THIS EVERYDAY LIFE

GULLAH FESTIVAL/HILTON HEAD SC Sitting around the house on Saturday and decided to visit Hilton Head. Received notice that the annual Gullah Celebration was in progress and would continue to be so until the end of the month. Didn’t know the format for this year but in years past it was a month of celebrating the Gullah heritage. Well on the way I couldn’t help but visualize the present development on the Island as compared to its existence when I was growing up. When I was a kid Hilton Head’s beaches were always a draw even for kids (like me) that lived almost a two hour drive away (pre-I/95). Now its almost a shuttle drive from Hinesville. Believe me in the late 50s the Island in no way resembled the Island of today. One of the most astounding things is the quickness of turnaround of the Island’s racial composition. Hilton Head at one time was overwhelmingly African American with a few whites scattered among its population. This was attributed to lack of development and of course slavery. During its halcyon days as a rice growing area, the vast majority of people inhabiting the Island were African slaves. As a matter of fact the population of Africans outnumbered whites by a ratio of 5 to 1. In this respect the Island was not unique. The same stats existed throughout SC and elsewhere in the South. As a matter of fact through abolitionists’ efforts and just good common sense in the South, the importation of slaves into the United States was prohibited in 1808. This did not stop slavery but it did create a new type of slave industry—the domestic slave business. Though this type enterprise flourished, it never reached the level of slave importation. As a matter of fact some time earlier the British outlawed the slave trade and being the British, vigorously policed the seas to thwart any slave ships from reaching port. If the British spotted a ship carrying slaves, the common practice of the slave ship crew was to throw the contraband (captured Africans) overboard. If the ship decided to flee common practice for the British was to sink the slave ship, crew and captures. I guess that says a lot regarding the British's abhorrence for the slave trade. In this country penalties for persons caught participating in the import business were relatively light. Penalties consisted of a $300 fine per captured slave plus lost of the entire cargo. As time went on and under tremendous pressure from abolitionists the penalties became stiffer. Not only did the ship owners suffered a lost of cargo, but they and the crew were charged with piracy, a violation that carried the death penalty for all those involved. Slavery continued but the slave numbers themselves somewhat decreased. Getting back to Hilton Head. Slavery was not the only contributor to a small Caucasian population; Yellow fever and malaria were also culprits. Diseases that today are almost non-existent or controllable had no cure or viable treatment during those days. Obviously the people of African or African descent were for the most part immune to these illnesses. As a matter of fact there are scientist that argue they were originally brought here aboard the slave ships. But no matter the reason until recent times the population was predominantly African American. African American in the coastal areas of SC and Ga meant being Gullah in SC and Geechie in Georgia. The question has been raised about how these people came to develop a culture outside of the prevailing and predominant European culture. First off they were Africans and secondly because of the harshness of the climate and environment the plantation owners (educated and aware of their European roots) for the most part elected to live on the mainland with few visitations to their Island holdings. Usually the day-to-day operations were left in the hands of overseers (uneducated and knew as little about their origins as the slaves) or in some cases trusted slaves. Therefore there was more than ample opportunity for a culture and dialect to develop that was just as much African as European. On this eventful visit, I was bombarded by the exquisite Gullah crafts-basket weaving (internationally renowned and sought after), jewelry making, food, music, African dance, and most of all art. Local artist, some of whom have pretty notable reputations and followers, did the entire collection of paintings, sculptures and other art pieces. It was definitely a day to remember.