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Garifuna Settlement Day in Nicaragua: The Legacy of Orinoco and the Sambola Family

Join host José Francisco Ávila for a special episode honoring Garifuna Settlement Day in Nicaragua. Celebrated every November 19th since its official recognition by Executive Decree in 2006, this is a story of enduring cultural roots and political achievement.

This week, we trace the incredible journey of the Garifuna people:

• The first documented arrivals in 1830 at Greytown (San Juan del Norte).
• The major settlement wave in the Pearl Lagoon basin, led by pioneers like Joseph and John Sambola, who founded communities including San Vicente and Orinoco—Nicaragua's "Garifuna Capital."

Plus, we highlight modern Garifuna leadership with a profile of Kensy Eloisa Sambola Solís, the great-great-granddaughter of Orinoco’s founder and current First Secretary of the Autonomous Regional Council of the Southern Caribbean.

Discover how the past and present connect to ensure the Power, Prosperity, and Progress of the Garifuna people in Nicaragua.

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• The Garifuna Experience in NYC 
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Books by José Francisco Ávila

• Pan-Garifuna Afro-Latino Power of Pride: My Quest for Racial, Ancestral, Ethnic and Cultural Identity
• Garífuna Ancestry: The DNA Quest to Decipher the Garifuna Distant Past