Last year, an exciting series of publications was launched by one of our foremost “culturalists” who is best known as Elombe. This series is both ambitious and necessary in a country where books that speak to our history are rare.
Recently, Elombe handed me a copy of the two-volume piece Better Must Come and I indicated my intention to read and review the books. I intended to review the books in one article; however, I have thus far scratched the surface and think it appropriate to “nibble” at this awfully big cherry and report my “findings”. At this time it seems fitting to commence my review with a look at the chapter Crop Over: More than a Carnival.
There is little that is controversial about this chapter which is actually quite surprising when one considers the expectation that the writer engenders. It is basically the story of the birth of Crop Over which is told by one of its “midwives” and therefore helps to set the record straight regarding both the myths and legends. The journey is fascinating, especially as I recently learned that I was a “reveller” (at eight years old) in the 1976 festival that was coincidentally the first one that Government staged after its reintroduction in 1974 by the Board of Tourism.
Elombe spoke to the phrase “more than a carnival” which was useful since I always assumed that the phrase was meaningless. In reality the phrase does have considerable legitimacy as Elombe takes us back to the origins of the Crop Over Festival which was not just one celebration, but instead several plantation-based festivals that all celebrated the ending of the crop (at different times) which was a defining moment in the lives of a substantial segment of our population. He notes that these festivals ended around 1940. However there was a commonality since all the celebrations featured the delivery of the “last canes” in a dray cart and a quintessentially Barbadian character called “Mr Harding” was prominently placed atop the canes and thereafter cremated at the end of the festivities. It is also noteworthy that then, as now, that rum was a central aspect of these festivals and was freely available and consumed liberally.
Those among us who are familiar with carnival appreciate the extent to which our festival is no carbon copy. Theirs is oddly “religious” and can be traced back to the “birth” of Christianity when the Caribbean was not yet “discovered”. It prepares one for a period of abstinence that is of little relevance to non-believers like me. Ours is a celebration of the ending of the most productive period on the plantation that was itself the backbone of the Barbados economy. As we celebrated our productivity, we also inculcated a tradition which can be traced back to our African roots which was the burning of “Mr Harding” . . . our offering to the “gods” in deference to the fact that the end of the crop also meant the beginning of “lean” times.
The chapter makes it clear that the rationale behind the reintroduction of the modern version was entirely related to tourism and was therefore all about economics. The initial festivals in 1974 and 1975 were “sponsored” by the Board of Tourism and exploited this historical festival as a curiosity for tourists in the “low season”.
The involvement of Julian Marryshow who was also a “midwife” of our modern festival is noteworthy since he was both a Grenadian and the PRO of the board. As a Grenadian, he would have been familiar with the Catholic-inspired Carnival and no doubt identified a synergy that could be exploited in our developmental interest.
One significant point that Elombe did not dwell on is the fact that in rebranding Crop Over in 1976, the Government selected the first Monday in August which was the holiday that celebrated Emancipation. The choice of this date reflects a desire to link what would become our single largest festival to a date that means so much to so many of us and helps to create a distinctive space for Crop Over.
I cannot say that this chapter disappointed me in any way. However, I was surprised (knowing Elombe as I do) that the chapter was relatively free of his characteristic “ranting” (which I rather enjoy). He avoided any direct criticism of the removal of the burning of Mr Harding and he also did not convey his opinion on the overall direction of the festival which has now morphed into an event that is frighteningly commercial.
The ceremonial delivery of the last canes has survived, but seems trite in the context of a single-factory scenario where deliveries by motorised vehicle end long before the “last canes” are celebrated. In these days there is also no donkey cart parade and, if truth be told, the title King or Queen Of The Crop should be awarded to a machine and not a person. It would therefore have been interesting to hear Elombe’s perspective on these developments, but we are nonetheless fortunate to have benefited from his perspective on Crop Over and I look forward to reading (and sharing) other aspects of his books from time to time.
• Peter W. Wickham is a political consultant and a director of Caribbean Development Research Services (CADRES).