An ad-hoc coalition of cultural organisations have been working hand-in-hand for "Beyond Barriers'' since November.

And a major family evening and a Beyond Barriers conference have been set for early next month.

The family evening includes multi-cultural entertainment at Victoria Park on Monday, April 4, with acts including the Mandela Freedom Dancers, Gene Steede, the Portuguese Cultural Association dancers, the West Indian Association Folk Singers, the Philharmonic Choir, Lights of Guidance and His & Hers.

This represents a wide range of Bermuda's cultural groups and musician and writer Mr. Ron Lightbourne said: "We want people to interact at this event.

They should bring flashlights and be prepared to spend the evening singing.

"The event will also coincide with the 25th anniversary of the death of Dr.

Martin Luther King.'' It means the family evening can also help to honour the remarkable civil rights campaigner.

The conference consists of lectures and workshops over the weekend of April 8 and 9 at Bermuda College.

They are geared to solve the practical problems of subjects like expatriate/Bermudian dynamics, workplace productivity, activating human rights and living multiculturism.

Anti-Apartheid Group official Ms Arlene Brock said: "We want all businesses to send at least one person from their human resources department to the college to look at this.'' A number of speakers are being flown into Bermuda including Archbishop Brian Scott who was one of the "eminent persons group in South Africa'' during the 1960's.

Beyond Barriers received its initial backing from the World Council of Churches but has since received major contributions from the Bank of Bermuda, American Airlines and a number of the hotels on the Island.

Since November weekly meetings have stretched to two and a half hours, and the fund-raising efforts has seen them only a couple of thousand dollars short of their target figure.

Organisations involved so far include the Admiralty House Community Centre, the Anti-Apartheid Group, Bermuda College, the Bermuda Professional Women's Association, the Coalition for the Protection of Children, Club Resppectt, N.A.R., 100 Black Men, the Physically Handicapped Association, the Portuguese-Bermudian Organisation, the Seniors' Learning Centre, Unity and the Women's Resource Centre.

Bermuda National Gallery chairman Mr. Dennis Sherwin said: "We want to make people aware of the many barriers that we still have to break.

"This group is unusual in that we have so many groups coming together and wanting to work together.

"It is a coalition and it is strange because we have never had a chairman, everyone is quite happy to get their tasks at the end of each meeting.''