BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, Advocate – Cultural industries, cultural preservation and heritage tourism are terms that have gained currency in recent years as efforts continue to diversify the limited scope of the Barbadian economy. The country scored a major feather in its cap with the UNESCO World Heritage inscription of Historic Bridgetown and its Garrison, and since then much has been said and written about how this designation can be used to leverage lucrative benefits for the country. With all the focus on making new beginnings out of our old buildings, there may have been a tendency to overlook other, less concrete aspects our culture that are equally worthy of preservation and recognition as having value to human civilisation, namely oral traditions, music, handicraft and dance. Indeed, the UNESCO is very much aware of the importance of such intangible heritage. In addition to the World Heritage Site designations, they also bestow the title of ‘Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity’ on such cultural practices that are deemed as having enriched our world. According to their website, this is defined as including “traditions or living expressions inherited from our ancestors and passed on to our descendants, such as oral traditions, performing arts, social practices, rituals, festive events, knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe or the knowledge and skills to produce traditional crafts”. Too often we lament that the Barbados of yesteryear is fast fading away, as persons adopt more metropolitan lifestyles; traditional practices are left by the wayside and die out with each passing generation. How many of us can make traditional Bajan confectioneries such as comforts, sugar cakes and the like, from scratch? What about the substantive part of our alleged national dish, cou cou? Are our children still being taught the traditional folk songs that were so familiar to the older generation? How many of today’s youth are familiar with folkloric characters such as the steel donkey, the heart man and others? Or have these characters been condensed to Mother Sally and shaggy bears? These are all unique expressions of our people’s collective experiences and history. They cannot and should not be obliterated by generic, mass-produced cultural products, devoid of the richness that comes with organic development.
