(Continued from yesterday)
Tracy Assing is a writer, filmmaker and storyteller
When you have to fill in a form asking you your race, what do you put?
I sometimes put Other or Mixed as there has never been another option for First Nations descendants.
How do you see your ethnic roots & heritage? Is it important to how you define yourself, or is it irrelevant, an accident of birth?
I believe it is very important–untold and unexplored elements of Caribbean history that are important to defining who we are as Caribbean people. The story of the first Caribbeans.
We have had to depend on oral history for much of the story. But this story may hold many clues for our future survival. More and more people are recognising the importance of looking back to go forward, in the return to plants for medicine and rise of interest in paleo diets, etc.
My heritage is very important to how I define myself. We are a marginalised group, in some ways still struggling for recognition after having our lands stolen, being written out of history and being used as political pawns.
As a writer, filmmaker and journalist, it is part of my life's work to continue to tell our story of survival.
Do you celebrate your ethnic heritage, ignore it as irrelevant, or have mixed feelings about it?
I celebrate it. In my family we have always celebrated our heritage. My great grandmother was one of the founding members of the Santa Rosa Carib Community (SRCC) and my great aunt was Carib Queen Valentina Medina. As a child I also took part in the Santa Rosa Festival. I had mixed feelings about it even as a child, as I felt that it was more of a Catholic festival than an indigenous festival. It remains a focal point for the community even among those who are not Catholic.
As a community group, the SRCC, now the Santa Rosa First Peoples Community, has always consisted of mostly women. They have played a huge role in preserving some elements of our heritage, like weaving and the preparation of cassava. They've also facilitated hundreds of researchers from here and abroad, exploring everything from what is left of indigenous languages to traditional medicine.
The festival isn't all there is to celebrating heritage. We honour our heritage several times a year just by walking the trails of the Northern Range–retracing the footsteps of our ancestors; sharing our knowledge with others; keeping our rivers clean. Some of us still practise smoke ceremonies for protection, in celebration, etc.
Do you think race is important in T&T? Do you think different ethnicities have different values?
I believe race has played a huge role in our history, our politics, and the distribution of resources.
My grandfather used to say that Independence never came for indigenous people. Indigenous knowledge and labour was being exploited in cocoa and coffee plantations for decades. Our story was unrecorded. It was easier to keep repeating the story of the war-like, cannibal Carib and the peaceful, farming Arawak than it was to explore the richness of a society populated by as many as a dozen tribes. Our history has, of course, led us to where we are today, and if we can't even acknowledge some parts of the story, we can't learn all there is to learn from what we have experienced.
Indigenous descendants believe we are connected to the land and that every living thing is connected. So, we take special care not to pollute our environment. The land doesn't belong to us. We are meant to exist in communion with it.
We have all been raised to have great respect for our elders. We have special ceremonies and practices when going out to hunt or if cutting down a tree. Even when we collect leaves from plants for medicine, we have a little conversation with the plant, asking for permission, asking for assistance and expressing gratitude.
Not everyone in Trinidad shares these values. Catholicism and colonialism tried to erase these values. They shaped the story. We still haven't fully embraced the richness of what we have. Some people still think the grass looks greener on the other side. So subsistence living makes way for runaway consumerism.
How long have you/your family had roots here (best estimate)? What do you like and dislike about T&T culture?
It would be hard for me to give you an accurate estimate. My grandparents grew up at the Missions in Caura and Arima. My mother's father is of Black Carib heritage from St Vincent.
Although you'd be hard pressed to find records, we certainly had some ancestors here before the colonisers.
We believe even when Trinidad was joined to Venezuela, its geographical location made it an important port. If we know anything about port cities, it's that there is always a mix of cultures; some people get along and some don't; there's always a lot of coming and going, people leaving, people settling down, sometimes a little lawlessness, like the tide going in and coming out without fail. Some things haven't changed.
Do you know about the beliefs and lifestyles of T&T people of different ethnic heritages from your own?
It''s impossible to exist on this island space and not be touched by the culture of T&T people of different ethnic heritages. There is no such thing as a pure indigene. We are all mixed.
When you have to fill in a form asking you your race, what do you put?
On national forms I choose mixed because I am of mixed heritage primarily of Indigenous and African descent. I have yet to come across any form in T&T which has any reference to indigenous peoples.
How do you see your ethnic roots & heritage? Is it important to how you define yourself, or is it irrelevant, an accident of birth?
I identify myself as Trinbagonian but a huge part of that identity derives from my indigenous culture and heritage. I do not see these things as mutually exclusive but rather hold the firm belief that being Trinbagonian must necessarily refer to the culture and history of indigenous peoples who were here long before the colonial powers arrived.
In that vein, when I think of Independence Day, it reminds me largely of the long colonial history of T&T, and ultimately the decimation and near destruction of my indigenous forefathers. Prior to Columbus' arrival, there existed several tribes of indigenous peoples, some of which still exist today. Indigenous peoples therefore have a large role in what it means to be Trinbagonian and should be recognised as such.
Do you celebrate your ethnic heritage, ignore it as irrelevant, or have mixed feelings about it?
My people have managed to preserve ourselves and elements of our culture (albeit little) throughout these hundreds of years, and that is always something for us to celebrate.
I hope more Trinbagonians would recognise and respect our contribution to culture and heritage which comprises of indigenous people and recognise that we are still here. We have a thriving community in Arima known as the Santa Rosa First Peoples and I support the call by Chief Ricardo Bharath that recognition on a national level through the establishment of a holiday for Indigenous Peoples to celebrate their role in our country's history is essential.
Recently the Government made an announcement regarding lands which have been allocated for use by the Santa Rosa First Peoples and to completing the process so that access may be granted. I anticipate that these lands will finally be conveyed to our group so that we can use same to display our rich cultural heritage to the wider national community.