What do those of us who were born and raised under the clock want for our cities, our neighbourhoods, our communities in this region that is our home, the home of our children’s future? Kingston is the place where Garveyism, Rastafari, and reggae...
The Motion for Suspension of George Wright MP, notice of which was given in the House of Representatives last Tuesday, was erroneously blocked by the Speaker, and as a result, a dark cloud of suspicion remains today over the Parliament. The...
Like most instances of madness in this world of digital distress, many of us saw the blurred video of something appearing to be a man and a woman doing something. Maybe to each other. But it wasn’t quite clear. After that, the floodgates on all...
Professor Edwin Samuel Jones, Ed, as he was affectionately called by faculty and by associates alike, was my very dear friend and deeply admired colleague for over 50 years. Ed’s earliest engagement with the university world over a half century...
Access to investment and finance has defined how island states are able to progress towards achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and plan their post-pandemic economic recovery. With the pressure of the last twelve...
In this edition of Reparation Conversations, the Ethio-Africa Union Millennium Council outlines the case for reparatory justice through compensation and repatriation as a way of preserving the cultural heritage of Africans as well as reports on...
Cherry always had a smile on her face but that day it was absent. As I stopped by her roadside stall to greet her I noticed that her head was down and she was deliberately avoiding my eyes. “Hey girl,” I said while urging her to look up. “Why are...
On February 28, in my Sunday Gleaner column ‘Actions speak louder than words’, I wrote, “The proposed amendment to the Disaster Risk Management Act (DRMA) to allow for stiffer penalties … must be urgently implemented.” Like so many other Jamaicans...
In 2008, Jamaican-British historian, Colin Grant, published the most comprehensive contemporary biography of Jamaica’s most famous pan-African prophet, Marcus Garvey: the magisterial, meticulously researched Negro in A Hat. Last year, Grant’s new...
Many technocrats have questioned and even challenged the role of the College of Agriculture, Science and Education (CASE) in the realm of agriculture policy in Jamaica. These technocrats have contributed to the important conversations of CASE’s...
Last month (March), 29-year old singer Damini Ebunoluwa Ogulu – better known as Burna Boy – became the first Nigerian to win an individual Grammy for best album in the World Music category. He triumphed for his 2020 Twice as Tall album. As he noted...
In October 1992, Vic Higgs, a white expatriate who had been working with the tourism ministry to produce a yearly classic golf tournament, lost his way on the Runaway Bay to Kingston trip. He slowed the car to seek directions. Then the men offered...
It is almost impossible to avoid the raging debate on the Report of The Chancellor’s Commission on the Governance of The University of the West Indies. The issue has dominated newspapers and social media across the Caribbean and diaspora....
It has been one year since coronavirus hit Jamaica on March 10, 2021. By its anniversary, it had taken at least 475 lives; infected over 28,968 persons across every parish, in all age groups, and social and economic classes; overwhelmed the health...
At the heart of any thriving economy are the commercial activities undertaken by companies. Companies are the engines of an economy, creating livelihoods for a nation’s people, tax revenue for governments, and the provision of demanded goods and...
The United Nations (UN) bureaucracy has its sights set on the Caribbean, and that is not a good thing. Allow me to elaborate. As an international human rights lawyer with a decade experience working at the UN, I have had a front row seat to observe...
Like millions of Indians, I had just a faint idea about Rastafarianism, hearing the word in Bob Marley’s songs, his dreadlocks and unkempt beard appeared similar to the Indian holy men with long locks, who lead a spiritual life. Living in Jamaica...
Do you have a drone? If you do, launch it and slow it down on a section of Riverton City where you may see a picture in frame after frame of five children sorting glass bottles, metals of various shapes or old electronic units as others with...
History education matters! History’s transformative power, and far-reaching implications for cultural, social and community empowerment, and national development, have long been understood. This is why Verene Shepherd, Judge Patrick Robinson, Sir...
There are many of us who need to place retirement and post–retirement as one of our top priorities. It is never too late to start planning. The key is to begin by making SMART moves and having a strategy in place. WHAT ARE SMART MOVES • Set...
As I watched parts of the 2021-22 Budget Debate, I had mixed feelings: on the one hand to commend aspects uplifting good governance; but on the other, to insist on an end to continued chronic, gross violations of transparency and accountability in...
As a consumer, do you know your rights? We make it known, sometimes at the top of our voices, when a product is faulty or we are dissatisfied with the standard of service. Perhaps we get our money back, or the product is exchanged, and maybe we are...
Violence against women and girls (VAWG) is a bitter reality in Jamaica. There are consistent reports in the media detailing various incidents where women are murdered or maimed by their spouses. Courts deal with a plethora of cases where women have...
We are still in Women’s History Month. This week’s Reparation Conversations in collaboration with the Centre for Reparation Research at The University of the West Indies, continues the discussion by Professor Verene Shepherd in her article on...
The management of Hawkeye was recently moved to issue a statement after tragedy struck and one of its guards was killed in the line of duty. Sharon Laing, the general manager in charge of human resources said, after the killing: “There is an...
