PHILIPSBURG – As of November 2-4, the 16th annual International Conference on Caribbean Literature (ICCL) will have their meeting on St. Maarten. About 50 plus scholars from mainly the United States and throughout the Caribbean will attend this rather prestigious conference.
The theme this year will be “Ode to Saint Martin/St. Maarten: Addressing the Longing to Belonging in a Multicultural Milieu.”
President of the University of St. Martin (USM) Francio Guadeloupe welcomed the community to attend the conference at Sonesta Maho Beach Resort and Casino, and take part in the discussions. One has time to pre-register until Friday afternoon, October 28, by sending an email to Loretta Champion-Johnson of Monroe University: lchampjohn@helmsbriscoe.com
The opening of the conference on November 2, which is free, will begin at 7:00pm at the USM campus. There will be an address by Dr. Melvin Rahming and Dr. Leah Creque of Morehouse University and the keynote by Dr. Guadeloupe. There will also be entertainment in the form of performances of Young Carlix, The Protegé, and the local steel pan artist Lavern Vlaun.
On November 3 and 4, the ICCL conference continues with the academic lectures at the Sonesta Maho Beach Hotel & Casino, starting at 9:00am. Residents and visitors to the island are urged to attend and join the activities and lectures about a most important topic: the relationship between Literature, Cultural Identity, and Belonging in a multicultural world. There will also be other related topics being presented and discussed.
For further information, contact Champion-Johnson at lchampjohn@helmsbriscoe.com, or visit the USM campus.
The four keynote speakers are: Guadeloupe on November 2 at 7:00pm; Dr. Rhoda Arrindell on November 2 at 12:00pm; Dr. Chenzira Davis Kahina from the University of the Virgin Islands, who will speak on November 3 at 12:00pm and Dr. Ken Irish-Bramble from Medgar Evers College, who will speak November 4 at 12:00pm.
Pre-registration price is $399 for full package of 3 days (which includes an island tour), and $100 for 1 day.
The online journal commentaries will publish the keynote addresses and several academic papers after the conference.
