A “sacred space” that stands as testimony to a history wrought with survival and pain.
That’s how officials described the historic opening of the Rock Hall Freedom Park in St Thomas on Sunday, the International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade.
The evening, which also marked the end of the season of emancipation, was dotted with powerful tributes in folk songs, drum, dance and other performances in honour of the sacrifice and courage of ancestors who established the first black freehold village on the island.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office with responsibility for Culture and the National Development Commission John King declared that the site much, like the formal recognition of National Heroes Day, Emancipation Day and the identification of ten national heroes, is a clear recognition that “history is as much about our present and our future as it is about our past and the country must, therefore, forge towards a sense of national consciousness.
“This space is a sacred space. This is not just another project open for show. Today, as we formally open this Rock Hall Freedom Park, we also continue along the path of the redefinition of our identity and forge towards a greater sense of national consciousness.”
King, who shared the tragic history of Rock Hall’s bloody establishment, told the gathering that the white slave master Reynold Alleyne Elcock, who generously promised in an 1821 will to pay his loyal slaves five pounds annually upon his death, was subsequently killed by three members of his household who were anxious to secure the money. The perpetrators then paid with their own lives, but many years later their descendants received the payment and they used it to establish Rock Hall.
St Thomas MP Cynthia Forde praised the opening of the facility, which was started some 15 years ago. She noted it was a demonstration on the Government’s part that people matter.
“To have been able to live and witness the unfolding of this dynamic project says that people matter. It does not matter what colour – people matter! And the people of Rock Hall matter, this being the first freedom village in Barbados,” she said.
Forde who is also the Minister of Elder Affairs and People Empowerment further welcomed the Park saying it would benefit residents and the wider Barbados.
“For opportunities to be made available for the residents here to manage the small kiosks, to be able to become persons who will work on tours as a part and extension of this project, to be able to sit in the amphitheatre, to be able to look at the monument and learn the history of St. Thomas and Barbados – it speaks volumes of the excellent work the Minister of Culture and his team have been doing,” she said.
The Rock Hall Freedom Village Project involved the refurbishing of the 20-foot bronze monument, the upgrading of a number of chattel-type shops; the creation of a park which formed part of the original plan, but was never executed; and the building of an outdoor amphitheatre to facilitate the performing arts. Work on this amphitheatre is ongoing.
Patrons were moved by the event. They expressed high praise for the excellent cultural performances by the Barbados Landship, the Israel Lovell Foundation cultural group, Dancin’ Africa and Aja and the De REmergence Band with Riddim Tribe and Dancin’ Africa.
