On the Corner | No dons around here - Fletcher's Land residents have no interest in title
Published:Sunday | December 23, 2018 | 12:00 AMErica Virtue/ Senior Gleaner Writer
In some communities in Jamaica, the term 'don' is one to be feared, revered, and respected.
But on Diplomats' Corner in Fletcher's Land, a community in Kingston western, it's a title and stain no one wants because according to residents, they become targets of the police and their days are numbered.
When a Gleaner news team went On the Corner in Fletcher's Land last week, Jermaine Williams said that communities like his need a strong individual who commands the respect of the 'corner' to get things done.
"Ghetto people need fi socialise. Whether through football, round robin, dances, youth clubs, people need something to occupy their time. So what you find is that people support one another through likkle round robin and dances. But is four years now we cyan do anything because of violence," he said.
Gang warfare and reprisals for deaths and shootings leave residents in communities like his prisoners of the dusk and darkness. In fact, "no time is safe, when you have ongoing gang war," he explained.
But with men bearing grudges, and the threat of violence always lurking, it takes someone with organising skills and the ability to 'hol a vibes and reason' with the warring parties.
Jermaine does not want to be caught dead doing that.
"Look, you don't see that Government a get police fi lock up all bad man? And who nuh lock up, dead. All dem things I tell you about need someone to kind a put it together. When I take it up on my head and try to go talk to police, talk to other man dem and get dem together, police and people start call you don. Once them start call you dat, you days are numbered. Memba, mi tell yuh," he said.
Once you are seen as the don, he explained, your first enemy is the police. He said that many persons have been labelled dons just because they take things in hand, becoming the contact person for different corners and outside agencies in an effort to seek help for the community.
"Don a nuh good supp'm ... . Because of the label, many people 'fraid of even doing things to organise little socials and stuff for the community," he said.
"I will do my little best to uplift my community, my corner, but I am not a don and don't want nobody to call me suh."