page_title: Myrtle Palacio
section_title: Garifuna Activism
hierarchical_section_title: Myrtle Palacio / Garifuna Activism
caption_attribution_description: English: Traditional Garifuna dancers in Dangriga, Belize
context_page_description: Iris Myrtle Palaciao OBE is an educator and social planner from Belize. She is an advocate for Garifuna culture, and good governance in the public sector.
context_section_description: Palacio is an outspoken advocate for Garifuna culture, writing some of the first books on the subject and speaking widely about her Garifuna identity. She is an expert on the history of the Garifuna - particularly how the population and culture evolved in Belize. One aspect she has written about is the how differently Garifuna and Creole populations were treated by the British colonisers: the Creole were less "stubborn" and so were given more official appointments, which led to them having significantly more political and economic power. She has written about Garifuna emigration to the USA.
  In her book Adügürahani, Palacio is the first person to write a description of the Dugu Ceremony and its nine rituals, which are highly important to Garifuna spiritual life. The Primer aimed to explain Garifuna culture to all, but with a particular focus on children's education.
caption: Garifuna dancers in Dangriga, Belize
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