Jonkonu, a Christmas Carnival
It is generally believed
that Carnival did not develop in those countries of the Western Hemisphere
which were colonized by the British and Dutch. This misconception is bred of
the confusion caused by the term “Carnival” itself, which declares the festival
to be of European Christian origin. Once we understand that the festival is
really the ultimate pan-African festival, we will not be led astray by the name
Carnival. We will see clearly that the festival known as Jonkonu is a legitimate
form of “Carnival,” for it involves masking, theatrics, processional dancing
through the streets or other public places to rhythmic music. Most importantly,
it involves the participation of people from all levels of society.
Jonkonu is celebrated at
Christmas time in countries such as Jamaica and the Bahamas, which were
colonized by the British. It is not generally known that the Jonkonu tradition
existed among Africans from the southern states of the United States. It
flourished in the period right after the Civil War. However, it was suppressed
by white supremacy, which was reinstalled with inhuman ferocity when the
effects of the Civil War wore off. As a consequence, young white men were the
only members of the society who were free to carry on the Jonkonu activities.
They did so, and they give their antics the name “cooning,” an expression which
came to mean “acting like an African.” Consequently, the term “coon” became a
disparaging term to refer to Africans in the United States. It is even more
offensive than “nigger.”
TO BE CONTINUED
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