In the heart of downtown Waterbury, the Afro Caribbean Cultural Center (ACCC) is alive with language, culture and memory. For the past five years, the center has been a central location in the city to celebrate the arts, cultural reclamation and activism.
The ACCC has served as a beacon for culture and community in Waterbury, but since the uptick in immigration raids across Connecticut, the ACCC has been facing a new challenge, said Alexa Encarnacion, the organization's treasurer.
“The fear is paralyzing for people here. Folks are afraid to go and look for any type of assistance even if it's free in the community,” Encarnacion said.
The center has also faced federal funding cuts to its diversity equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, endangering its continued presence in downtown Waterbury.
The center is fully BIPOC-led (Black, Indigenous and people of color), a fact which Encarnacion said allows the organization to better serve the needs of the community.
But the Board of the ACCC will not be backing down anytime soon. This challenge only proves the importance of the center to Connecticut residents.
“For us it goes deeper than just community advocacy and activism. This is our love language to our community and our family,” said Victoria Encarnacion, the center’s director of Restorative Justice and the Taíno Learning Community.
The center prioritizes the marriage of culture and activism. Volunteers run events spanning comedy nights to partnered distributions with Connecticut Foodshare.
Victoria Encarnacion said a key goal of the center is to channel Waterbury’s youth. One key initiative is the Cuyo Middle School Leadership Program.
“Like the song says, the children are our future, so what we found is we're trying to kind of navigate more towards that middle school group. That's kind of like the ideal time to catch them,” Victoria Encarnacion said.
Volunteers at the center teach kids about both the importance and career possibilities of the arts. Each year, they are taken to a play on Broadway and taught how to operate equipment at the Pa’Lante Theatre, located inside of the center.
These opportunities are crucial for kids who are developing their identities, Victoria Encarnacion said.
“There's kids that are getting lost in violence. So the idea is that we're giving them the opportunity to see that there's something other than just sports, because sports is always so heavily pushed on BIPOC kids.”
The ACCC will host several community events this summer including its Summer Solstice event on Saturday, June 21, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Platt Park in Waterbury. The event will feature a drumming circle, storytelling, and dance.
