The Yaad

CMA: The Yaad’s primary focus is to serve and preserve the history, culture, and experience of Caribbean communities at Duke University. The word yaad is a Jamaican patois word that means "home". It can also represent a strong emotional connection to the island. The space works toward providing an inclusive environment for all students. This space was born to create opportunity for the Caribbean diaspora to connect in the Bryan University Center.

• The Caribbean diaspora is a large group of people of Caribbean descent who live outside of their home countries. It's a demographic with a one-to-one ratio of people living in their home countries to those living abroad.
• Caribbean identity is shaped by two diasporic events: the globalized sugar trade, which brought slaves and indentured laborers to the Caribbean, and the arrival of ancestors from Africa, Asia, and Europe.
• The United States is the top destination for Caribbean immigrants, followed by Canada, Spain, and Chile.