Caribbean Student Association

The Texas State Caribbean Student Association aims to generate and foster a sense of community through educational, cultural and social activities.

Food. Fun. Reggae. This motto translated to last week’s on-campus Inaugural West Indian Day Carnival, as it primarily does for events sponsored by the year-old Texas State Caribbean Student Association. But CSA Chapter President Ty-Amber Terry says she also wants to educate the university and San Marcos communities about the culture and geography of those islands that make up the Caribbean.

“So I thought that it would just be a really beautiful thing to bring to Texas State, especially a lot of people straight from the Caribbean who came here who can’t really celebrate that anymore because they’re here in school. So I feel like that would be a good reminder that hey, you know, were still, we still have our cultural here and I felt like it, I felt like it was a really good turn out.”
– Ty-Amber Terry

There are numerous islands that make up the broadly defined Caribbean region, each with their own unique history and culture, none of which have been influenced by Johnny Depp.

The CSA wanted to show the student body how diverse this region is by sponsoring the West Indian Day Carnival, says Terry, exercise and sports science senior.

“The beautiful thing about it is that I feel the Caribbean is so diverse itself; people really just don’t know until they do their research.”
– Ty-Amber Terry

The event was originally scheduled to take place last semester to coincide with Brooklyn’s West Indian Carnival, also called the Labor Day Carnival. Millions of people attend this annual celebration, which occurs the first Monday in September. Some participate in the festivities by dressing in elaborate costumes and marching in the parade, while others look on at parade representatives of some Caribbean islands like Jamaica and Haiti.

Terry, who has Bahamian ancestry and has plans to visit the Caribbean after graduation, says CSA hopes to continue this spirit of diversity with a panel on culture and ethnicity that is scheduled to take place next month. She says expected panelists include representatives from other on-campus student organizations who have missions similar to CSA.

Jordan Gass-Poore’, KTSW News