Our Arrival Day celebrations have come and gone, with its increasingly popular cultural performances marking the coming here of slaves and indentured servants and others, as we sing and dance and make music, all contributing to the unique mix that is our cultural heritage.
Government’s recognition and support of these happenings has contributed to their national importance.
And of course we cannot forget the resurgence of our Amerindian culture, an addition to our celebrations that enriches the weave.
In all this, we need to take notice of advice from our Minister of Human Services and Social Security Ms. Priya Manickchand when she addressed an audience at a show at Vreed-en-Hoop on the West Demerara.
The event marked the 169 anniversary of the arrival of East Indians in Guyana.
The Minister observed that with our rich cultural identity, there was no need for “vulgarity” to creep into our performances under the guise of performing art.
She said that adults needed to take note of this and to lead the younger ones by example.
She spoke of suggestive dancing by young children and said this should not be tolerated.
“We must not mislead them as to the true nature of culture, teaching them and cheering them on in activities that are vulgar and debasing and have nothing to do with cultural expression,” she said.
Minister Manickchand’s intervention is a welcome one and we need to sit up and take notice.
The growing tendency to employ lewd, suggestive movements in our ethnic dance expressions is unsavoury.
We do agree that some suggestive movements are part of these dances, but they do have a very varied language that we ignore as we concentrate on “belly dances” suited to some orgy in some sultan’s harem, and not suited to cultural presentations.
Those who train our young performers must realise that there is more to the dance than “wining down”. That is the term they use.
Of course the form of dance we are objecting to among children is the thing in television advertisements on our local TV stations.
Look at the TV advertisements for live shows at local venues, and one would think that what is being offered is a sexual spree such as the ancient Romans must have had when Caligula et al decided to have a go at it.
The advertisements remind us of the excesses we see in pictures of bands put out by the Rio samba schools as Brazil celebrates Carnival, with those from that neighbouring twin-island republic coming up a close second.
We know that we are stepping on toes, and that many will say let the TV ads alone.
Okay.
But must we allow the same sort of influence among our children as they dance at cultural performances at independence and other national events.