THE Sea View Cultural Organisation,  of Onderneeming, West Coast Berbice , moved to quicken the pace of achieving its mandate of reviving the African identity in that community on the night of Tuesday, July 30.

Ahead of that in the western neighbouring village of Hopetown, the group played a lead role in adding new vigour, vitality and lustre to activities that formed part of the 2013 Emancipation celebrations, both in the immediate vicinity and at the national level.
At the annual event, among their latest and most significant involvement leading up to Emancipation Day 2013, was the explosive performances in drumming, singing and dancing.
This Sunday Pepperpot writer travelled to the West Berbice venue, between Hopetown and Fort Wellington, to witness the Sew View Soiree, at which both juniors and seniors played a part, the two being tasked with separate responsibilities, but each constituting an interesting and exciting segment of the grand programme.
The entertainment, according to President of the organisation, Mr. Asquich Hamilton, is a celebration after freedom from human bondage and the shackles of slavery.
He said their joy is expressed and communicated through drumming, dancing, singing,  ring play, camp fire and, not least, lavish eating and drinking of  popular African cuisine, including foo-foo dishes, metagee, conkie, corn and cassava pone; pepperpot and beverages.

Calabash dishes
Persons from the Rastafarian clan prepared and served several of the Ital (meatless) dishes, flavoured with hot peppers for the medicinal properties; boiled corn stewed in coconut milk and garnished with garden salads but all with absolutely no salt and delivered in calabash dishes.
Sea View Cultural Organisation was formed about two years ago and its Founder/ Chief Executive Officer is Mr. Tufail Muhammad, who hails from Hopetown but spent some 35 years in Canada and the United States (U.S.).
When he returned home, inspired by the idea of giving back to the land of his birth and native Hopetown, he was assisted by very vibrant others, among them Hamilton, an electrical engineerng contractor, who assumed his current position this year.
Other members of the executive body are Vice President Christopher Williamson; Secretary, Ambrozene Thomas; Treasurer, Ismay Aaron; and Assistant Secretary/Treasurer, Susan Ralph.
Muhammad expressed gratitude to the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) for a grant, which was utilised towards achieving the goals of the beneficiary. He also acknowledged the support of Mr. Eric Phillips of the African Cultural Development Association (ACDA), adding: “Without Eric, we would not be where we are today.”
Their ambition is to restore and revive the African culture in Hopetown and surrounding villages. Remarked Hamilton: “We have lost our culture.  I think we have been dominated for too long and that has affected our thinking but Sea View is in the business of resuscitating our cultural identity.”
The cultural group has 45 juvenile members, between seven and 18 years of age, with whom it is working on harnessing and honing skills in music, song and dance; art and craft production; etiquette, sewing, knitting, embroidery and cooking to make better citizens.
“We do lots of African dancing and drumming; interpretive dancing and folk songs and, so, we are putting both our young men and women on the path to develop marketable skills for life, while empowering them to keep the African practices alive,” Hamilton said.

Has learnt
It is interesting what the group has learnt, so far, and is doing to make a difference in the lives of their peers in the community.
“It is not all about formal classes.  There is scope for entertainment and there is lots of it,” he assured.
The Sea View youths are also in engaged in ring plays, camp fires,  athletics, cycling and cross country races.
Among their latest and most significant performances leading up to Emancipation Day 2013 were drumming and dancing at the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport’s big Emancipation 2013 programme at the 1763 Monument at Square of the Revolution, in Georgetown, two Fridays ago.
The Sea View Cultural Group meets on the third Thursday of every month and Club Night is on the last Saturday. They are, currently, focusing on expanding the membership, as well, Muhammad stated.