Nation
Get advance tickets at http://
Pan African Grassroots Assembly at Oyotunji African Village, Sheldon, SC in the Gullah/Geechee Nation http:// www.oyotunji.org/
gullahgeecheemusicefbevent.eventbrite.com/ and use discount code “GGN”
Beaufort County, SC August 2-4, 2013 Friday, August 2-De Gullah Root Experience Tour of St. Helena and Hunting Islands Join Queen Quet, Chieftess of the Gullah/Geechee Nation on July 24 at 6 pm fa “Gullah/Geechee: Celebratin Who WEBE!” at the S t . H e l e n a L i b a r y. E m a i l GullGeeCo@aol.com for more details. De Gullah Root Experience Tour is customized for groups throughout the year. Email or call GullGeeCo@aol.com or 843-838-1171 for information. Gullah/Geechee traditional crafts workshops and meals are also offered. Go to www.gullahgeechee.biz for a listing. -------------------------------------------------If you are having a Gullah/ Geechee event or news, please send into to GullGeeCo@aol.com.
Book hotel rooms at the Quality Inn on St. Helena Island Call (843) 838-5022 Use CODE “GGN” for festival discounts. **********************
Saturday-Oyotunji African Village Welcome and Tour Saturday, August 3 Noon-5 pm St. Helena Library 7:30 pm Gullah/Geechee Garden Gala Sunday, August 4-Spiritual Worship Services on historic St. Helena Island and then bus tour to Savannah, GA with Gullah/Geechee closing reception GullGeeCo@aol.com or AMPTurnItUp@aol.com or call (843) 838-1171
Keep up with Gullah/Geechee events and activities daily at the Gullah/Geechee Nation Facebook Fan Page.
Tweet us @GullahGeechee
AL N O I AT N R NTE I N 0 13 2 O I ™ T AL NA V I E T E ES CH F E T Emancipation een de Gullah/Geechee Nayshun E N G E / M H VE LA L O St. Helena Island & Beaufort County, SC U M G & IC August 2-4, 2013 MUS
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www.gullahgeechee.info
Dem Wha Cumin ta de Stage! The Gullah/Geechee Nation International Music & Movement Festival 2013 brings to the stage outstanding Gullah/Geechee artists! “The Art-ivist” Queen Quet will take the community on a histo-musical journey. The Lighthouse Theater puppets will be back in the house again this year fa de chillun!
Peck Ensemble will take the audience
DE drum cumin een frum Oyotunji an wid Ujimaa!
Anthony McKnight will pay tribute to the legendary Motown bassist, James Jamerson!
on a spiritual journey through the songs of our ancestors! St. Helena’s own, Natasha Robinson gwine crak e teet een Geechee fa le dem chillun kno whey we cum frum. James Brown and Earnest Parks will bring out the stories of the soldiers that fought for emancipation. Sister SoulPowers of “Evolutionary Soul” will honor the ancestors will soulful sounds.
Tenk Gawd fa freedum!
QUEEN’S CHRONICLES Emancipation een de Gullah/Geechee Nation
Kwame Sha and I are elated to have completed a successful septenary on the Gullah/Geechee Nation International Music & Movement Festival™! The festival this year provides us with an opportunity to truly pay tribute to our ancestors for what they fought for 150 years ago and for what they had the vision to leave for us back then-land! True emancipation was felt by those people of African descent that came to be called “freedmen” that purchased land during the US Civil War and were able to build homes and raise crops of their own to sustain their families on said land. This land is the very soil on which we will celebrate on historic St. Helena Island, SC in the Gullah/Geechee Nation August 2-4, 2013. Friday we will begin on the shoreline that was the first sight for many of our ancestors, the shoreline of the Atlantic Ocean at the Hunting Island Nature Center. After the libation ceremony, we will have a fish fry fellowship together before taking “De Gullah Root Experience Journey” from Hunting Island around St. Helena.
Queen Quet is the Chieftess of and the Head of State for the Gullah/Geechee Nation. She is also the Founder of the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition. www.QueenQuet.com
Saturday is “Gullah/Geechee Reunion Day” at the St. Helena Island library. This is the time each year when we bring together the entire Gullah/Geechee Diasporic Family! The drums will sound at Noon and the shoutin gwine on de dey tru! Disya how ting gwine win de Gullah/Geechee do wha e do! Sunday de shoutin gwine continue win de chillun gwine chuch tuh! The entire family is invited to worship services at Bethesda Christian Center on Sunday back home. When they get back, we pray that they will still have the drum resonating in their souls and in their hearts. We pray that they will have truly learned our journey and our continued work to ensure that we remain free. Disya da tru emancipation een de Gullah/Geechee Nation! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Tune in to these “Gullah/Geechee Riddim Radio” episodes to learn more about the presentations and presenters for this year’s fest: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/gullahgeechee/2013/07/15/the-lighthousegullahgeechee-nation-music-movement-fest http://www.blogtalkradio.com/gullahgeechee/2013/07/08/gullahgeechee-soulpower http://www.blogtalkradio.com/gullahgeechee/2013/07/22/healing-een-degullahgeechee-nation
Links to Gullah/Geechee Living Culture
Jayn wid wi wha lib wi culcha! •••
The Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition has worked for many years to insure that there are accurate sources of representation in regard to Gullah/Geechee history, heritage, and culture. Since the Coalition began leading this effort, many things have come into being that “sell” things with the name “Gullah” or term “Geechee” attached to them. However, many of these things are being marketed by those that simply see “Gullah/
1.
G u l l a h / G e e c h e e Nation H e a d q u a r t e r s www.officialgullahgeechee.info or www.gullahgeecheenation.com
2.
Gullah/Geechee Nation Blog http:// gulla hgeecheenation.com/a bout/ gullahgeechee-blog/
3.
Gulla h/Geechee Angel Network www.gullahgeecheeangelnetwork.com
4.
Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition www.gullahgeechee.net
5.
Gullah/Geechee TV™ (GGTV) www.youtube.om/AMPTurnItUp
6.
Gullah/Geechee Riddim Radio http:// www.blogtalkradio.com/ gullahgeechee
7.
Gullah/Geechee Fishing Association www.gullahgeecheefishingassociation. com
8.
Gullah/Geechee Nation Facebook Fan Page https://www.facebook.com/ pages/GullahGeechee-Nation/ 66574769035
9.
Gullah/Geechee Folks on Twitter www.twitter.com/gullahgeechee
Geechee” as a “hot item” to be the next thing to exploit. So, we continue to work with entities and individuals to help insure that the world is aware of of the things that are done by Gullah/Geechees themselves that are not the people that can afford to pay for the promotions that others get and/or Gullah/Geechees that are not covered in the mainstream media because they are speaking the truth about what has taken place and what is taking place to exploit the people that live the traditions while often promoting those that simply write papers and
10. Queen Quet, Chieftess of the Gullah/ Geechee www.QueenQuet.com 11. Gullah/Geechee Nation International Music & Movement Festival™ www.gullahgeechee.info 12. Gullah/Geechee Doula Association http://www.gullahgeecheedoula.com/
books about the people (even if those books and papers are inaccurate). Tenk Gawd! Over the years, many have contacted us seeking sources that would allow them to directly connect with living links to Gullah/Geechee culture and traditions. So, in this special edition, we wanted to share current links to sources that will connect you to our living culture and not simply that which is being packaged and marketed as our culture. Please support these and pass the word on. We kno who webe and disya gwine git hunnuh ta we!
The Gullah/Geechee Fishing Association The Gullah/Geechee Fishing Association is open to traditional and commercial fishermen and women and seafood industry workers of African descent in the United States southeast and the Gullah/Geechee Nation. It is the official fishing association of the Gullah/Geechee Nation.
Mission 1) To advocate for the rights of Gullah/Geechee and African American fishermen and fishery workers of the southeast 2) To share traditional fishing methods with the next generation 3) To restore access to the areas and factories needed to sustain the seafood industry in the Gullah/Geechee Nation and southeastern United States Goals Lift restriction that currently prevent the continuation of fishing by Gullah/Geechee and African American fishing families. Revisit and create new laws regarding subsistence and traditional fishing. Increase the numbers of Gullah/Geechee and African Americans that have the ability to create the needed implements for sea work including boat building and net making and that fish, shrimp, harvest shellfish, etc. Establish locations from which the fishing industry traditions can be carried on. New members are accepted at every meeting. Bring someone out of the water with you! Disya fa all a wi stay een de sea! GullGeeCo@aol.com castnet@gullahgeecheefishingassociation.com
COMING COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: Join Gullah/Geechee Fishing Association members and the SCORE team as we restore oyster beds in the Beaufort River on July 23, 2013 at 1:30 pm. Meet at Pigeon Point boat ramp (2427 Pigeon Point Road Beaufort, SC 29902). Wear long sleeves and clothes in shoes. If you would like to RSVP to attend or have additional questions, email score@dnr.sc.gov.
ACHG Superstars Productions Visits De Gullah/Geechee Ga’dun Brother Arthur Chisolm and Elder Carlie Towne are putting together a new TV show in the Gullah/Geechee Nation and wanted Queen Quet to be one of the first on the program. They brought down a crew and interviewed Queen Quet at De Gullah/ Geechee Ga’dun.
ACHG Superstars wanted to insure that their viewers to be prepared for the coming “Gullah/Geechee Nation International Music & Movement Festival™” as well as the cultural connections to music throughout the Gullah/Geechee Nation. Chastun famlee git readee fa mo a we cumin ta TV!
Queen Quet on Talk of the Town WHHI’s “Talk of the Town” also invited Queen Quet on the air to share about the “Gullah/ Geechee Nation Appreciation Week” and the “Gullah/Geechee Nation International Music & Movement Festival™ (www.gullahgeechee.info).
Hep Mo Angel fa Fly! Support De Gullah/Geechee Angel Network! The mission of the official 501(c)3, non-profit of the Gullah/Geechee Nation, the Gullah/Geechee Angel Network is To preserve, protect and promote the cultural heritage of the Gullah Geechee People who have lived in the southeastern portion of the United States of America from North Carolina to Jacksonville Florida 30 miles inland (known as the "Low Country") for over 300 years. To connect all people, not just in the 50 states, but internationally throughout the Diaspora, Europe, Caribbean and Africa. Goals and Objectives are achieved by the implementation of the following seven (7) point program: The Performing Arts: Musical plays, dramatizations, poetry, storytelling, enactments and workshops Arts and Crafts: Workshops in the production and displaying of traditional Gullah/Geechee cultural items. Demonstrative workshops that encourage the development of functional skills and forms of expression to potentially showcase and stimulate direct participation in the growing ethnic tourism industry, festivals and cultural events. Educational: The establishment of Cultural Learning Centers designed to foster motivation, achievement and cultural enrichment. Historical/Research excursions from the tip of North Carolina (Cape Fear) to the outlining areas of Jacksonville, Florida. Scholarships and Awards: Lifetime Achievement Award programs and events recognizing those persons who have given selflessly of themselves, and have done considerable work for the benefits of their particular community as it relates to cultural preservation. Awarding Scholarships to youth who exhibit talent, and are oriented toward developing skills which foster Gullah/Geechee Culture. The Internet and The Media: Networking with organizations, institutions and groups which focus on Gullah/ Geechee Culture. Consistently present positive role models and activities to the low country in particular, and to in the Diaspora in general. Production, Preservation and Documentation: Production and archiving of Gullah/Geechee video and audio recordings, books, symbols and banners. Radio, television and computer production programming. Health and Nutrition Awareness: Forums and symposiums which explore lifestyles, food staples, food cultivation and preparation of Gullah/Geechee cuisine, as well as developing holistic programs to promote well being. Gret Camp Meetin Centa! The Gullah/Geechee International Camp Meeting Center will host a number of activities and people from around the world and educate people on the living traditions of that exist throughout the Gullah/Geechee Nation. The next major fundraiser for the project will be the Gullah/Geechee Nation International Music & Movement Festival™ www.gullahgeechee.info. For more details on fundraisers, tours, assisting with the project, or contributing, call (843) 572-6788 or go to www.gullahgeecheeangelnetwork.com
De Livin Marketplace The Gullah/Geechee Nation International Music & Movement Festival™ Living Marketplace always has Gullah/Geechee craft demonstrations and creations.
This year folks will be able to journey into the Gullah/Geechee room to read some of the documentation of these traditions. From cultural crafts to food and language folks got to experience why the Gullah/Geechee legacy is celebrated each year.
“A Soulful Touch Wellness” will be back at the event with natural healing methods and items as well. Don’t forget to get a massage after having some Gullah/Geechee cuisine!
GULLAH/GEECHEE GOLD SOULS CAMPAIGN The Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition is the premiere organization on the protection and continuation of the Gullah/Geechee history, heritage, and culture. The Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition: •
advocates for the protection of the human and land rights of Gullah/ Geechees
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promotes and participates in the continuation of Gullah/Geechee history, heritage, culture, and language.
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works toward Sea Island land re-acquisition and maintenance. celebrates Gullah/Geechee culture through artistic and educational means electronically and via "grassroots scholarship."
The Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition has successfully carried out this mission since 1996. During which time, they developed the ONLY archive in the world which is TOTALLY dedicated to Gullah/Geechee history, heritage, and culture. The Gullah/Geechee Alekbulan Archive is being upgraded in order to continue to provide access to artifacts, images, documents, books, films, and recordings to future generations of Gullah/Geechees and global researchers. The Coalition host hundreds of students and professional writers each year and it also supports native Gullah/Geechee speakers and presenters traveling to other parts of the world to make sure that accurate presentations on our culture are done in a varied array of venues. We are calling on all supporters of the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition to become dues paying members and to contribute to the “Gullah/Geechee Gold Souls Campaign.” (http://fnd.us/c/07Wl6) The funds will assist with the completion of the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition Center and our land fund. Please use the form at the end of this ezine or go to in order to financially contribute to the fundraising efforts that are currently under way which will finalize the first phase of the building. The “wish list:” • Apple Compatible External Drives • Apple Mac Pro • Apple compatible server • New Brother Laser Printer/Copier/Scanner • Archival boxes and poster holder • 12 3/4 inch plywood sheets For details on how you can host a fundraising event, contribute in any or in all of these ways, please email GullGeeCo@aol.com. Disya bout geeing frum de soul fa mek sho de richness stay een wi black gold!
Join the GULLAH/GEECHEE SEA ISLAND COALITION www.gullahgeechee.net I am enclosing my check for _____ $45 for the year of membership _____ $300-999 supporter (Pledge amount can be sent in monthly installments)
I will mail this to Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition Post Office Box 1207 St. Helena Island SC 29920 Name: ! _________________________
_____ $1200 for lifetime membership
What island are you closely connected to? ________________________________ How?(Circle one) ! ! Family
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Address: _____ $___________ toward the Gullah/Geechee Gold Souls Campaign My check is written to the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition. I know that I will receive a newsletter, event announcements, and will be a subscriber to the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Roots List on the Internet as well as the group on Facebook and will also receive discounts on Gullah/Geechee products.
GULLAH/GEECHEE SEA ISLAND COALITION Post Office Box 1207 St. Helena Island SC 29920
© 2013 Gullah/Geechee Nation © 2013 Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition ALL rights for photographs and articles are reserved. Republishing should not be done without consent from the Gullah/Geechee Nation.
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