Guyanese celebrate Indian Arrival Day in New York

TIMES INT'L

 

By Vishnu Bisram

 

GOPIO President Ashook Ramsaran; NYC Councilman Erich Urich; Veda Jamoona, office of NYC Comptroller John Liu; Naidoo Veerapen, Co-Chair of GOPIO Cultural Council at Indian Arrival celebration.

Indian Arrival was celebrated in Queens, New York, by the Global Organization of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) Upper New York Chapter last Saturday with a banquet dinner and cultural presentation.

The organization is comprised of mostly Guyanese. The Indian Arrival celebration coincided with the organization’s 4th anniversary. There were some 250 people in attendance at the gala affair held at the posh World’s Fair Marina Restaurant & Banquet Hall in Flushing, New York.

The program was moderated by Satruhan Sukdeo, President of GOPIO Upper New York Chapter, and a former executive staff of Guysuco. Guests included officials of GOPIO branches and Ashook Ramsaran who is the current president of GOPIO International.

The feature speaker was Guyanese-born professor, author and television host Paul Tennassee who spoke on Indian arrival as indentured labourers in the then British Guiana between 1838 and 1920.

Prominent journalist and community advocate Dr Gary Girdhari read sections of two of his poems, and GOPIO Upper New York treasurer Tony Roopnarain provided some lighter moments with Guyanese anecdotes.

Ashook Ramsaran conveyed greetings from GOPIO International and commended GOPIO Upper New York chapter for being a very active and vibrant addressing its community’s needs and interests. Former GOPIO International president Dr Thomas Abraham recounted GOPIO’s engagement with Guyanese and Caribbean PIOs.

Several US officials attended the event. New York City Comptroller John Liu presented congratulatory proclamations. New York State Assemblywoman and candidate for Congress Grace Meng made remarks on the contributions of South Asians (including Indo-Caribbean people to life in New York. Rcihmond Hill City Council Rep. and Minority Whip Erich Urich also lauded the contributions of Indo-Guyanese and Indo-Caribbean people to the city.

Related posts

Comments are closed.