Amistad History Made New on Long Wharf
Arts Council Greater New Haven | July 29, 2024

Article and Photos by Kamini Purushothaman

Rhythmic drum beats echoed through the salty air, notes ebbing and flowing just like the gentle waves beneath. While some attendees danced, hummed, and played along to Michael Mills’ and his bandmates’ vibrant music, others explored a life-sized replica of La Amistad and asked Discovering Amistad employees questions about its creation. 

Last Saturday, Mills and members of Rhythms of the Heart took the stage—or rather, the ship—at New Haven’s Long Wharf, playing drums, clarinets, and tambourines on a model of the Amistad, the 19th-century schooner that became the site of a slave rebellion and ensuing trial in New Haven. The performance, completed atop the Amistad Freedom Schooner, joined a weekend of activities celebrating and sharing the history of the Amistad in New Haven. 

The display coincides with the exhibition Amistad: Retold, which was installed at the New Haven Museum earlier this year. It was a collaboration among the New Haven Museum, Discovering Amistad, and Gilder Lehrman Center for the Study of Slavery, Resistance, and Abolition at Yale.

“Welcome, welcome,” said Mills as guests began approaching the ship. 

Joined by bandmates Paul McGuire, Brian Jarawa Gray, and Bill Fischer, Mills described the band as a “drum and music group exploring rhythms from many different cultures on a migratory journey, breaking barriers and bridging cultures.”

On Saturday, the band attempted to do just that with a rhythmic backdrop that complemented the exhibition and honored the story of the Amistad.

The walk up to Long Wharf’s dock featured posters recounting the history of the Amistad, which in 1839 saw a rebellion by enslaved West Africans led by Joseph Cinqué en route from Havana to Camagüey, Cuba. Cinqué and his allies then enlisted Spanish navigators to sail back to Africa, only for the Spanish to secretly direct the ship north during the nighttime. 

The Amistad was captured by the U.S. Navy off Long Island, leading to charges of piracy and murder. The Amistad case was first tried here in New Haven at the U.S. District Court for Connecticut, and a defense by abolitionists led to a successful Supreme Court appeal. Finding success, the Africans returned to Sierra Leone in 1842. The country’s capital, Freetown, is now one of New Haven’s sister cities. 

The model ship was created by Amistad America Inc., the Connecticut Afro-American Historical Society, the Amistad Committee and the team at Mystic Seaport from 1998 to 2000. Organizations chose Mystic seaport  because of its diverse shipyard staff, which included shipwrights, riggers, carpenters, ship keepers, researchers, ship smiths, and a naval architect. 

In 2015, Discovering Amistad Inc. purchased the ship after Amistad America Inc. was liquidated.

Aboard the ship on Saturday, Discovering Amistad educator Heidi Holmes sold T-shirts raising funds for the nonprofit while her colleagues chatted with attendees. Holmes said the famous schooner was recreated “from three sources:” a painting of the Amistad, the original ship’s registration at the Rhode Island DMV, and other knowledge about Baltimore clippers—the type of ship the Amistad was.

According to one of the educational posters, the model would “ply the nation’s waterways as an educational ambassador, teaching lessons of cooperation and leadership to Americans of all ages, interests and backgrounds.”

That vision came to fruition during Saturday's performance, when attendees of all different backgrounds came together to celebrate this piece of New Haven’s history and its lasting legacy.

Mills said his ensemble has partnered with the Amistad project since its genesis in 2000 upon the model’s completion, noting that the band played for its “Homeport” celebration. That celebration included Bill Pickney, the first Black American to sail solo around the world via the southern capes. Mills highlighted that event, recounting how Pickney engaged with “folks from Sierra Leone to celebrate freedom.”

One of the posters on display included Pickney’s sentiments about the model ship. It read: “The souls of those who used Amistad to strike out for their freedom will be the masters and the guiding force for her mission: To tell the story of human rights struggles, old and new.”

Mills emphasized the ongoing connection between his ensemble and the Amistad project, underscoring his commitment to building bridges between communities.

Throughout Saturday’s performance, he invited guests to dance and sing along. He passed instruments out to onlookers and led vocables before instructing the audience to repeat after him.

“Everybody!” he exclaimed at one point during the performance, gesturing with his hands to clap. Everyone on board eagerly obliged, and soon the band’s infectious drum beats were accompanied by many clapping hands. 

A little girl shook Cabasas—a percussion instrument made of a wooden cylinder covered with metal beads, while her father played the tambourine. One woman remained with the band for longer than the rest, playing various instruments with ease and while she enjoyed the group’s performance.

The lively atmosphere exemplified both Discovering Amistad and “Rhythms from the Heart’s” shared commitment to creating a diverse space to bring together, educate, and uplift the community.

“Our purpose,” said Mills, “is to engage and touch the hearts of people from around the world.”

Source: https://www.newhavenarts.org/arts-paper/articles/amistad-history-made-new-on-long-wharf