River Of Freedom

On May 19th, 2012 a documentary entitled, The Merikins premiered in Princes Town, Trinidad. There to present it to the audience was the former United States Ambassador to Trinidad and Tobago, Ms. Beatrice Welters. In her speech to the audience Ambassador Welters said, “This story touched me deeply…the United States is a nation founded on the principle that we are all created equal and that our freedom is an inalienable right. But the government of the United States has not always lived up to that ideal. The struggle of the Merikins shows that desire for freedom is found in the hearts of every man, woman and child.” Inspired greatly by the film we decided to write a narrated piece of music about the journey of the Merikins and to tell the tale in the way we know best: through music, poetry and art. Three years later, we premiered our new work in the heart of the Company Villages at St. Mary’s Government Primary School in the south of Trinidad to members of the Merikin community who showed up in great numbers and welcomed us warmly. We are very grateful to the US Embassy of Trinidad and Tobago and the Vincent Wilkinson Foundation for giving us matching grants to research, write and premiere the work and to the Classical Music Development Foundation of Trinidad and Tobago and the Caribbean Network Arts and Education Foundation for their support in the workshops and the creation of this book.