Readings by Garfield Ellis, Ian Jacko Jackson, Clarissa Walker, Doodnauth Singh, Allison Birch, Michael Pintard, and Andrea Shaw (1994)

At Florida International University, Vicki Silvera, Department Head of FIU Library's Special Collections and University Archives, welcomes the CWSI participants. Mervyn Solomon introduces the night's readings and calls attention to those participants who have published works since attending the Institute. Jamaican writer Garfield Ellis reads an excerpt from a work in progress, in which a teenager works with his father on their stony farm but dreams of making a better life for himself. Dominican poet Ian Jackson reads his poetry and performance pieces: "Marooned" (after a friend committed suicide), "Bout This, Bout That" (a poem about the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States), "Me No Know," "Mixture of Love," "The University," and "Tuesday Morning." Clarissa Walker reads "Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans?" Guyanese poet Doodnauth Singh reads "No Compromise," "Mama Cooked Fowl," "Blood Banner," "Bicycle Brakes," "A Day," "Balbodin [?]," and "Advance." Allison Birch reads her short story "Sweetness." In it, the little girl Linda is fascinated by a simple man, Sugar, notorious for his profanity in the village. She gets in trouble when she uses a swear-word to her grandmother. Linda becomes more curious about Sugar and climbs a tree to look into his shack with her binoculars, but falls asleep in the branches, and winds up in even more trouble. Bahamian dub poet, playwright, and motivational speaker Michael Pintard reads a Mervyn Morris poem. He then reads "A Poet's Responsibilities," "Beyond the Rage" (about the Los Angeles uprisings), "Life After the Dance," "Periodic," and "Can We Discuss My Condition?" University of Miami English Department research assistant Andrea Shaw reads "The Strength of Anthuriums," about a girl growing up in Jamaica and learning that her emigrant mother is returning.