The Cabo Verdean Heritage Month Coalition

The 11th Island Film and Arts Festival is a festival by, for, and about Cabo Verdeans in the U.S. diaspora community, particularly the New England area, which is considered an "11th island" in addition to the 10 islands of Cabo Verde because of its historic and contemporary ties to the archipelago nation. This festival, which is led by three Southcoast-based Cabo Verdean visionaries -vocalist-scholar-songwriter Cândida Rose Baptista, storyteller-healer-artist Iva Brito, and spoken word and mixed-media creative Maia Livramento -- is also rooted in the ongoing work of New Bedford's Cabo Verdean Heritage Month Coalition, through which we will build collaborative capacity and grassroots support throughout 2026, beginning with smaller community events and culminating in a multidisciplinary arts festival in July of 2027. We center three core themes, which each correspond to a film produced or starring a Cabo Verdean from New England: musical transnationalism, military service, and the history of Cabo Verdean neighborhoods in places like New Bedford. Each film will be screened at a venue significant to local Cabo Verdean history, and will be accompanied by thematic activities throughout the Festival's week, including musical performances, artistic showcases, and workshops which aim to transmit memory, arts skills and cultural knowledge across generations. 

www.creativeground.org/profile/golden-rose-musiccandida-rose

www.explorenewbedford.org/special-events/cabo-verdean-heritage-month