Beyond the First Salute: Telling all of Statia’s Stories
Dear Editor,
The Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie reminds us of the importance of talking about all the stories of a place, not just one. So let me take you back to November 16th, 1776, in St. Eustatius, affectionately called Statia. In the Lower Town, we can envision trade in goods and people conducted by merchants from the United States, the Netherlands, and France. It was not the merchants themselves who transported the goods from Lower town to Upper town. It was the African Ancestors.
For the merchants, November 16th, 1776, was just another day to make money; for the ancestors who worked on one of the seventy-six plantations, it was a day of forced labor, the collective planning of the next act of rebellion, and the practicing of African traditions, in secret.
While all of this was going on, the US merchant ship, Andrew Doria, entering the harbor, fired gun salutes as was customary. Johannes de Graaff, Governor of Statia at the time, gave the order to his men to reply with a gun salute. This act from that moment forward was framed as “Statia being the first to formally recognize the United States as a sovereign nation.”
From one ‘random act’ on November 16th, 1776, Statia Day was born. Unfortunately, for many years, the first salute was the dominant story highlighted during the Statia Day celebrations. However, in a bold act of rebellion, Statians changed the narrative to a day when statian cuisine, music, and community fellowship were celebrated.
In 2018, Dutch Members of Parliament Ronald van Raak and Andre Bosman submitted a motion to the Second Chamber requesting a joint celebration with the USA to mark the 250th anniversary of the First Salute. The motion was accepted. Now plans are in full swing for November 16th, 2026. While framed as a proud and historical milestone, the upcoming event once again centers Statia’s importance primarily in relation to the birth of the United States of America. Absent from this framing is the acknowledgement of lives, work, resistance, and humanity of our ancestors who lived under terrible conditions.
If Statia is marketed and remembered through only one dominant story, repeated and endlessly—then Statia becomes equal to a single story once again. A story that glorifies gun salutes over human suffering, freedom of a nation over enslavement of a people.
As Statians, we have a sacred duty to resist that exclusion. We must tell the many stories of Statia: stories of forced labor and quiet rebellion, of African traditions practiced in secret, of endurance, creativity, and the continuation of community despite oppression. We must tell these stories in which we are the heroes and heroines.
When we tell our children stories in which our ancestors are visible, dignified, and heroic, we reclaim our humanity from a past that sought to erase it. In telling all our stories, we ensure that Statia is not remembered for a single salute to the American flag, but for the people who built, sustained, and brought new meaning to the island.
Xiomara Balentina
