Editorial Board


Sidney Mejia, (CEO/Publisher) is a singer/songwriter and author. He holds a BS in Public Policy and Management and a MHA in Health Administration from the University of Southern California. He has released two recordings of Garifuna music. Sidney is the author of a play, “Life and Times of Chatoyer”and co-author with Professor Simeon Pillich of a songbook (both soon to be published).

Sidney is the founder of the Chatuye Conservatory of Garifuna Music. He teaches and lectures on Garifuna drumming, dancing, singing and songwriting. He plays Baba Chatuye on the black soap opera/webisode Ahshe.


Egbert Higinio, (Editor-in-Chief) lives in San Jose, California where he resides with wife Helen and daughter Cleo.  Higinio obtained his BA in Secondary Education, major English, from Belize University.  He is planning to pursue studies in Comparative Literature and Philosophy.

Higinio is a veteran high school English language and literature teacher who taught in Belize for over ten years.   In his community his experience comes from his cultural activism with youth groups and the indigenous cultural groups such as the National Garifuna Council.


Luther Castillo, M.D.


Heather Cunningham, Esq.Chief Executive Officer  (CEO) Belizean Society of Composers Authors & Publishers (BSCAP).BSCAP is committed to protecting the rights of copyright owners (e.g., authors, composers, artists, publishers, etc.) in the exploitation of their work, so that they can derive equitable remuneration for their creativity, which in turn will further establish the Arts as a competitive, vibrant and viable culture in Belize.

As Chief Executive Officer, Ms. Cunningham is primarily responsible for providing leadership to position BSCAP as a solid music collective management organization in Belize by developing (and implementing) a strategic plan to (i) advance BSCAP’s mission and objectives, (ii) maximize revenue, and (iii) foster steady and consistent growth.

Ms. Cunningham started in entertainment practicing as a transactional attorney focusing on entertainment and new media contracts, and expanded her professional practice to focus on the management of music publishing and master recording catalogues for established songwriters - such as Lee Hazlewood (These Boots Are Made for Walkin’), Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Harvey Fuqua (Sincerely) and Dance Hall Singjay Clifford Smith p/k/a Mr. Vegas (I Am Blessed) - whose catalogs generate annual revenue in excess of $1 million dollars.  

Ms. Cunningham received a Juris Doctor from Brooklyn Law School and a Bachelor of Science degree from South Carolina State University, is licensed to practice law in New Jersey and New York, and is a member of the Black Women in Entertainment Law Foundation (BWEL) and the Hudson Bergen Inn of Transactional Counsel.



Derrick Velasquez, Garifuna Language Editor


Robert Keith Collins, Ph.D., an anthropologist, is Assistant Professor of American Indian Studies at San Francisco State University. He holds a BA in Anthropology and a BA in Native American Studies from the University of California at Berkeley.  In 2002, Dr. Collins received his Ph.D. in Anthropology from the University of California, Los Angeles. Using a person-centered ethnographic approach, his research explores American Indian cultural changes and African and Native American interactions in North, Central, and South America.

The following are a few sample publication:

2009    What is a Black Indian? Misplaced Expectations and Lived Realities. In ‘African-Native American Lives in the Americas’. Washington, DC: National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian.

2006    Katimih o Sa Chata Kiyou? (Why Am I Not Choctaw?): Race in the Lived Experiences of Two Black Choctaw Mixed Bloods. In ‘Crossing Waters, Crossing Worlds’ Sharon P. Holland and Tiya Miles, eds. Duke University Press.

2005    When Playing Indian is a Misplaced Assumption: Evidence from Black Choctaw Lived Experiences. In ‘Race, Roots, and Relations: Native and African Americans’ Terry Strauss, ed. Albatross Press.


Beulah N. Stanley is an actor/model residing in San Francisco.She specializes in television and theater and has done voice-overs, industrials and print assignments. Beulah is a member of he Screen Actors Guild (SAG), American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA). Her film credits include: Pursuit of Happyness, Bicentennial Man, True Crime, Patch Adams, and The Rainmaker, among others.

She has done extensive work on television/radio: The Division, The Law & Henry Lee, It’s A Miracle, Nash Bridges, Look Project are among her credits. She served on the Garifuna Council of Northern California (GCNC).


Carlton Valentine


Toni Y. Odom's, (Founder, Restore Films) unique background in business, social work and communications has developed her skills and made her a noted speaker, journalist, activist and business owner. "My goal in life is to make my people aware of their traditional greatness by empowering them and promoting positive images of every facet of our lives." She is the author of the book, Sistahs N SistahHood and currently is the Producer of the webisode, Ahshe that is a project of her production company, Restore Films. She is a native of St. Louis, Missouri and is a graduate of Marquette University.


Michelle Goldwasser, PH.D., is a lecturer at the University of California, San Diego .  She received a doctorate degree in Folklore and Mythology from the University of California, Los Angeles.  Her research focuses on language, narrative and ritual in Caribbean contexts.  She has done extensive fieldwork in Trinidad and Tobago studying popular religion in colonial contexts.  Dr. Goldwasser has been working with the Garifuna community since 1996 studying Garifuna spirituality, Garifuna revitalization programs, and the Wanaragua.

Dr. Goldwasser’s publications include two articles published in Antropológica (Caracas) entitled Remembrances of the Warao: the Miraculous Statue of Siparia, Trinidad and Seeking the Ancestors: “Warou” Presence in Central America.


Enita Barrett, Contributing Editor


Wellington C. Ramos (Editor/Senior Writer Opinion page) graduated from the Police Academy and served in the Patrol Branch and the Criminal Investigation Branch (C.I.B.) in his native Belize. An avid soccer player and coach, he migrated to New York City in 1978. He was married to Sylvia Coffin-Ramos and Rose Arana-Ramos and is the father of Claudette Ramos-Mckoy, Darlene Ramos-Reese, Jarreen Ramos-Arzu, Trevor Ramos and Wasany Ramos and grandfather of six. Wellington is a graduate of New York City Technical College, Hunter College and Long Island Universities.

Currently, he is an Adjunct Professor of Political Science and History at Boricua College in New York City. Mr. Ramos is the Director of Public Relations for the United Garifuna Association Inc. at the Wabatou Garifuna Belizean Cultural Center in East New York Brooklyn New York City. He is also a columnist for Caribbean Net News,  the West Indian Newspaper, the Wabagari Post, The Star, the San Pedro Daily, the Vincentian and several other media outlets throughout Belize and the Caribbean. Mr. Ramos is committed to community activism, social justice and human development.




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