Baptists celebrate at T&T's consulate in NY

Hundreds turned out Friday in New York at the Trinidad and Tobago Consulate in downtown Manhattan to mark Spiritual/Shouter Baptist Liberation Day. 

The faithful wore white, red and blue as they joined in a collection of familiar church renditions.

Consul General Rudrawatee Nan Ramgoolam praised the tenacity, dedication and will of “a people who have passed the test of fire and brimstone.” She trace the community's history and the discriminatory laws that brought on hate and physical abuse to Baptists.

“We salute you, our Baptist brethren,” she said, referring to the faith as the only indigenous religion of Trinidad and Tobago.

She praised former political leader of the United National Congress (UNC) Basdeo Panday for “restoring the dignity of Spiritual Baptists with the stroke of a pen.” It was Panday who declared the Spiritual Shouter Baptist Liberation Day holiday in 1996. 

“It was the government of the United National Congress, which is now part of our current government, that recognised the trials and challenges of this important group of nationals and granted them a national holiday,” said Ramgoolam.

She praised the current People’s Partnership for the continuity.

“I urge you to go brave, preach your gospel,” she said, “so that your message will help nurture productive citizens who respect the beliefs and rights of others and will contribute positively to the development of your respective homelands, the United States of America and Trinidad and Tobago.”

The Trinidad & Tobago consulate in Toronto also hosted an event to mark the holiday. It's celebration was on a much smaller scale.