Guyana Pride: Repping for “592”

The Guyana National Cultural Center was ablaze  with talent on Monday evening for the “Let the Women Speak” Red Revolution Gala. Women from all over the country showed up decked out in a sea of red as a sign of solidarity and strength for the fight against domestic violence. The crowd was treated to live performances by local and overseas talent including poetry by 2014 Youth Poet Laureate, Ramya Ramana, choreographed dancing, skits and several…

During Emancipation Celebrations in Guyana in August, beautiful head wraps form part of the dress of many; but did you know? African head wraps have served as a head cover since the Early 1700s. It is interesting to note that the African head wrap (also known as Dhuku, Duku or Gele) is deep rooted in tradition and history – Each African nation has its own story to tell. While some of us look at a…

Award winning London-born saxophonist and composer Nubya Garcia makes the cover of Jazzwise Magazine.  The September issue  features an interview with Nubya, one of the leading forces behind the resurgence of jazz-influenced sounds in the UK.  Nubya was born in 1991 in the Camden district of northwest London to a Guyanese mother, Loraine Jansen (Bishops High School alumni); and former civil servant, and a British Trinidadian film maker father. Garcia followed her older siblings to the local…

Joy-Ann (“Joy”) Reid is the former managing editor of TheGrio.com and host of the AM Joy show on MSNBC.  She is also a political columnist for the Miami Herald and editor of the political blog The Reid Report and is known for her very insightful and liberal political views.  Joy was born to an African father from the Congo, and her late mother was from Guyana. Joy has also worked as an Internet news editor…

Houston Caribbean Queen, Zoe Cadore, was crowned Miss Caribbean United States 2017 on Saturday, March 11th at the Jamaica Performing Arts Center for the 10th Anniversary of the competition.  Zoe is the first Houstonian to compete in and win the title of Miss Caribbean United States and the first person of Guyanese heritage to win the title. The evening featured a lively celebration of Caribbean culture and including an opening dance in Carnival costumes designed by Jewel…

Leona Lewis was born on April 3, 1985 in the London Borough of Islington , to Aural Josiah “Joe” Lewis, a youth worker from Guyana and Maria Lewis, a British social worker of Welsh, Italian and Irish descent. A multi-platinum selling artist and three-time Grammy Award nominee, Lewis’s most successful single, “Bleeding Love”, reached number one in over 30 countries around the world, and was the best-selling single worldwide in 2008. She was proclaimed ‘Top…

Tarana Dance Centre was a vision brought to life by Artistic Director, Deviekha Chetram.  Born and raised in Alexander Village, Guyana, Deviekha has always demonstrated a keen interest in Indian dance since childhood and developed her own free style as she performed and choreographed dances for local events in Guyana. This enthusiasm led her to seek formal training in Kathak at the Indian Cultural Centre, Georgetown, Guyana. She considers herself lucky to have received her…

Only 6% of all surgeons in the United Kingdom are female, and Dr. Samantha Tross is one of them. She’s the first Black British woman to become a consultant Orthopaedic surgeon. Samantha was born in Georgetown Guyana on June 30, 1968 to Sammy and Gwendolin Tross. The second of their four children, she went to St. Gabriel’s Primary School before her diplomat father was assigned to England and the family relocated. Samantha obtained a Bachelor of Medicine/Bachelor of Surgery degree…

Female Officers of the Guyana Defence Force and the Guyana Police Force at the National Park on May 26, 2013 Source:  Stabroek News  – Photos by Arian Browne        .

Reported By Allison Skeete Special to NAN News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Fri. May 31, 2019: A Grammy Award winner Caribbean roots singer is set to be in Brooklyn, NY this Sunday, June 2nd for the launch of the Guyana Innovation Prize Venture Fellowship. Melanie Fiona, a Canadian-Guyanese, is slated to be part of the Brooklyn, NY launch of the Fellowship, the brainchild of the Guyana Economic Development Trust CEO, Oslene Carrington. The event aims…

A woman of distinction, US-based Guyanese Holly Veal, a prosecutor, public defender and private defence attorney, recently announced her candidacy for Henry County District Attorney in Henry County in the U.S. State of Georgia. Holly originally hails from Wismar, Linden. She emigrated from Guyana in December 1995 to St Albans, New York. More than eleven years ago, she began her legal career as an assistant public defender. In that capacity she worked tirelessly to ensure…

Ruth-Anne Lynch is a Guyanese travel writer and radio practitioner  based in England.  With parents from Guyana and Jamaica, she was educated in Guyana, Jamaica and the UK with degrees in International Tourism Management and Radio (Production and Management). In 2010, the writer embarked on a travel research tour of the three Guianas in South America, to update the Guianas chapter of Rough Guides’ South America on a Budget (2nd Ed.), published in August 2011. …

English Teacher, Shamayne Cumberbatch, was born in Guyana, South America and later moved to Irving, NJ. She first attended the local public school before enrolling at Kent Place for middle and high school. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Princeton University and her master’s degree from Harvard in Education Policy and Management. Before working at the Pingry School, Ms. Cumberbatch participated in the Teach for America program, teaching eighth grade English classes at a charter…

Originally from Jamaica, Queens, New York, Tracy Antoinette Greene Douglas now resides in the black water region of Madewini Creek, along the Soesdyke-Linden Highway in Guyana.  A naturalized Guyanese, Tracy co-founded “Pandama Retreat, Winery and Center for the Creative Arts” with her husband, Warren Douglas, who is a native of South Ruimveldt in Georgetown.  Following a 2009 visit to Guyana, Tracy’s spirit led her to leave her then North Carolina home behind and relocate with…

Abigail Wade is a Guyanese Professional Makeup Artist and Stylist who currently resides in Brooklyn, New York. A creative being, Abigail is working hard to achieve the “American Dream” through her craft. The quality of her work speaks for itself and has even attracted the attention of some big retailers in New York like Macy’s.  She’s also the go-to makeup artist for Love and Hip-Hop Atlanta cast member Grace Hamilton popularly known as Spice, whenever…