Library launches audio platform to preserve Bajan heritage

The National Library Service has launched Radio Bimshire – a new audio platform aimed at preserving the island’s cultural and historical legacy through sound.

Radio Bimshire seeks to amplify the voices and stories of everyday Barbadians, according to library service director Jennifer Yarde.

“We are launching something meaningful—a cultural audio platform designed to preserve and share the voices and stories that deserve to be heard. We’ll be capturing the experiences of people from every parish and all walks of life,” Yarde told the launch ceremony on Wednesday.

“As we tune in, we’ll be reminded that storytelling isn’t only about the past. It’s about keeping our identity alive, deepening our understanding of one another, and strengthening the bonds that hold our communities together.”

The initiative is designed to capture the lived experiences of people from every corner of the island. Its goal is to strengthen community bonds and celebrate the rich oral history that has long been passed down through generations.

Yarde explained the importance of using this medium to share local stories: “From folklore to family stories, oral history is how we always make sense of our world, passing on what matters most. Our island, with its deep heritage and strong spirit, has always shared this story in more ways than just books or official documents. We pass it down through spoken word in village corners, at the fish market, in rum shops, church halls, and from one generation to the next. Our history lives through the voices of the people.”

The audio platform, which has been in development for the past few years, includes contributions from several individuals, including Evonda Callender, former deputy director of the National Library Service. Callender was the visionary behind launching the library’s oral history programme and left a profound legacy that continues to inspire future generations.

Radio Bimshire preserves these stories as a living archive, bringing Barbadian culture to life for a global audience. Now available through streaming and podcasts, these narratives—ranging from age-old traditions and sugarcane harvesting to the lives of fisherfolk, village weddings, and migration journeys—offer listeners around the world an open door to Barbados, anytime and anywhere.

“With Radio Bimshire, we’re taking these stories beyond our walls, and this isn’t just about history—it’s about access. In today’s digital world, it is more important than ever that information is available to everyone, not just some,” Yarde added. “Radio Bimshire helps level the playing field. It offers free online access to rich cultural content that reflects who we are. Whether you’re in Barbados or Timbuktu, all you need is a device and an internet connection.”

Creator of the platform, broadcaster and journalist Julius Gittens, expressed his gratitude for public historians who recently died but graciously contributed to the archives: “One would note the passing of three great voices of history. I hope that their presence is here with us. Trevor George Marshall, who was gracious enough, in his final months, to give us a marvellous interview. Karl Watson, another giant of history, who, like Trevor, gave generously of his time and attention and passion. And the third, another generous spirit, another extremely gracious voice, and a public figure in history, Professor Pedro Welch.”

Among the specially invited guests were Marshall’s son Kwesi Marshall; Pauline Layne, the sister of writer, broadcaster and NIFCA co-founder Jeannette Layne-Clarke; folk historian G Addinton Forde; and Marcel Pragnell, nephew of broadcaster Alfred Pragnell who performed much of Layne-Clarke’s material on radio and in recordings.

Gittens encouraged those in Barbados and abroad to tune in: “You will hear their voices over the next weeks, months, and years—alive. They gave tremendously to the National Library Service, who recorded their stories—stories of emancipation, stories of freedom, of liberation, stories of struggle and pain. It’s here, and it is our mission to bring it to life on Radio Bimshire.”

Callender also encouraged future contributors to keep the archives authentic: “So when you go out to do the oral history project, I would like, and I would hope, that we will cover Barbadiana as it was and is now. Don’t soap it. Don’t whitewash it. No, that was not Barbados.”

She explained further: “Our goal was to retrieve and disseminate the information. So I am eternally thankful that Radio Bimshire is being launched because people will have an opportunity to hear and see us as we really are and not what people want us to be.”

Radio Bimshire can be found online at https://bit.ly/radiobimshire. (LG)