The so-called Anguilla Lit Fest
Dear Editor,
It is always important when an event chooses its name and states its purpose, that it lives up to and represents what it’s all about. The Anguilla Literary Festival claimed to be ‘’a jollification of Anguilla’s literary heritage’’. In Anguilla we do have some literary heritage, but the thing that isn’t happening is that it’s not jollified during this festival. What the Lit Fest is doing is jollifying the literary heritage of everyone who isn’t Anguillian.
I was asked by the Lit Fest Committee to come and join them in this year’s Lit Fest. I was expected to read from my book, explain how I went about publishing it and what inspired me to write it, and was told that I have to make it to Anguilla on my own arrangements. After finding out that they had paid ridiculous fees to jollify the literary heritage of everyone who isn’t Anguillian, I contacted Haydn Hughes who is Parliament Secretary of tourism and I explained to him that it was unfair to pay others and not even offer me, who is an Anguillian, an airfare so I can come to the Lit Fest. I further explained to him that I don’t need fees, accommodation or anything else – just my airfare if you all need me to join in and share my book. Haydn Hughes replied with a bunch of stories one after the other. His stories were all related to: he is doing all he can, the people of Anguilla have a warped and crab in the bucket mentality, you have to be the daughter, son, cousin or just simply related to someone in Anguilla to get anywhere. And the worst of his comments was that the people of Anguilla don’t care about literacy. I think he forgot that he did an article in the Huffington Post stating that literacy is paramount to the people of Anguilla. In the end, I didn’t hear back from him about the ticket and I did not come to the Lit Fest.
I understand that they said during the Lit Fest that, unfortunately, I couldn’t make it, but the only unfortunate part is that this so-called Anguilla’s Lit Fest is a jollification of other people’s literary heritage and not Anguillians. That is very unfortunate. I feel upset that Haydn felt the need to give me the run around.
Haydn Hughes is not an elected member of government, but he got a position in government allegedly because he is the son of someone … I guess what he was saying is that if I wanted an airfare to come to the Lit Fest I would have to be lucky like him or be an elite. My last message to him was that a smart politician keeps his eye on the ball, and that it is the people who can tick that ballot box to put him in power and who can keep him there.
Denise Crawford
