Carnival part of culture?

THE EDITOR: Is the Carnival season, in all its manifestations, part of the culture of TT? Chutney-style Carnival celebrations are an important part of the whole. When a highly educated professional of Indian descent, a son of the soil, asks if Carnival is truly the culture of TT, he is denying his roots of indenture.

He is denying the reality of the Indian boys and girls who have removed limiting expressions to traditional Mother India. They are Trini to the bone and liking it. Two hundred years down the road from arrival from India, the indentured and descendants have successfully adapted to their new homeland.

Is this fear, this query from the learned professor, really only about Carnival? Hindu and Muslim children have wandered away from tradition. Many have embraced other Christian religions. The rich, the poor, the well educated and not so well educated Indo-Trinidadians embrace Carnival with undeniable gusto. Some have become millionaires supplying goods and services to our Carnival celebrations.

Carnival is part of our Christian culture and therefore part of more than 50 per cent of citizens who can profess being disrespected by the query “Is Carnival really our culture?”

Divali, Eid-ul-Fitr, Phagwa, Hosay and many other traditional devotions are celebrated without let or hindrance. They have become part of our culture and enjoyed by all.

Steel pan music is an important part of the lifeblood of descendants of the African slave trade and is traditional to Carnival expression. Some might even say that our Carnival is part of our religion, as TT people. Ignorance of the obvious is inexcusable. Yes, Carnival can be improved. Just forget about it being removed.

LYNETTE JOSEPH, Diego Martin