Tuesday, 19th April 2016 (North Side, Anguilla) — The Anguilla Lit Fest: A Literary Jollification is not just merely any ordinary Caribbean festival. We’re accustomed to festivals promoting music, entertainment, boat racing, liming and food. All of these aspects are an integral part of our culture. They’re modern ways that we celebrate the cultural heritage of “The Jollification”. This particular festival, however, takes jollification to a new level by focusing attention on a very important factor that significantly impacts the development of the Anguilla community and our small island nation. That is the promotion of literacy, literature and the literary arts.
These three aspects are vital to our peoples’ education, development and growth. They are perhaps even more important than tourism which we know is key to our country’s economic stability. Yet if we do not demonstrate to our children, and youths, the importance of being literate and expressing their creativity through the literary arts, then how can we expect them to be well-rounded and prepared to seek employment in the hotel and tourism industry, and other areas of the public and private sectors, or for them to achieve greater heights in their lives?
We must have a clear vision of promoting these areas of academic life which impact our daily living. If we don’t read and write, then how can we fill out job applications, take continuing education classes, assist children with their school work, write business letters, read scriptures at church or assist others to function well in a literate society? Reading, writing and creativity are essential skills for ourselves and the global advancement of Anguilla.
There are various initiatives on island which promote literacy and reading, but we need more, especially for adults. One such project for children is the Young Authors Award for Grades 3 through 6 students at the Adrian T. Hazell Primary School in South Hill. This creative writing programme was launched on World Book Day, Thursday, 3rd March 2016. We applaud the Department of Education staff and teachers for implementing this award encouraging young people to utilise their God-given artistic talents.
The Government’s Department of Information and Broadcasting — Radio Anguilla – just last week celebrated its 47th anniversary from Saturday, 9th April to Friday, 16th April 2016, and made reading in the community a highlight of its week-long activities. Even the Anguilla Library Service, at the Public Library, offers Saturday Storytime for children and the Champions Pursuit of Literary, an afternoon programme for primary school students that is an integral part of the Anguilla Lit Fest activities.
Out of the desire to bring together writers, poets, playwrights and spoken word artistes, the Anguilla Lit Fest came into conception. It was also created as another avenue for marketing “Books and Beaches” to promote tourism on the island during the slow season month of May. Some of us have never attended this annual festival and, therefore, we may not recognise the benefits that the Lit Fest has to offer because they are not widely publicised.
The bigger picture of what this small sized, intimate literacy jollification initiative attempts to accomplish has resounding effects in the community. Just look at how the Anguilla Under Ground Poetry Club, which has been a complement to the Lit Fest, has been developed. From the voicing of our people’s word sounds, connections were made between the Department of Youth and Culture and House of Nehesi Publishers in St Martin to publish an anthology of Anguilla’s poets, Where I See the Sun — Contemporary Poetry in Anguilla, that was promoted during the fourth annual Lit Fest in May 2015. The Malliouhana Poetry Competition has as well been revived and is, in and of itself, an extension of our community’s efforts to support the literary arts. Creative writing and publishing courses were offered during the spring/summer 2015 terms at the Anguilla Community College. The Anguilla Lit Fest even inspired authors and delegates who attended in previous years to create the United States Virgin Islands Literary Festival and Book Fair, now in its second year running.
With the recent publication of a series of six law books written by retired High Court Judge, Mr Don Mitchell, CBE, QC, and prepared as lectures for Anguillian students sitting the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE), we really ought to recognise the importance of promoting literacy, literature and the literary arts in the Anguilla community and be doing everything possible to support this nation-building endeavour. The Anguilla Lit Fest affords local residents, children, youths and adults, as well as visitors, the opportunity to interact with internationally known bestseller and regional, as well as, local authors, poets, publishers, writers and readers. Students have the benefit of special presentations designed specifically for their age group, and the chance to interview and ask questions of the published authors.
The size of the audience who attends the Anguilla Lit Fest may appear to be small, but the impact that we have on our island, and globally, is BIG. So let’s do all that we possibly can to keep our annual literary jollification ongoing. It’s definitely not a money-making venture, as some may believe.
Come and support literacy, literature and the literary arts in the Anguilla community by joining us at this year’s literary festival! For further details on who’s coming, registration and accommodations, visit the website www.anguillalitfest.com or email the Lit Fest Planning Team at info@anguillalitfest.com.
May we all be inspired to achieve greater heights in literacy, literature and the literary arts! With Jah’s blessings, let us uplift our nation by having a “Literary RE-Vo-Lu-Tion!”
Kay M. Ferguson, who writes under the nom de plume Empress Extraordinaire, is a free-spirited writer who composes word sounds to inspire and uplift humanity. Kay also serves on the Public Relations and Communications Team for the Anguilla Lit Fest. She has been featured in past literary festivals as one of the Local Authors and Master of Ceremonies. Find the Empress and “i-nect” with her on social media at https://www.facebook.com/kaymferguson or link with Kay via email at anguillawriter@gmail.com or empress extraordinaire@outlook.com.
