Site hosted by Angelfire.com: Build your free website today!

What is Griot Research?


Griot Index

Mission statement and philosophy

Index of Research Documents

Contact us

What's Griot Research?


Other Caribbean Research Sites

Society for Caribbean Research

National Library of Jamaica

Statistical Institute of Jamaica

The History of the Caribbean, World History Archives

Griot Research is an idea that came to a Guitarist in Jamaica by the name of Seretse Small. Seretse's experience had taken him from the stage to the classroom. From the Church to the innercity. He travelled all over the island seeking to help others be more effective musicians, worshippers and simply better people. He encountered several difficulties, one of which was the ingrained perception that people had of themselves as being inferior. The lack of self confidence that seemed to come from an uninformed sense of who we are as a people.

He encountered the book, "Goodness and Mercy", which chronicles the history of the Browns Town Baptist church in Jamaica. He was amazed that all the years he had been around he had never heard of the story of James Finlayson . A slave who was a tower of strength for generations of slaves and freed men, the first deacon and Spriritual Father and Mother of the Brown Town Baptist Church. This man faced persecution and the possibility of death and yet never lifted a finger against a soul. Yet, he played a role in us gaining emancipation and the institution that was born out of his faith and pain has survived to this day, providing strength and refuge to all around.

He began to grow in the conviction that these stories needed to be told so that we could properly shape our sense of identity. It was important for us to know that we are capable of more than mere rebellion to solve our problems. We had a history that encompassed far more than violent revolt.

So this guitarist and Music Educator set out to Browns Town with Nabbi Natural , a poet and multimedia artiste, and Carl Davis, an actor, Musician and Teacher, to discover what they could about James Finlayson and the treasures that were hidden in the stories of Browns Town. Thus Griot Research was born.

The Griot Research Website is the library of Seretse's efforts. Being a full time musican and a teacher at a Community College does not give him a lot of time for research but he posts on the web what he can and keeps seeking others to join him in his pursuit to discover his home ; the Caribbean.