Queen Quet to Highlight African-American Heritage Month Events at UA

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Marquetta L. Goodwine, a historian and founder of the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition, will be giving a historic presentation at The University of Alabama on Feb. 10 as part of the activities set for African-American Heritage Month.

Goodwine is Queen Quet Chieftess of the Gullah/Geechee Nation.The Gullah/Geechee Nation is comprised of the descendants of once enslaved Africans who live in the Sea Islands off the coast of South Carolina and Georgia. She is also director of the Gullah/Geechee histo-musical presentation troupe De Gullah Cunneckshun. Her presentation will be at 7 p.m. in the Ferguson Theater.

She has provided histo-musical presentations throughout the world, and was also the first Gullah/Geechee person to speak to the United Nations on behalf of the Gullah/Geechee people. She was elected to be the first queen mother of and official spokesperson for the Gullah/Geechee Nation.

“I learned the art of transmitting stories and folklore from the elders of my family as I grew up on St. Helena Island in Beaufort, S.C. At the time that I was learning these stories and would relay them to others, I did not realize that I was being ‘taught’ anything. The stories and the spirituals that are the center points of survival in my community came to me naturally as did the movements as I began to choreograph my own dances without an instructor of any kind,” Goodwine said.

Goodwine is a published author, computer scientist, lecturer, mathematician, historian, columnist, preservationist and artist. She has written a Gullah anthology, “The Legacy of the Landing: Gullah Roots of African-American Culture,” and she is a contributing writer to “The Historical Encyclopedia of World Slavery.”

Queen Quet works daily throughout the Lowcountry Sea Islands from North Carolina down to Amelia Island, Fla. to make the public aware of her people and the need for continuation of their traditions. She is one of the founders and chancellor of the International University of the Gullah/Geechee Nation.

Her writings on the history of her people have received various awards and are being used in educational facilities across the country. Goodwine has been awarded the Harriet Tubman Women of Distinction Award and the BeautySpirit Award for being the embodiment of Harriet Tubman’s spirit. Queen Quet continues to be called upon to sit on numerous local, national and international boards, and to consult on and appear in films including Mel Gibson’s “The Patriot.”

Queen Quet’s presentation at UA is sponsored by Student Affairs Outreach.

For a complete listing of African-American Heritage Month events at UA go to the Web site http://www.sa.ua.edu/dos/aahm.htm