African American Day Parade
A Huge
Success As Usual
But Where's The Pan?
The 36th annual African-American Day Parade was
held this past weekend in Harlem, New York.
Harlem,
often referred to as the black capital of the world and as the cultural
Mecca for music and the arts, was bustling on this day.
Everyone was there including current Mayor Mike Bloomberg. The
streets of the parade route were lined with tens of thousands of New Yorkers.
There were over two hundred participating organizations marching in the
parade covering every aspect of African-American culture. The
parade is recognized as the largest Black parade in America and covers
more than twenty-eight blocks from 111th street to 142nd street on Adam Clayton-Powell Boulevard.
The event showcases music, politics, art, social consciousness, literature, history
and more.
The parade celebrates
the great history and contributions of the African-American to America.
Every aspect of black life and culture was on display. Some of the
best African-American musical traditions were in the spotlight. Drum and
bugle bands from as far as Maryland performed. However,
conspicuously missing was the steel pan. The steel band, once a
staple at the parade has been missing since 2003. In this
regard, it is time that a conscious effort be made to return the steelband
to parade.
This
African-American day festival of arts and culture provides an excellent opportunity
to demonstrate how the
steelpan has become an intrinsic part of the African-American
experience.
Moreover, it is a fitting arena to illustrate that
while steelpan is commonly associated with carnival, it has long since
surpassed this stereotypical image. It also provides a platform to present music on
the instrument that has a much greater across-the-board appeal than the normal
carnival genre selections. The steelpan which has been in America for 50
years, has become also become part of the story of African-American struggle and
survival. Many of the New York steelbands are made up of youth who
have never even been to the Caribbean. The steelpan in America
has become a distinctly African-American experience with its own set of
stories, challenges and history that are unique to North America
environment.
Recently, a Brooklyn organization
called Pan Visionaries 2k was able to return steelpan to Prospect
Park in Brooklyn after an absence of many years. It was indeed a beautiful
event. Maybe, this organization can pick up the mantle and
negotiate the return of the steelband to the African-American Day
Parade. It has been sorely missed.
Click to see pictures and video |