Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Adventurer]

Tourists seek out black culture along the S.C. coast
POSTED: 1455 GMT (2255 HKT), April 30, 2007
Adjust font size:
CHARLESTON, South Carolina (AP) -- For decades here, there was little mention of the rich culture of the descendants of black slaves, many of whom lived as farmers and fisherfolk on the nearby sea islands.

Euphemisms used by whites helped obscure their history. The Civil War was sometimes referred to as "the recent unpleasantness." Slaves became servants; slave quarters became carriage houses.

Despite the rewriting of reality and lack of recognition from outsiders, the culture of West African slaves was nourished by their descendants. The isolation of the sea islands where they lived helped keep their language, arts and traditions largely intact.

But now this culture known as Gullah in the Carolinas and Geechee in Florida and Georgia is being noticed and sought out by others. Government officials and cultural institutions are taking measures to preserve and promote the uniqueness of Gullah culture.

And bus tours, restaurants, museums and galleries are attracting a growing number of tourists searching for the full history of the region.

"It's like the hidden secret that no one ever talked about," said Alphonso Brown, who grew up Gullah on a farm without running water and now runs Gullah Tours. "Of course if there is something that is hidden and then revealed, everyone is talking about it."

Gullah communities were established on the sea islands by freed slaves after the Civil War. Most made their living fishing or farming fields of vegetables and row crops.

http://edition.cnn.com/2007/TRAVEL/DESTINATIONS/04/30/gullah.tourism.ap/index.html