"We The People" Project 2011 - Virgin Islands Humanities Council

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Board of Directors
Annie Smith, Chair
Vacant Vice-Chair
Alscess Lewis-Brown, Treasurer
Claudette Georges, Secretary
Percival Edwards
Lomarsh Roopnarine, Ph.D.
Opal Palmer Adisa, Ph.D.
Celestina Lapenna
Gayle Dancy Benjamin
Charles W. Turnbull, Ph.D.
Barbara Petersen
Gwen-Marie Moolenaar, Ph.D.
Rosalie Simmonds-Ballentine, Esq.
Roy Watlington, Ad Hoc
Anette Williams, Ad Hoc
Program, Planning & Evaluation Committee
Opal Palmer Adisa, Ph.D., Chair & Program Director
Annie Smith
Alscess Lewis-Brown
Celestina Lapenna
Gayle Dancy Benjamin
Percival Edwards
Conference Team
Karen M. Andrews
Executive Director
Ayesha Morris
Program Officer
Zaida Castro
Office Manager
Kyra Hansen
Office Assistant
Research Grant
ST. CROIX FOUNDATION
The House That Freedom Built
Conference Volunteers
Ramona Hobson
UVI Students
Janet Smith
George Hamilton
Youth Quelbe Lyrical Competition Advisors
Dimitri Copemann
Eugene Petersen
Cedelle Petersen
Wayne “Bully” Petersen
Youth Art Competition Advisors
Maud Pierre-Charles
Danica David
Graphic Design
Ed La Borde Jr.
Lasima M’Bilashaka
Transportation
Guidance Taxi and Tours
Videography
Earl Morris
Photography
Nycole Canegata
Sound
Kleon Gaskin, K.S.S.
Cultural Pencils
Bridget Julius
Conference Partners
Virgin Islands Department of Tourism
Fort Frederik Museum
Division of Archives, Libraries, and Museums
Department of Planning and Natural Resources
Office of the Governor
King’s Alley Hotel
The Caribbean Writer
Holger Danske Hotel
Teddy’s Party Rental
Outside Evaluator
Gerard Emanuel
….and to all those whose names we have not remembered!
Catering
Top Class V.I.
Navetta Webster
Other Vendors
Jan Mitchell Studios
Wild Orchid
V.I.P. Engraving
Niarus Walker
Ten Sleepless Knights
23

VIRGIN ISLANDS HUMANITIES COUNCIL
DOCUMENTARY SCREENINGS
THE HERITAGE AND ARCHITECTURE OF ST. CROIX: A WALKING
TOUR
Crucian Heritage and Nature Tourism Inc. created this documentary to expose visitors and
residents to the intricacies of Crucian culture and history by examining the towns of
Christiansted and Frederiksted with particular emphasis on the Black population who built their
beautiful buildings. Focus is also given to “free gut” neighborhoods where freed slaves lived.
The video tour, led by historian Wayne James, is meant to be used as a tourguide training tool,
and can be used by residents and visitors as a self-guided tour. It is directed by Cathy Sitaram
and sponsored by Crucian Heritage and Nature Tourism.
THE HOUSE THAT FREEDOM BUILT (trailer)
This film will be the first documentary about the story OF Free Gut, an area of Christiansted,
Virgin Islands where the freed black population was allowed to live during the 18th and 19th
century slavery period. The story follows artist La Vaughn Belle, the most recent owner of an
abandoned property located in the area of Free Gut and follows her along her journey in
restoring the building, researching its previous owners and learning about the larger, very
special community to which they belonged. It is directed by La Vaughn Belle and sponsored by
the St. Croix Foundation.
LIBERATED MINDS (trailer)
Liberated Minds is a documentary tracing mental slavery as it has developed in the
Virgin Islands, from the time enslaved Africans arrived here on ships from the Gold
Coast. It connects three points in the Triangular Slave Trade — the Virgin Islands,
Denmark, and Ghana — to analyze the state of the collective African mind today after
exposure to Danish slavery and colonization from 1671 to 1917, and American rule from
then until the present. It is directed by Oliver Harboe and sponsored by Strength to
Strength.
JACK DELANO PHOTO COLLECTION
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 sitting in the back seat of a "single-engine,
cloth-covered biplane," landed in the United States Virgin Islands, ready to begin an assignment
for the federal government. The Japanese had just bombed Pearl Harbor, and the nation was at
war. 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.
SANDRA MICHAEL COLLECTION
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 mask 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.
3

Elizabeth Rezende, Ph.D.
ELIZABETH REZENDE, PH.D.
Elizabeth Rezende has worked in the Virgin Islands for 36 years in a variety of professional
capacities. Most recently she co-taught in an archaeological/ethnographic field school for
undergraduate students in a consortium of University of South Carolina and University of the
Virgin Islands, St. Croix Campus. She is working intensively with ethno-musicologist Mary Jane
Soule in preparing the historical background of the cariso and quelbe songs of 1900-50. She is
gathering the photographs for an upcoming book on the topic. In 2009 she published St. Croix in
Historic Photos with Anne Walbom and is working on the St. Thomas volume. Currently, she is
teaching English composition courses and anthropology at the University of the Virgin Islands.
21

Shelley Moorhead
SHELLEY MOORHEAD
In 2004, Shelley Moorhead founded the African-Caribbean Reparations & Resettlement Alliance
(ACRRA) and pursued a role in shaping and defending humanity both historically and in the present-day.
In April 2005, Moorhead led the first delegation to travel to Denmark from the islands since D. Hamilton
Jackson in 1915, to include USVI Sens. Nelson and Richards, Congresswoman Donna M. Christensen,
Dr. Carlyle Corbin - Min. of State for External Affairs as well as civic leaders and a youth delegate. On
April 11, 2005 a Memorandum of Understanding was signed which established the USVI / Denmark
Joint Reparations Task Force co-chaired by ACRRA and the Danish Institute for Human Rights. The
accord is the first between the Danes and Virgin Islanders which directly acknowledges the cruelty of
175 years of slavery. Moorhead continued to pave the way and in June 2005, he testified before the UN
Special Committee on Decolonization speaking to the issues of Danish slavery and U.S. colonization, its
effect on the people, and the need for repair. Prior to testifying before this UN committee, he worked
with USVI lawmakers to result the unanimous passage of historic Resolution No. 1680 on May 4, 2005.
The legislation was the first by a former Caribbean slave colony, in which African descendants have
organized to condemn the institution of slavery and seek reparations from their former European colonial
master.
Moorhead continued to engage in diplomacy, receiving invitations from leaders from around the world to
discuss and advocate for the repair of humanity, in particular the humanity of those disenfranchised by
the legacy of slavery. In August 2005, Moorhead was invited by the African Union (AU) Commissioner
and met the AU's Dir. of Cabinet, Dr. Mamadou Diallo in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia with the plan to implement
new strategies for the repair of the Global African Diaspora and to discuss the establishment of a
Caribbean Desk in the USVI for Africa's premier governing body.
Moorhead continues to engage the world on the issue of reparations for slavery and is dedicated to
advancing the cause and to securing the future for coming generations.
A Message From the Board of Directors Chairperson
At a time when the world is in turmoil and cultures are not tolerant, it is fitting that the Humanities Council
should ask us to look to a time when the place that we knew fostered pleasant, harmonious memories.
This September 30, 2011, on behalf of The Board of Directors of the Virgin Islands Humanities Council, I,
Annie Smith, Chair, would like all cultures within the Virgin Islands and neighboring islands to pause and
remember the way we were. As we look around us, the rapidity of change is analogous to a freight train
barreling to a destination unknown. As we change, however, let us not forget the individuals to whom we
must give reverence for the morals and values taught in a different place and different time as the memories
live on. Therefore, it is fitting that from time to time we must return to the times and places where
memories abound, when the people roamed the paths of the roads, hills and valleys as the ancestral spirits
who speak to us from the landscape.
Tonight, let each individual search deep within himself and herself to find that place where memories create
the desire to preserve the places that depict who we are for generations to come. For, it is only with the
knowledge of who we are that we can teach generations who they should be and what they should revere.
Therefore, in this place at this time, let us create memories that will live on in the minds and hearts of all
who enter these historic sites and may the impact of the occasion strengthen our souls so that the memory
of these places will live on for generations to come.
Welcome all to the Virgin Islands Humanities Council’s 2011 We The People Program: Place, Time and
Memory, as we continue to promote the cultural integrity of the Virgin Islands in the international and
regional spheres.
Sincerely,
Annie Smith, Chair
Virgin Islands Humanities Council
Annie Smith,
VIHC Chairperson
5

I am honored and humbled to be addressing you as the relatively new Executive Director of the Virgin
Islands Humanities Council (VIHC). I am truly excited about this opportunity to serve my community
albeit in a totally new and interesting capacity. I want to take this opportunity to thank Ayesha Morris,
Program Officer, Zaida Castro, Office Manager, and Kyra Hansen, Office Assistant, for their support and
exceptional work and the Board of Directors for their confidence in my ability to lead this dynamic
organization.
Over the years VIHC has been known to be an organization devoted to the cultivation, preservation and
promotion of culture in the Virgin Islands and this year our endeavor is to continue expanding cultural
awareness through our “We the People” annual initiative. The goal of this year’s initiative includes giving
voice to and encouraging community investment through storytelling.
Our 2011 theme "Place, Time & Memory: Story Toh Tell" skillfully weaves together stories and
narratives that can only add color to our already rich culture and our community is invited to be a witness.
Each of our chosen writers has a story to tell that is stockpiled from a lifetime of hearing. You will be
intrigued, enchanted and undoubtedly entertained with dramatic readings as they peruse through time and
various locales in the Virgin Islands evoking memories that we have long pushed from our consciousness.
We are honored to have contributions from Virgin Islands writers. On Friday, September 30, 2011 the
evening will also feature the Marvin Williams Humanist Award Presentation and Reception, as well as a
Roundtable Discussion in his honor. On Saturday, October 1, 2011 we also invite you to the Daniel Heftel
Lecture Series and the Virgin Islands Documentary Screenings.
We would like to thank the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Office of the Governor, the
Department of Tourism, King’s Alley Hotel, and the Division of Libraries, Archives, and Museums for
being the major sponsors of this year’s initiative and our community partners for collaborating with us and
supporting our efforts. We know that our strength hinges on existing partnerships and our ability to attract
new partners. We are therefore inviting other community groups to join us in our endeavor to bring social
transformation through cultural awareness. All of us have a “story toh tell,” so let us tell it. Thank you
sincerely for coming.
Respectfully,
Karen M. Andrews
Greetings From the Executive Director
Karen M. Andrews, VIHC Executive Director
Executive Director , Virgin Islands Humanities Council
The author is a native of Antigua and Barbuda, and a resident of St. Croix, U.S. Virgin
Islands. He is a graduate of Ohio State University and holds Ph.D., M.S., and B.A.
degrees from that institution. He has also done post-graduate work in Education
Leadership and Administration at the University of West Georgia in Carrollton, Georgia.
Dr. Gore is a former Research Professor, Lecturer, and Consultant at the University of
the Virgin Islands, and an Adjunct Professor of Sociology at the St. Leo University in
Atlanta. The author has also served as Special Advisor in two ministries in the
Government of Antigua and Barbuda: Health and Home Affairs and Industry and Trade.
He has taught for two years in the Virgin Islands public school system on St. Croix, and
is presently tenured faculty with the Douglas County school system where he teaches
Government and Economics. His book, Garrote: The Illusion of Social Equality and
Political Justice in the United States Virgin Islands, provides a historical accounting of
the struggles by Eastern Caribbean Nationals to achieve social, economic and political
equality in the Unites States Virgin Islands.
H. Akia Gore, Ph.D.
H. AKIA GORE, PH.D.
19

William W. Boyer, Ph.D.
WILLIAM W. BOYER, PH.D.
William W. Boyer is the Charles Polk Messick Professor Emeritus of the Department of Political
Science and International Relations and Visiting Scholar in the Center for Applied Demography and
Survey Research at the University of Delaware. After earning his M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in political
science and American cultural and intellectual history at the University of Wisconsin (Madison), Dr.
Boyer became an internationally recognized scholar of development in less developed countries — an
interest first kindled during his World War II experience in the eastern Caribbean. Having conducted
a unique around-the-world lecture tour of seven Asian nations for the U.S. State Department and
served as management consultant for the U.S. Agency for International Development in the
Caribbean Basin, Dr. Boyer has been a visiting professor at the University of the Virgin Islands,
professor-advisor in Pakistan, Fulbright professor in India and South Korea, Ford Foundation
professor in Malaysia, Asia Foundation consultant in Bangladesh, the only American member of the
United Nations Group of Experts on Methodologies of Policy Analysis and Development, and
author of numerous books and articles on public affairs.
Celebrating the Individual Who is Part of the Collective: An Invitation from the Program Planning Committee, Chair
It is always a joy when people come together to celebrate their heritage – and so it is with tremendous gratitude that I welcome
each of you to this year’s “We the People” conference.
This year’s focus, Place, Time, and Memory, is an invitation to all Virgin Islanders to explore your collective memory; to reflect on
the history of this community and how that history informs the present; to examine specific sites, particularly on St Croix; and
to listen to the oral stories and unwritten history that often provide us with insight about who we are and how we see ourselves.
The goal is to be collectively strengthened, and able to move forward with positive outlooks and goals appropriate to advance us
in this global, technological age.
During this conference we will truly showcase the rich literary legacy of the Virgin Islands, and strive to pass the baton to the
emerging voices in all fields of the humanities, with a pledge to nurture and help to cultivate the next generations, who will be
the next purveyors of the culture. In our visual art and quelby competitions for high school students, we focus on their
development, and welcome them into the dialogue that will help to shape the wholesome future we all plan to enjoy. We will
seek to engage in honest dialogue across the generations, and create linkages from the past to the present through remembering.
We will tap into the concept of genetic memory. If we accept genetic memory as a given, then what, for example, are our
collective memories about the abolishment of slavery on July 3rd, 1848? What are our perceptions of Queen Mary, Peter von
Scholten, Moses Gottlieb (aka Buddhoe, who worked on Estate La Grange in St Croix), or the native people: the Arawaks and
Caribs who lived on these islands long before the coming of the Europeans? Each is located in a specific time, linked to a certain
place, and is encapsulated with distinct memories.
The four accomplished writers we will honor this year provide us with an amalgamation of the diverse and wide breadth of our
cultural heritage. Additionally, their works provide us with the opportunity to pause and be reflective.
I have been honored to chair the Program Planning and Evaluation committee (PPE) for this event, and have enjoyed a most
rewarding experience in working with my fellow board members and the staff of the Virgin Islands Humanities Council to bring
the vision to life. The Humanities Council’s mission is both to preserve the cultural traditions of this region and to work to
transform the day-to-day lives of the people. I would like to especially acknowledge Ayesha Morris, Annie Smith, Karen
Andrews, Alscess Lewis-Brown and Percival Edwards.
Place, Time, and Memory fits under the inclusive umbrella that calls the community together to unite and share, in the philosophy
of “Each One, Teach One.” The Virgin Islands Humanities Council is truly gratified to be able to host this conference for the
people, and invites all Virgin Islanders to take this collective opportunity to remember our important historical and cultural sites,
to make this history a living testimony of our resilience, and to commit to creating a harmonious society that works for all.
Welcome to the celebration!
Peace,
Opal Palmer Adisa, Ph.D.
A Message From the Program Planning Committee Chairperson
Opal Palmer Adisa, Program Chair
7

2011 WTP Place, Time & Memory
Conference Summary
The 2011 WTP Place, Time & Memory Conference is an exploration into the collective memory and identity of
Virgin Islanders.
Conference Program
Day I
Friday, September 30, 2011
Government House, Christiansted
5 to 6 p.m. Musical Selection by Pangea/Registration
6 to 6:10 p.m. Welcome
VIHC Chair, Annie Smith
VIHC Exec. Director Karen Andrews
VIHC Program Chair, Opal Palmer Adisa, Ph.D.
Del. Donna M. Christensen
Assistant to the Governor Malcolm McGregor
6:10 to 7:15 p.m. Marvin Williams Roundtable Part I: Dramatizations
Directed by David Edgecombe
Songs for Das Camella by Marvin Williams
Wey Granny? by Clement White, Ph.D.
Queen ah the Queen Dem by Clement White, Ph.D.
THISUnity by Clement White, Ph.D.
Identity Crisis by Clement White Ph.D.
FIVE MINUTE INTERMISSION
Do Lord Remember Me by James de Jongh, Ph.D.
Kill the Rabbits by Tiphanie Yanique
7:15 to 7:30 p.m. Presentation of the Humanist Award to Marvin Williams
Alscess Lewis-Brown, VIHC Board Member
Dasil Thomas-Williams, wife of Marvin Williams
Quilin Mars, Marvin Williams Scholarship Fund
7:30 to 8:15 p.m. Marvin Williams Roundtable Part II: Panel Discussion:
8:15 to 8:30 p.m. Questions & Answers
8:30 to 9 p.m. Wrap-Up/Survey Collection
Tiphanie Yanique, James de Jongh, Ph.D., Clement White, Ph.D.,
with moderator Opal Palmer Adisa, Ph.D.
Moderator
GLORIA I. JOSEPH, PH.D.
Gloria I. Joseph, Ph.D., renowned scholar, activist, published author and educator earned a B.S. from
New York University, M.S. from The City College of New York, and a Ph.D. from Cornell
University. She is a professor emeritus of Hampshire College in Amherst, Massachusetts. Dr. Joseph's
30 plus years in academia includes founding an Alternative School, teaching on secondary, College and
University levels, serving as a reading specialist, guidance counselor and school psychologist both in the
United States and Europe. Her extensive global lectures, teaching and research excursions have taken
her throughout the United States, the Caribbean, Europe, Asia and Africa. These experiences have
culminated into a unique worldview and perspective that is reflected in her literary works. Some of her
selected publications as author, contributor and editor include: Common Differences: Conflicts in Black and
White Feminist Perspectives; Hell Under God's Orders, (HUGO); and On Time and In Step: Reunion on The Glory
Musical Selection by Pangea/Reception 17
Road.
Gloria Joseph, Ph.D.

Conference Summary
The 2011 WTP Place, Time & Memory Conference is an exploration into the collective memory and identity of
Virgin Islanders.
Day II
Saturday, October 1, 2011
Fort Frederik, Frederiksted, St. Croix
10 a.m. to 11 a.m. Quelbe Ambassadors /Registration/Light breakfast
11 a.m. Welcome
2011 WTP Place, Time & Memory
VIHC Program Chair Opal Palmer Adis, Ph.D.
VIHC Chair Annie Smith
Sen. Nellie O’Reilly
11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Consecutive Session: South Art Gallery
Three Recent VIHC Videos Depicting Time, Place & Memory
The Heritage and Architecture of St. Croix: A Walking Tour
directed by Cathy Sitaram for Crucian Heritage and Nature
Tourism – (30 minutes)
The House That Freedom Built (10 minutes) directed by La
Vaughn Belle for St. Croix Foundation
Liberated Minds directed by Oliver Harboe for Strength to
Strength - (30 minutes)
Questions & Answers by representatives of the films:
Frandelle Gerard, LaVaughn Belle, and Afreekan Southwell,
respectively, moderated by Opal Palmer Adisa
11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Consecutive Session: North Art Gallery
Daniel L. Heftel Lecture Series
William W. Boyer, Ph.D., H. Akia Gore, Ph.D., Shelley Moorhead,
Elizabeth Rezende, Ph.D., with moderator Gloria I. Joseph, Ph.D.
Questions and Answers
1 p.m. to 2 p.m. Closing/Collection of Surveys
Dance by Ay-Ay Cultural Dance Company
Music by Quelbe Ambassadors
Lunch
What a memorable experience it has been staging extracts from the works of four Virgin Islands
writers for this Virgin Islands Humanities Council event, Place, Time and Memory: “Story toh tell!”
Collaboration is a wonderful process. So I was delighted to work with the Council to explore and
get to know more intimately the works of these fine writers: Marvin Williams, poet and former
editor of the Caribbean Writer, to whom tonight’s production is dedicated; Clement White, poet;
James de Jongh, playwright; and Tiphanie Yanique, fiction.
I feel the key to bringing our books, and hence our writers, to a mass Caribbean audience is via the
stage rather than the page. Tonight we get to test this notion and to determine if our collaboration
should continue into a full production of one or more of these works.
We also get to test what it’s like to rehearse with one set of actors on St. Croix, another on St.
Thomas, and then bring them all together for the final production.
We learned a great deal over the past three months, including the dearth of suitable spaces
throughout the territory for staging theatre productions. So we experimented with our space in an
effort to bring you the audience a more intimate theatre experience. We hope you enjoy it.
It was a privilege to learn anew the remarkable talent and spirit of the Virgin Islands, its writers, its
actors, its people.
I trust tonight proves to be as special to you as the Virgin Islands Humanities Council wants it to
be.
David Edgecombe
David Edgecombe
DAVID EDGECOMBE
PLAYWRIGHT/DIRECTOR
9

Marvin E. Williams
Humanist Award Recipient
MARVIN E. WILLIAMS
May 17, 1955 to April 7, 2010
Marvin Elias Williams was born to Carl A. Williams, Sr. (Nepper) and Beulah
M. Oliver, both deceased, on May 17, 1955. Marvin made major contributions to
his family and the Virgin Islands community in the fields of education, sports,
culture and in the arts as a playwright and as a published writer of poetry and
prose. In the field of education, Marvin prepared himself extremely well at the
Claude O. Markoe Elementary School and the St. Croix Central High School
where he graduated in 1973. Upon graduation, he enrolled at Cornell University
in Ithaca, New York where he received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Black
World Literature and American Government and Master's Degrees in Fine Arts
(Poetry) and Political Science (African Political Economy). Attracted to the
serene and slow-paced lifestyle in Ithaca, he spent eighteen years there. For
fourteen of those years, he served as an African Studies instructor at Cornell.
After that 18-year hiatus, Marvin longed for the cultural richness of St. Croix to
the point where he returned home in 1991 for the expressed purpose of giving back to the St. Croix community
that had served him so well. He quickly found his niche when he was employed by (he University of the Virgin
Islands (UVI) in 1992. As a tenured Professor of English at UVI, he gave unselfishly of his time and talents to
positively impact the speaking and writing skills of countless students on St. Croix. Recognizing the strong
correlation between excellent communication skills and one's quality of life, Marvin was on a passionate and
sustained quest to enhance the skills of his students each and every semester.
A voracious reader and writer, Marvin published several books of poetry and proudly served as Editor of the
Caribbean Writer, an international literary anthology with a Caribbean focus that is published annually by UVI.
In all, Marvin contributed about 35 poems, reviews, essays and short stories to this publication. His most recent
literary works include Overtures to Kin and Echo of a Circle Closing, two books of poetry published in 2007.
This talented but humble Crucian willingly and without charge edited the work of many local authors of
different literary genres. One very memorable feature of Marvin's writing was his ability to produce a poem
about anything and anyone with assembly-line speed in a very polished and amazingly appropriate fashion without
compromising the quality of the content. Marvin continued his lifelong love for writing to the very end. It
was with great pride and an uncanny zeal that he collaborated with his sister Dr. Sandra Oliver-Harrigan to
chronicle a soon to be published book about the life and times of the Oliver and Williams family headed by
family matriarch Beulah M. Oliver.
The full story of Marvin cannot be told without mentioning his longstanding involvement in sports. Many of
his peers will remember Marvin playing baseball with the A's managed by Donald Petersen, Softball with the
Mets managed at different times by Ernest "Bones" Morris and James Parris, basketball with the Bombers
managed by the late Clayton Richards and tackle football for the Central High School Caribs coached by Willie
King. It is not beyond the realm of possibility that the basketball rims at Central High School, Claude O. Markoe
School, Charlotte Amalie High School and Cornell University are still reverberating from the vicious slam dunks
Marvin displayed to electrify the crowds especially during warm-up drills. Like his many education and athletic
minded siblings, Marvin cultivated his athletic skills on the "Hill" in Frederiksted where the Bailey, Howell,
Jarvis, Matthew and Williams families served as major linchpins in the "village" that did such an outstanding
job of raising the children of that neighborhood in the 1960's and 1970's. Marvin's athletic prowess was clearly
evident in his acrobatic and fluid gyrations on a typical Friday night at a quadrille dance. He was truly a crowd
pleaser on the dance floor.
Marvin was very committed to family unity. To that end, he was extremely influential in the lives of his two
daughters, Dwan and Neema, whom he loved dearly. His wife of eleven years, Dasil Thomas-Williams, was
always loving, caring and supportive of Marvin on his journey to uplift his family, unify our community and
better the world.
Source: Marvin E. Williams Eulogy, provided by the Caribbean Writer
CAST
Oceana James is a Language Arts teacher at the Arthur A. Richards Junior High School.
She has been involved in the arts in some form for most of her life. She has been in
numerous performances with Per Ankh, Inc. and St. Croix Sankofa for the Cultural Arts.
And, most recently she has been involved with Caribbean Community Theater where she
directed her first adult production: Sarah and Addie.
Lionel C. Downer is a fourteen year resident of St. Croix and is an account executive with
Marshall & Sterling, specializing in life, health and employee benefits. He has performed
in a number of productions with Caribbean Community Theatre, including Fences, Jesus
Christ, Superstar and Ain’t Misbehavin.’ He has also served on the Board of Directors for
CCT, Rotary St. Croix-Harborside and The Women’s Coalition of St. Croix. Lionel feels
honored to be part of this production and to share the stage with his former cast mate
Oceana James.
Amaris Chew is a 'raise yah' Cruzan who graduated from the Complex in 2005 and
from UVI in 2009. She loves to be involved in her community and is an active part of
several community-oriented groups. Her passion is the performing arts and this event
has helped her to build her career in theatre, music and social promotion. She hopes to
use this promotion to one day fund her dream business of a sustainable, K-Jr. College,
community based school. She describes herself as ambitious.
Kenya Emanuel was born on St. Croix. Currently, he is a junior at UVI pursuing a
degree in education. He has been involved in the arts in high school and UVI, reciting
poems and debating. His future ambitions include teaching at the elementary level and
farming.
Delia Griffin is the wardrobe and make-up manager for the show. She says:
“Back in my grandparents’ days, your finger tips and a sharpened wooden stick made
clothes. Spinning wheels to fabric made clothing. I know in these days to always
remember your finger tips, needles and threads for back up of an broken sewing
machine, but those times when I’ve gotten pricked on my finger tips—that’s how I’ve
learned to sew like a champion.”
15

CAST
Joshua Jno-Pierre was born and raised on St. Thomas. He is 21 years old and is attending
University of the Virgin Islands with a major in hotel and tourism. Jno-Pierre had main
roles in the plays Diary of Adam and Eve, Old Story Time, and South Pacific. He says, “I
decided to audition because I just love theatre, and I couldn't wait to be on stage again, and
secondly because it showcases the works of the local artists.”
Jahweh David is a multi-talented artist, hailing from beautiful St. Thomas,
Virgin Islands. She is a poetess, actress, visual artist, and community
organizer. As Jahweh grows and continues on her artistic journey, all of her
endeavors are guided by her Ancestral Roots.
Jamilya Christopher was born on February 7, 1990 on the island of St. Thomas. At an early
age, she was always interested in various forms of the arts. As a little girl, she started to
take ballet classes until the dance program ended and relocated to St. Croix, a year and half
later. A couple of her aspirations while growing up were to become an artist or a writer and
always felt that those were her safe haven and the best way she found to express herself
creatively and innovatively. Jamilya is currently a senior, attending the University of the
Virgin Islands. Majoring in psychology, she is anticipating receiving her Bachelor’s of Arts
this December. Although her focus is set on something of the opposite, her interest was
always sparked by theatre. She also played the part of Lois in Old Story Time.
Adam Kloper has performed in several plays at Pistarckle Theater over the past
few years. He also hosts the Teacher Is In on WTJX Channel 12, the local PBS
station. During the day Adam is a math teacher at the Ulla F. Muller Elementary
School.
Shawn Seabrookes is an avid sportsman from the twin island state of St. Kitts and Nevis.
After several years of teaching and writing for various media houses, he decided to pursue
his tertiary level education at the University of the Virgin Islands. Besides working toward
gaining a Bachelor’s in communications, Seabrookes continues to relish a passion for
drama.
George Silcott Jr. is a 30-year old actor, radio and tv show host, comedian, and
entertainer extraordinaire, whose work has appeared on WTJX Channel 12 and
WSTA 1340 A.M. among other media outlets. He has held several lead roles in
plays staged at UVI’s Little Theater and Pistarckle Theatre. His alter ego,
“Culture Man,” appears every Carnival season on St. Thomas.
Afreekan Southwell is a multi-talented artist who for three decades has been working in the
visual and performing arts throughout the Virgin Islands, Caribbean and United States. He is
originally from Antigua, where he learned wood carving at primary school. He taught himself
to paint when he moved to St. Croix in 1981, and ever since he has learned the artistic
disciplines, developing his skills as a painter, wood carver, sculptor, and wood turner
throughout the years. In the field as a performing artist, he is an Actor, Poet, and Drummer.
Clement A. White, Ph.D.
CLEMENT A. WHITE. PH.D.
Clement White was born in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands to Marjorie Stevens of St. Thomas and Virgin
Gorda and Charles A. White of Grove Place, St. Croix. He is the grandson of Mary Burrow Moving Malone
from Gingerland, Nevis and Grove Place. A graduate of the Charlotte Amalie High School class of 1964,
he obtained an associate’s degree in 1966 from the College of the Virgin Islands; bachelor’s and master’s
degrees from Kent State University in 1968 and 1975, respectively; and his doctorate in 1987 from Brown
University. Between his undergraduate degrees and the master’s degree he spent two years in the U.S. Army,
one of them in the Republic of Vietnam from 1970 to 1971.
Professor White lived eight of his formative years in Savan and then spent the next fourteen in Pearson
Garden Housing Project. Indeed, he cherishes both experiences dearly for in both cases he has formed
unbreakable childhood bonds of friendship. He was also a teacher at the Eudora Kean High School in
Nazareth Bay in the 1970s and the Charlotte Amalie High School, both during the day and in the
Continuing Education Program.
Many of Clement’s fondest recollections come from the many summers spent with his aunts, uncle, and
many cousins in Grove, LaValle, Christiansted and Frederiksted. Hence, he considers himself as much a
Crucian as he is a St. Thomian. Above all he strongly identifies himself as West Indian and Caribbean.
Clement has two sons — Attorney Asha White of Boston and Sekou White, Director of Media and
Digital Services at CBS in New York. His grandson, Amari White, is a fourth grader in Boston. His
daughter-in-law, Fabiola Pierre White, will be starting her law practice in the fall.
The writer cherishes and honors his mother, Marjorie A. White Stevens, for her dedication, love, hard
work, and the sacrifices she has made to ensure the success of all of her children and grandchildren. This
honor is extended to Caribbean and other women who have followed the cue from Queen Mary — to fight
against the odds, to persevere. He also honors the memory of his deceased wife, scholar and writer Dr.
Jeannette Smith White, for her inspiration, love and guidance for 35 years. Without these women, success
would have been impossible.
At present he is a professor of Languages and Literature at the University of Rhode Island, where he is
also the Director of the Graduate Studies in Hispanic Studies, a post that he has held since 1998.
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James de Jongh, Ph.D.
JAMES de JONGH, Ph.D. (B.A. Williams, ’64, M.A. Yale, ’67, Ph.D., New York University, ‘83),
playwright of Do Lord Remember Me (New York; Samuel French, Inc., 1983), was born, raised and
educated in the Virgin Islands, graduating from Sts. Peter & Paul High School in St. Thomas in 1960.
He is the son of Mavis and Percy de Jongh of St. Thomas. Architect Robert de Jongh is his brother. Two
siblings have passed — his sister Edith Woods and attorney John P. de Jongh, Sr., the father of our
governor.
Do Lord Remember Me (New York; Samuel French, Inc., 1983) is his best known play. It was
presented at Island Center on St. Croix and at Reichhold Center for the Arts on St. Thomas, and later
opened to wide critical acclaim Off-Broadway in New York City at the American Place Theater. Do
Lord has been produced by stock companies and amateur groups around the United States for more than
30 years. The play was revived Off-Broadway for a 20 th Anniversary Production in 1997 and featured at
the 1997 National Black Theater Festival in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
With his frequent collaborator Carles Cleveland, de Jongh is the author of a novel City Cool: A Ritual of
Belonging (Random House, 1978) that was a top choice of young adult readers in the "Young Adults
Poll" of The Journal of the National Council of Teachers of English (December 1979). Other plays
include Play to Win (Samuel French, 1993). Play to Win, a musical drama about Jackie Robinson's
historic crossing of the color line in major league baseball, opened to winning reviews at New York's
Promenade Theater in 1989. The New York Times called Play to Win "a joyous and very smart
celebration not only of one man but of a nation and its favorite pastime as well" and New York Newsday
tagged it as "a grand slam," saying it was "brash and lively, briskly paced and musically jaunty without
compromising on historical accuracy." James de Jongh, his co-author Carles Cleveland, and composer
Jimi Foster won the 1984 AUDELCO Award for "best writing of a new show by black authors for the
non-commercial theater" with Play to Win.
De Jongh, an active scholar as well as a playwright and novelist, is the author of Vicious Modernism:
Black Harlem and the Literary Imagination (Cambridge University Press, 1990, 2009). He has been a
contributor to reference works, including “Places," The Oxford Companion to African American
Literature, New York, Oxford UP, 1997, pp. 575-79. and "Rudolph Fisher," "Derek Walcott," and "John
A. Williams," The Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History, 5 vols. Simon & Schuster
Macmillan, 1996. Other credits include: "Up South” (a documentary video for the American Social
History Project, 1996) and “The Poet Speaks of Places: A Close Reading of Langston Hughes’ Literary
Use of Place” in A Historical Guide to Langston Hughes (Oxford U. Press, 2003). He is Professor
Emeritus of English and Black Studies of The City College and the Graduate School of the City
University of New York, former director of the Black Studies Program at The City College and director
emeritus of the CUNY Institute for Research on the African Diaspora in the Americas and the Caribbean
(IRADAC). His current scholarly project is A Historical Dictionary of African American Literature
(Scarecrow Press).
Tiphanie Yanique is the author of How to Escape from a Leper Colony. Her writing has
won the Boston Review Prize in Fiction, a Rona Jaffe Foundation Writers Award, a
Pushcart Prize, a Fulbright Scholarship and an Academy of American Poet's Prize. She
has been listed by the Boston Globe as one of the sixteen cultural figures to watch out for
and by the National Book Foundation as one of the 2010 5 Under 35, a list announcing the
next generation of fiction writers. She joined Derek Walcott and Edwidge Danticat as one
of the genre winners of the 2011 BOCAS prize in Caribbean Literature. Tiphanie is from
the Virgin Islands and is a professor in the MFA program at the New School in New York
City.
Tiphanie Yanique
TIPHANIE YANIQUE
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