Caribes negros (Black Caribs)
Proyecto Poporopo, Guatemala City, Guatemala.
Curated by David Urbina
The Afro-Caribbean population recognized as Garifuna originated with the arrival of two slave ships from West Africa that shipwrecked on the coast of the island of San Vicente in 1635. The survivors from the shipwreck arrived on the island and created alliances with Caribs, giving rise to the Garinagu or Garifuna people. In 1979, the British invaded the island of San Vicente and expelled more than 5,000 Garifunas, sending them on a boat to the the Bay Islands of Honduras. Once in Honduras, the Garifunas settled along the coasts of Belize, Guatemala, Nicaragua and the United States. Since their arrival in Central America this community has lived in isolation and poverty.
I stood in front of one of the walls in the gallery, holding the Garifuna flag. Several people built in front of me a wall made up of sacks of stones which isolated me from the public. Once confined, I waved the flag for an hour.