We Are Family. We Always Have Been.
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Return to Kindah preserves, protects, and shares the living heritage of the Accompong Maroons, connecting the diaspora back to the first free State.
Norma Rowe Edwards, founder
Our Story
In the hills of Cockpit Country, Jamaica, stands an ancient mango tree the Maroons call Kindah. Loosely translated, it means "we are family." It was beneath this tree that Cudjoe is said to have united his people during their fight for freedom, and near it that the 1739 peace treaty secured Accompong's sovereignty, making it one of the oldest free Black communities in the Western Hemisphere.
Return to Kindah takes its name and its purpose from that tree. We exist to keep the roots strong and to call the branches home.
We are a cultural heritage platform dedicated to the Accompong Maroon community: documenting its history, amplifying its voices, supporting its people, and building pathways for the diaspora to return, whether through a visit, a story, or an act of support.
What We Do
Preserve the Story
Maroon history lives in oral tradition, in Kromanti language and drumming, in the abeng horn, and in the memories of elders. We document and share this heritage through editorial storytelling, archival research, and educational content, so the record is written by the community rather than about it.
Amplify the Voice
We support Radio Abeng 88.7FM, Jamaica's only Maroon radio station, broadcasting from the heart of Accompong. Founded within the community and staffed by its own people, the station carries Maroon news, music, and oral history across the Cockpit Country and, through its reach, to the diaspora worldwide. Keeping it on the air is central to our mission.
Support the Community
Heritage cannot thrive where families struggle. When natural disaster strikes Accompong and surrounding districts, Return to Kindah mobilizes direct relief for affected households, because caring for the living community is the truest form of preservation.
Build the Return
Through the Heritage Experience Project, we are developing community-led cultural tourism in Accompong: authentic stays, guided experiences, and immersion in living Maroon tradition. Every visit keeps revenue in the village and puts the community in charge of how its story is told and shared.
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Why Kindah
The Kindah tree is more than a landmark. It is a covenant. It says that freedom was won together, that land is held in common, and that anyone of the lineage, near or far, has a place beneath its branches.
For the millions of descendants of the African diaspora searching for a thread back to their history, Accompong offers something rare: an unbroken line. A community that was never conquered, never sold, and never scattered. Return to Kindah exists so that line stays unbroken for generations to come.
Rooted in Community
Return to Kindah works hand in hand with the people of Accompong, guided by community leadership and elders, including the founding vision of author and former Deputy Colonel
Norma Rowe-Edwards, whose lifelong work documenting Maroon heritage and founding Radio Abeng anchors everything we do.
We believe the community's future should be decided under its own tree, by its own family. Our role is to resource that future.
Join the Family
Whether you trace your roots to the Cockpit Country, carry Maroon heritage in your name, or simply believe that free Black history deserves to be protected, there is a place for you here.
Ways to get involved:
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Donate to keep Radio Abeng on the air and power the Heritage Experience Project
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Plan a heritage visit to Accompong
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Read and share the stories on our blog
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Follow us and lend your voice to the diaspora conversation
Follow Our Facebook Page
Follow Our Journey of Impact and Inspiration @returntokindah