Viewpoints: Thirty six years ago the British government granted our nation Belize its independence on Sept. 21, 1981 with the Guatemalan claim to our country unresolved. Britain’s Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was determine to rid her people and government from all its colonial territories. She saw them as a burden to the people and government of Great Britain. Ignoring the exploitation their country was engaged for centuries in all these colonies including ours prior to their independence. Comment

Health: The Washington, D.C.-based Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) says that the Region of the Americas, including the Caribbean, has eliminated maternal and neonatal tetanus (MNT), a disease that was responsible for the deaths of more than 10,000 newborns every year in the Americas. Comment

Movies: Kingsman: The Secret Service was a surprise hit which probably wouldn’t have been released in the dead of winter of 2015, if Fox had realized exactly what it had on its hands. After all, most movie studios see the season as a dumping ground for pictures with low expectations, given the attention paid Oscar hopefuls, the risk of bad weather hurting attendance, and that many folks have less discretionary income due to Christmas season spending. Comment

Environment: The Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) says it is backing calls by Caribbean leaders for the international community to keep the devastating impact of climate change on the global development agenda. Comment

New York: With the devastation caused by a series of hurricanes in the Caribbean, New York City is lending a helping hand to the victims of Hurricane Maria. Comment

St Vincent: The Brooklyn-based St. Vincent and the Grenadines Diaspora Committee of New York, Inc. Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017 honored veteran Vincentian broadcaster and journalist Don Bobb with its Lifetime Achievement Award. Comment

Environment: Reports say Caribbean cruise lines are sending ships and cash to aid Caribbean countries in their recovery efforts in the wake of the passage of Hurricane Irma. Comment

Antigua: Antigua, whose sister isle, Barbuda, was devastated by Hurricane Irma, his pledged its support for Dominica which was ravaged by Hurricane Maria during the early hours on Tuesday. Comment

Guyana: In his address to the 72nd United Nations General Assembly, David A. Granger, president of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, called for peace in the world. Comment

Queens: A festive worship like no other! Hundreds of parishioners came out for International Homecoming day — a festive celebration of the multi-ethnic cultures at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Rosedale on Sept. 16. In honor of the place of worship’s 110th anniversary year, the day was a chance for residents to learn about the church’s history, and the people of its diverse parish, said one organizer. Comment

Dominica: Dominica’s embattled government Wednesday threw out a region and worldwide appeal for help after Category Five Hurricane Maria pulverized the Caribbean trade bloc nation that is wedged between the French dependencies of Guadeloupe and Martinique, killing six people and setting the country back by millions, two years to the month when Hurricane Erica had also battered the island of 72,000. Comments (1)

Environment: Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres voiced his sadness at the destruction caused across the Caribbean region by Hurricane Maria stating “where many islands are already working to respond to the devastation and suffering arising from Hurricane Irma earlier this month.” Comment

Arts & Theater: The images in the expansive gallery just behind BRIC’s lobby performance space pays tribute to its home borough with the exhibition “Brooklyn Photographs” by 11 photographers. Comment

Brooklyn: The mode of gentrification has gradually taken grounds in Brooklyn. These undergoing changes in the Borough have left Bedford-Stuyvesant as a community raising against its own. A neighborhood with a longstanding history of great Black arts and culture and sturdy, beautifully carved brownstones homes any potential buyer would line up to purchase, but in the midst of the waving change there are many that are left far behind. Comment

Brooklyn: Visiting the Caribbean is about to get a lot easier. Local pols will designate the city’s first-ever “Little Caribbean” district on Sept. 28, officially commemorating parts of Prospect-Lefferts Gardens and Flatbush for their robust community of immigrants from the region. The recognition will ensure the fast-gentrifying neighborhoods retain their Caribbean history and identity, according to the woman who spearheaded the naming initiative. Comment

Movies: Haitian-American filmmaker Francesca Andre is an up and coming creator highlighting important subjects that affects various communities. Comment

Music: Taking a greener approach to music. British reggae musician Macka B’s forthcoming album “Health is Wealth,” is slated to come out next week on Sept. 29. The veteran artist’s new project will include his widely popular and viral internet song “Cucumba” — a funny pro-green tune that gained him new audiences worldwide. The artist says he always wanted to advocate healthy-eating in music to raise more consciousness. Comment

Sports: West Indies beat England in their one-off Twenty20 by 21 runs at Chester-le-Street, Durham, England last week-end. Comment

Trinidad and Tobago: Trinbago Knight Riders (KKR) defeated the St. Kitts and Nevis Patriots in the finals of the 2017 Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) to claim the title before a 15,000-strong partisan crowd at the newly opened Brian Lara Cricket Academy in South Trinidad on Saturday, Sept. 10, 2017. Comment

Sports: West Indies fast bowler Kemar Roach has joined a distinguished list of bowlers with five-wicket hauls at historic Lord’s Cricket Ground, England recently. Comment

Sports: West Indies batting legend Brian Lara has said that disharmony between the Cricket West Indies Board (CWI) and its players are the one cancer that has affected and destroyed West Indies cricket over the last 25 years. Comment

Environment: Jost Van Dyke, a little island in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) that draws boats from all around the globe to its powdery beaches and ebullient bar scene, has been “knocked down, but not knocked out” by the recent passage of Hurriance Irma, according to reports. Comment

Haiti: A half dozen United States Democratic lawmakers have met with Haiti’s ambassador to the United States in what has been described as an intimate dinner to craft a new strategy aimed at convincing the Trump administration to extend the Temporary Protected Program (TPS) set to expire in January 2018 that allows thousands of Haitians to work and live in the United States. Comment

Guyana: US oil giant ExxonMobil and Guyanese authorities this week started two days of talks to determine whether it is feasible to run a 100 mile plus undersea pipeline bringing natural gas from its offshore wells to generate power for the Guyana Power and Light Corporation, the main state utility. Comment

Brooklyn: Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams on Monday announced the winner of his $1 million Smart Gun Design Competition, awarding the capital grant prize to New York University Tandon School of Engineering (NYU Tandon) on behalf of its student team Autonomous Ballistics. Comment

National: In continuing its draconian immigration policies, the Donald J. Trump’s administration in the United States is giving immigration and consular officials new grounds to deny entry to visitors from the Caribbean and other places or to deport them if they are already in the United States. Comment

Barbados: A report on living conditions in Barbados might have given the current administration a failing grade as it showed more people falling into the poverty band during seven of the nine years that the government has been in office. Comment

Barbados: Barbadians fondly claim ‘God is a Bajan’ because the island usually escapes hurricanes with just rain and wind brushes, and this might be a godsend because recent events continue to expose it as unprepared for a major hit. Comment

Trinidad and Tobago: The United States’ final game in regional World Cup qualifying against Trinidad and Tobago will be played at 10,000-seat Ato Boldon Stadium in Couva rather than 27,000-capacity Hasely Crawford Stadium in the capital of Port-of-Spain. Comment

New Jersey: The bootleggers be gone. A New Jersey-based cosmetologist is promoting healthy living with her skincare awareness. NBI All Natural is a one-stop shop for all skin and hair needs, created by Susan Strachan. The Jamaican-born natural lifestyle enthusiast started her company in 2013 seeking an alternative solution to the oversaturation of topical remedies with unnatural ingredients, she said. Comment

Brooklyn: Kingsbrook Medical Center, The New York State Alumni Association, New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services, and the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene as well as community providers of addiction and mental health services will present the third Annual Recovery Month Health Fair to educate the community and persons who are in recovery to learn about the intersect of behavioral health and primary care. Comment

Trinidad and Tobago: Caribbean The Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance (CCRIF) will pay US$15.6 million to the governments of Antigua and Barbuda; Anguilla; and St. Kitts and Nevis for damage caused by hurricane Irma under tropical cyclone policies the islands hold with the facility. Comment

St Vincent: As Hurricane Maria bears down on the Caribbean for what is reported to be another damaging hurricane, some members of the CARICOM Consular Corps on Sunday, Sept. 17, mobilized the community to aid citizens devastated by Hurricane Irma in the Caribbean region, by collecting canned goods, clothing, baby diapers and toiletries, that will be shipped immediately through the Caribbean Disaster Relief Agency, said Consul General of Guyana to New York, Barbara Atherly. Comments (1)

People: Panamanians from both the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean regions of the isthmus are preparing for the 114th anniversary of their separation from Colombia with a commemorative festivity of the Nov. 3, 1903 independence by hosting a flag-raising ceremony, parade and festival. Comment

Grenada: The Royal Grenada Police Force (RGPF) is hoping that a recent donation of policing equipment by Grenadian officers in the New York City Police Department (NYPD) will be a starting point in forging closer ties with Grenadian law enforcement officers in the Diaspora. Comment

Africa: Viwanou Gnassounou is ACP assistant secretary general for Sustainable Economic Development & Trade BRUXELLES, Sept. 13, 2017 (IPS) - Fish is big business. The latest figures show that more than 165 million tonnes of fish are either captured or harvested in a year, with each person consuming more than 20kg of fish annually, according to the world average. Roughly US$140 billion worth of fish is traded globally per annum, with millions of people relying on jobs in fishing and fish-farming, not to mention the seafood industry which involves processing, transport, retail and restaurants. Comment

Brooklyn: It’s a slam dunk app! A pair of Brooklyn brothers have created a platform that collects and archives basketball statistics for the sport’s data enthusiasts. East Flatbush siblings and basketball players, Nigel and Vaughn Caldon, innovated the idea for Ballstar — an online medium that documents all basketball figures from the NBA to even local school teams. Inspiration for the application spawned from conversions the two would hear at sidecourt neighborhood games, said Nigel Caldon. Comment

Food: A group of foodies gathered around Food Network’s Chopped Champion, Chef Andre Fowles, as he showed off his cuisine skills during a demonstration on how to prepare three dishes with sauces from Grace Foods, during a recent exclusive tasting event at the Midtown Manhattan offices of Finn Partners. Comment

Movies: “Man in Red Bandana” Comment