Shastri Boodan
Casillan Cupid-Caberrea, 41, is making her mark as an artist and activist for T&T’s Warao’s community.
She said many people in this country are unaware of this indigenous group whose presence in T&T dates back to well before the arrival of the European colonizers. As part of her mission to raise awareness, her latest collection of paintings focuses on the group of which she is a proud member.
Cupid-Caberrea, the former president of the Siparia Art Association operates from her Delta Blue Art Studio at Quinam Road, Siparia.
“My contribution for Indigenous People’s Month is called Hermana Del Universo which translates to be Sisters of the Universe,” she explained.
“My contribution was inspired by my two daughters and son. From the dawn of time, the womb of a woman has birthed sons and daughters from different tribes. Her struggles and hardships have led her on a journey of self-discovery. She has encountered a range of emotions that leads to independence. She has risen to become the best version of herself. When the sun begins to set on her journey of life she draws from her spiritual well of knowledge and pours out a blessing of advice to her young ones. When her soul has found its final resting place, she cries out to her God and with open arms, she is received.”
The collection was donated to St Ann’s Church in La Romaine where it is on a permanent display.
Cupid-Caberrea said it is time for all indigenous tribes in T&T to be recognised. She said for too long the population has lived with the belief that only Caribs and Arawaks settled here.
She said: “Until the 15th and 16th centuries all of Trinidad was populated by several tribes. Trinidad was a transit point in the Caribbean network of Amerindian trade and exchange. Amerindian tribes were referred to by various names such as Yaio, Nepuyo, Warao, Kalipuna, Aruaca, Chaima, Carinepogoto, Arawak and Carini.”
Tobago was occupied by Caribs and Galibi. The indigenous name for Trinidad was Kairi or Iere, she pointed out, and the term tribal was applied by European colonizers and missionaries to classify the lifestyles of the indigenous peoples they encountered around the world.
“Without having to go back in time, it is clear who were the First Nation people. However, to date recognition is still wanting. When the King of Spain took over our land, it was not with peace as was documented. Instead, they did so with guns, raping our women, spreading diseases, stealing our lands and murdering our people until we barely existed,” Cupid-Caberrea said.
“After all was dusted and gone they referred to us as savages to mask their genocide and plundering. They also attempted to silence us with their forced religion by destroying our beliefs, history and our way of life. In addition, they treated us like mere objects as if we never occupied and lived on this land for generations.
“The seed of my ancestors continues to live on through many tribes. They are all still here and they speak for us. No man speaks for me, especially those without our blood, under a fake name reaping the benefits of our people.
“I am Casillan Cupid-Caberrea, I am Warao, I speak for my ancestors and my children, and for my generations to come. I hold no secret as to how to fix the mistakes of generation past. However, we can make a difference with our future generations by teaching them the truth. Let us stop believing that our differences make us superior or inferior to one another. Instead, we must delve beyond the arrogance of humans, beyond the ignorance of civil society and step into the reality of neutral rights to move forward as one unified nation.”