FEATURE
HONOURING THE INVENTOR OF SOCA RAS SHORTY I WORDS | ANNEL BEAUSOLEIL
12 SN AUG 2022
M
ulti-talented musician Garfield Blackman, better known as Ras Shorty I, was commemorated in a ceremony in San Fernando, Trinidad, on Thursday 28 July. The ceremony was to rename Short Street, that connects High Street with Pointe-a-Pierre Road, as Ras Shorty I Street. Mayor of the city of San Fernando, Junia Regrello, along with the children and extended family of the music legend, gathered at the street corner to witness the unveiling of the new sign. Derron Attz of the Torrance Mohammed Foundation, who chaired the unveiling ceremony, explained that the foundation has a mission to expand knowledge, understanding and appreciation of arts and culture, and as such had determined that Ras Shorty I should be recognised, albeit 22 years after his passing. Crediting Attz for the sign, the musician’s eldest daughter, Abbi