Dancehall Poster featuring Bounty Killa

I was inspired to write this article after watching the following video, which explores findings from Dr. Donna Hope‘s thesis and book about Dancehall sub-culture in the Jamaican society. The interview is presented in the colorful Jamaican dialect, which enables a wide cross-section of Jamaicans to share in and understand her work. The discussion is based on some of the core themes of the Dancehall sub-culture, including: masculinity, empowerment of the poor, and gender relations. The research is an important addition to Caribbean Sociology and I hope it will inspire writers, theorists and critics to see the Jamaican Dancehall as fertile ground for further research and the generation of other perspectives.

Beenie Man's Dancehall CD Cover

Bennett Land is a community that is very similar to Majestic Gardens, which we showed photos of in a previous article. They are both located in the constituency of the former Prime Minister and current leader of the opposition People’s National Party, Hon. Portia Simpson-Miller.

In 2006 I made an impromptu visit to the community along with my assistant. It was a very shocking and horrific experience as I did not yet fully understand the extent of the poverty that some Jamaicans lived in. I met a woman who became our tour guide–residents, the majority of whom were women, claimed  that she was mentally ill.

This “mentally ill” woman had no fear in showing us exactly what life was like for her–Hunger, Nakedness, and Shame. We were told that she had about 8 CXC subjects and that she was studying Nursing when she became ill, and since then it has been a downhill road. Our tour guide affirmed this story, while taking us via car throughout the community in the middle of a gun battle in September 2006, while the local NGOs S-Corner Community Development Centre and Clinic were closed. Though the environment was cold, and the streets were creeping with official and unofficial armed men, we were given the opportunity of seeing first hand what life was like for an inner-city resident while their community was in war.

Though our tour guide was the only one bearing the label of ‘insanity’, her living standard reflected accurately the extremity of poverty that was visible in all the yards that we visited. The story was, as I said before, similar to Majestic Gardens–public toilets in dilapidated conditions, houses constructed of used metal and pieces of board, lack of potable water, unemployment, inability to send children to school, and crime and violence.

Visit our Jamaican Videos page for a closer look at life and crime in Bennett Land.

My initial workshop with residents was attended by approximately 30 persons and was held at a public venue, a basic school sitting at the foot of Waricka Hill. My follow-up workshop was only attended by 6, half of whom traveled from outside of the community from their temporary places of rescue because of what was then a new round of violence and death in the community.  At the workshops residents expressed haunting fear and frustration with living their lives in containment or continuous chaos on account of violence. By the time of our third workshop, we were hosting the session in the living room of a resident, which was attended by 20 persons.

Basic School in Rockfort sits at the foot of Waricka Hill

I tried to extend the intervention in Rockfort beyond the youth club, which we originally targeted, but subsequent to my offer to the Rockfort Development Council (RDC) we felt they needed to do more work on community mobilization. The Social and Economic Justice (SEJ) Project was presented as an intervention aiming at contributing to the empowerment of residents to claim their rights at different levels, but the Council articulated a need for us to use the Project for community mobilization by adapting it for skits and plays. Though I felt that that the use of human rights content in plays was a good idea, especially for community mobilization, I had to agree when my core Project stakeholders objected to the idea, on the basis of: lack of resources, absence of previous planning, and its deviation from our original intention. This contributed to the discontinuation of my work in the community, especially because we had exceeded the time that we had agreed on to execute the intervention.

In the more than two years that I spent in the community, I really forged some great friendships, especially with some wonderful young men who protected me throughout my service there. We are still in touch and we plan on having a face-to-face discussion to talk about and record their experiences as male youth growing-up and raising families in Rockfort.

Homes and Waricka Hill in Rockfort

Rockfort Community (Water) Tank and the dreaded Waricka Hill

In this video, we heard accusations from the Police that there is a lack of will by the political representatives to control their area. From my conversations with friends, I understand that the problem is truly one of infighting. It’s like implosion. Residents say that all that’s needed to put things in order is for the Member of Parliament (MP) to show up and straighten things out, as all the ‘warriors’ respect him. They also said that his absence from the community has been long and progressive, which they profess is a frightening situation, especially knowing that he is a son of Rockfort. They lament that his nativity should stimulate him to care more than the average MP, but they say that his absence shows that he is no more sympathetic.

Rockfort- in view of Waricka Hill, water tank, and food stall

As a I toured the community, I was shown bullet holes, burnt homes, abandoned buildings and homes, the football field, the spring, and the infamous Waricka Hill, which was dreaded by residents because they say that it serves as a key access point for ‘warriors’ entering and leaving the community. We witnessed abandonment, unemployment, hopelessness, fear, and of course there was some glimmer of hope in the faces of little children playing on one street/lane. There is need for infrastructural development, education and skills training, sports development, and multi-sectoral support and attention.

[polldaddy poll=1008320]

The Police in charge of the Area and ACP John McLean, head of the Community Policing Department informed me, in an advocacy meeting with them and community representatives, that they are ready and willing to support community development interventions such as ours–the SEJ Project of Jamaicans for Justice. They and residents who participated in our Project endorsed the need for community development in light of the needs expressed above, but for the time being Rockfort’s residents will have to go from door to door and seek broad-based support for unity and an end to violence, before the social development agencies will feel comfortable enough to want to be there to assist with development and growth.

Section of basic school playground and Waricka Hill, Rockfort

Rockfort- view of homes and empty streets that were once lively

Its just amazing how we spend so much time, resources, and lives flushing out a few criminals, but we invest nothing into the sustainable development of the poor who are trapped in crime riddled communities, which are already casualties of economic and social injustice.

This video addresses a very sensitive and controversial issue in Jamaica, Tivoli Gardens and Crime.

I know that skin lightening is not a new phenomenon in a world such as ours, which is driven by beauty. As a Jamaican female I was always exposed to skin lightening products–as a matter of fact a large number of Jamaicans can recall the Nadinola jars on our moms’ dresser tops or in the bathrooms.

It was not too long ago when I was a child–the 1980s has really flown by–when the Nadinola jar reigned supreme. Now is 2008–my daughter Taitu is 5 years–and it is evident that its gotta be more than Nadinola and Ponds. The ‘lighteners’ have turned ‘bleachers,’ this phenomenon, which was private and unnamed during my childhood is now very popular and public.

The bleachers are ‘white’ in color, they are no longer purely female–They are male and female: young people and full grown adults/ parents. The teacher was once a role model, now she too engages in skin lightening. None is exempt from the Skin Lightening Addiction, which is not recognized by any of the addiction response agencies.

The Chiney (Chinese) shops, located in every nook and cranny of the communities used by the poor, are said to be the main distributors of the forbidden products that are craved after by males and females in the Jamaican society. The products are so widely available, despite Government sanctions, that our in-school and out-of-school youth, especially of the inner-city, are characterized by pale faces, dark necks, and torsos.

I remember, in 2004, approaching a student of mine about the issue–stimulated by the strong urging of her class peers. She told me that her mother and aunt who lived with her lightened their skin, the products were readily available at home (just like the Nadinola was in the 1980s), and that her mother approved of her doing it. The young lady could not see any ills in skin lightening, only benefits, such as being more popular, and being seen as more attractive. This experience was eye opener for me, which propelled me to address the issue through video advocacy. Though my film is far from completion, I believe this one is a good precursor.

I believe, and it is my experience that skin lightening products are sought after for the following reasons:

1. Beauty- Jamaicans perceive a beautiful person to be a light skinned person. If you should listen to songs emanating out of our Dancehall, you will find the praise of the ‘browning’ (the woman of lighter hue)
2. Success- there is also a strong belief in Jamaican society that success, progress, and growth is associated with light color, and hence an infamous Jamaican saying, “nutten black nuh good,”
   
3. Fad- the American market is very influential in Jamaica. We watch their TV stations and suck in all sorts of things from their culture, which in turn influences our taste. If African Americans can lighten theirs, why can’t we? Hence the super strong skin lightening cream called the Michael Jackson is also available
4. Cool- some people think it kinda looks cool, especially if it is not overdone, thus enhancing their beauty or color in much the same way as make-up does
5. Skin Conditions- others argue that it cleans off spots, blotches, and bumps
6. Inferiority Complex- historians and social scientists identify it as remnant of our colonial past, where blacks were made to feel inferior and their features, including color were ridiculed
7. Denial of Opportunities- More than 90 percent of Jamaicans are of African decent, and they are the ones who are disproportionately affected by the denial of economic and social rights and justice
8. Confidence- there is a certain confidence that a light skinned Jamaican comes with–owing to experiences of privileging at different levels in the private and public spheres of society
9. Societal Acceptance- marginalized groups like the Jamaican poor and youth crave attention and acceptance from their peers, which they get when they lighten their skin.

This is the first Jamaican video that I got my hands on since expressing an interest in the issue in Summer 2007, when I was trained at the Video Advocacy Institute, Concordia University. I have since that time made attempts to commence my research in order to produce a 15 minutes video for public education amongst in-school students. I commenced the proposal but have not completed it. I completed the secondary research, but did not follow-up with a report. I found significant useful resources, I created useful resources, such as: a Questionnaire and Informed Consent Policy, which I am sure by now, you will realise need to be updated and made consistent to reflect changes in the situation and new information gained.