Long Live J'ouvert

Carnival’s roots and rituals take center stage in a new exhibition at HistoryMiami Museum.

Long Live J’ouvert is on view August 1 through October 12, presented in partnership with JouvayFest Collective, City Lore and TheSmartGroup Corp. The exhibition explores the origins of J’ouvert, the pre-dawn emancipation celebrations of 19th-century Trinidad and Tobago that evolved into a defining ritual of Caribbean Carnival.

Visitors will encounter the satirical characters, stick fighting traditions, steelpan rhythms and street processions that embody J’ouvert’s spirit of resistance and resilience. By tracing the festival’s past and its ongoing cultural resonance, the exhibition highlights how ancestral memory and communal pride continue to shape Carnival today.