International Day of Commemoration in Memory of the Victims of the Holocaust
By: Marsha M. Hall “Sometimes we must interfere. When human lives are endangered, when human dignity is in jeopardy, national borders and sensitivities become irrelevant”- Elie Wiesel, Nobel Peace Prize winner, humanitarian and Holocaust survivor The world has witnessed numerous atrocities of…
Distant Relative: African Influences in Jamaican Patois
Written by: Chelsea Stephenson The continent of Africa has been characterized by migration and mobility whether voluntary orinvoluntary for millenniums. Africans over the centuries have migrated for different reasons toevery corner of the world but none as profound as the forced migration of…
International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and Its Abolition
“Fighting slavery’s legacy of racism through transformative education” For decades, the institutionalized system of slavery and its horrific effects and traumatic presence have lingered within the global community, whether in the faces of descendants of the former enslaved African people; powerful images;…
The International Day of the World’s Indigenous People – The Legacies of the Taino
Indigenous peoples are inheritors and practitioners of unique cultures and ways of relating to people and the environment. They have retained social, cultural, economic and political characteristics that are distinct from those of the dominant societies in which they live. In Jamaica’s…
“Never Again”: International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in
Established by the United Nations General Assembly on December 23, 2003, and adopted by Resolution 58/234, the International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda is commemorated annually by UNESCO on April 7th. This date marks the start of…
THE 1865 MORANT BAY Rebellion
THE PRELUDE TO THE REBELLIONWith the British government’s passage of the Emancipation Act in 1834, the enslaved population throughout the colonies was granted freedom from working on the sugar plantations, and the right to establish themselves as free persons. However, by the…
Two to One … Ghana
The Republic of Ghana is a West African nation believed to be the ancestral home of the vast majority of Jamaica’s Black population. Its national flag – much like the Ethiopian flag, which is revered by Jamaica’s Rastafari community – consists of…
World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development
The United Nations’ World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development is recognised and celebrated around the world on May 21. The designation came in 2001 when the UN adopted the Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity and, in 2002, the UN…
Storytelling: A Vehicle for Cultural Preservation
Storytelling is an important cultural thread that makes up the colourful fabric of Jamaican society. Louise Bennett Coverley, Ranny Williams, Charles Hyatt, Dr. Amina Blackwood Meeks, and many others, have played an integral role in promoting and protecting this aspect of Jamaica’s…
Kumina
Kumina is a musico-religious form which is based mainly on communication with the ancestors of the Congo people of Africa and their descendants in Jamaica. The dance ritual is also performed at times for recreational purposes.
The History and Development of Devon House
Devon House, located at the corner of Hope Road and Waterloo Road in St. Andrew, is a historic building and is regarded as one of the finest examples of nineteenth century domestic architecture in Jamaica. It is situated a far distance from…
Jamaica’s National Bird: The Doctor Bird
The doctor bird, also known as the Swallow-tail hummingbird, Streamer-tail, Scissors-tail or Swallow-streamer or by its scientific name, Trochilus polytmus, is considered to be one of the most outstanding of the 320 species of hummingbirds. The genus is currently split into two…