Changa Hickinson
(Aruba, 1957) is one of St. Martin’s better-known poets who writes with notable dedication. He has lived in Trinidad and the Netherlands. In the 1980s he made St. Martin his home, and here first book, Illegal Truth (1991) was published under the name of Ras Changa. From the mid-1980s to the early 1990s, he became well known as a believer in RastaFari. His thunderous voice is heard often at various cultural events. Changa's work was recently published in an anthology of St. Martin writing. The multicultural aspect of the island is central to his work. More than 70 nations live on this Caribbean Island of which some part still ‘belongs’ to the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The original population has become a minority and this has some strange, downright colonial effects. Europeans, for example, can live on the island without immigration restrictions, but Caribbean migrants must apply for a visa.
Hickinson toured with Winternachten in Indonesia and the Netherlands Antilles, and performed at the festival in The Hague.
Past events
Downright performers: Surinam and St Maarten
Committed, activist poetry by Changa Hickinson of St.-Maarten and the Surinamese poet Sombra. Presented by Michiel van Kempen. English spoken.
