India steps up to the plate with vax help
With sought-after COVID-19 vaccine for its member nations high on the agenda, leaders of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) met Friday with Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director general of the World Health Organization, and his team.
Meanwhile, OECS member nations are already benefiting greatly from 125,000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID vaccine donated by India.
Heading into last week’s meeting, OECS officials were excited to meet with high-ranking officials from the World Health Organization, the United Nations’ international public health agency, which is closely monitoring the coronavirus pandemic, compiling information, administering advice and “working to ensure vaccines are distributed as rapidly and equitably as possible to help bring the pandemic under control in the Caribbean and globally.”
Before the meeting, Didacus Jules, director general of the OECS, anticipated a “productive outcome,” hoping that the sitdown “will help bridge the vaccine gap for OECS member states.”
In an example of international assistance, India became the one of the first of the wealthy G-20 nations to donate COVID-19 vaccines to developing countries.
India’s shipment of vaccine arrived earlier this month, and the South Asian nation plans to address “a list of over 100 countries awaiting supplies.”
This March shipment from India follows a previous shipment recently received by Barbados and Dominica — “70,000 doses, a significant portion of which was shared with other OECS member states.”
Appreciative OECS officials thanked the “government and people of India, and in particular ... Prime Minister Narendra Modi, for their generosity and solidarity in donating these vaccines.”
Back in February, while developed, wealthy nations were busy vaccinating their populations, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres said 130 countries around the globe had not yet received a single dose of the vaccine.
Jules also praised the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank “for paying for the charter to get the vaccines where they needed to go” in the region.
‘God’s Way’ on stage
The free presentation of “God’s Way,” “an absorbing drama that examines everything from faith, fractured friendships and mother-daughter relationships to trust, resentment and crime and punishment,” starts streaming April 1 at 8 p.m., produced and presented by Queens-based Braata Productions.
The stage play will be streamed through April 15. The play can be seen at the Braata Productions website (braataproductions. org), the Caribbean One TV site (caribbeanonetv.com) and Irie Times (irietimestv. com).
Written by Dahlia Harris and directed by Keenan Charles, the play stars Marsha-Ann Hay, Tony-Ann Nelson, Shuha Henry and Jerry Benzwick.
The “God’s Way” streaming is free, but
Braata Productions — which produces folk, theater and education programs — is accepting donations. Donate by visiting Braataproductions.org/donate
For information on “God’s Way” or Braata, send email to braataproductions@gmail. com or call (917) 668-2209.
AfroPoP’s Carib flims
Season 13 is lucky for “AfroPoP: The Ultimate Cultural Exchange,” which returns with great documentary films with contemporary stories from the African disapora — including Caribbean-focused films “Elena” and “Bakosó: Afrobeats of Cuba.”
The WORLD Channel, with series co-executive producer Black Public Media, will debut the 2021 edition of AfroPoP starting April 5 at 8 p.m., on the WORLD channel and worldchannel.org.
Distributed and co-presented by American Public Television, this year’s film series covers “the men and women shaping the cultural innovations and social movements that drive our world forward” — in Africa, the U.S. and the Caribbean.
“Elena,” the first of the Caribbean-connected films, airs April 25 at 8 p.m. The film is the creation of director Michèle Stephenson — who has roots in Haiti and Panama — and it addresses “anti-Haitian and anti-Black sentiment” in the Dominican Republic.
“Bakosó: Afrobeats of Cuba” closes this season on May 3 with the Eli Jacobs-Fantuzzi-directed film exploring Santiago de Cuba, with music producer DJ Jigüe — looking at the city, its connections to Africa, the continent’s AfroBeats and the growing bakosó music style.
American Public Television will release the 2021 AfroPoP series on public television across the country on May 1 after its premiere on WORLD Channel.
Learn more about the full AfroPoP schedule at blackpublicmedia.org or worldchannel.org. And for local listings, visit APTonline.org.
‘Big Red’ Armbrister dies
Last week, baseball fans and Bahamians were mourning the death of Ed Armbrister — former member of the formidable Cincinnati Reds team known as the Big Red Machine, which won three National League pennants and two World Series championships.
Armbrister died last Wednesday at his home in the Bahamas. He was 72.
Born in Nassau, Bahamas, Armbrister was first signed by the Houston Astros as an amateur free agent before the start of the 1967 season. A few years later, he became a part of baseball history when Armbrister, Jack Billingham, Cesar Geronimo, Denis Menke and Joe Morgan were acquired from the Astros by the Reds — reinforcing the Big Red Machine, which dominated Major League Baseball from 1970 to 1979.