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The Culture of Violence: PART I- What happened to the friendliest people on earth?

I remember growing up in my small rural hometown in St. Elizabeth and occasionally encountering a tourist who would tell me tales about his/her country and how Jamaica is one of the most beautiful countries with some of the nicest people. I also remember traveling to the USA and telling people that I am from Jamaica and hearing beautiful stories about my home and its friendly people. Good memories- that is all they are now!

There is no doubt that the international  image of Jamaica has changed. Needless to say, it is my belief that locally the morale of the people is changing and patriotic pride is taking a downward spiral as Jamaicans are feeling the impact of a negative image globally as the culture of violence supersedes the culture of "niceness".  The people who had the reputation for being cool, "irie", peaceful, loving and  just sweetly laid back are now branded as aggressive, ill-natured, out of control, "scary" and desperate.

SOURCE: www.amnestyinternational.org

How did we get to this? Over the years Jamaicans have been influenced tremendously by different forces: Globalization and the infiltration of the American media and culture, drugs, small arms proliferation, gangs, the ongoing garrison and clientelist politics, poverty and illiteracy. The social, political and economic forces that have impacted on our culture and shifted our reputation are many.

The stories I hear now are changing: one of my closest friends recounts being robbed last Christmas while vacationing in Jamaica; tourists are being robbed and murdered; Jamaicans abroad dabble in terrorism; people who try to make changes in their communities receive death threats; hardworking, honest Jamaicans are kidnapped and murdered and; young people in my rural community emulate the gunmen and dons of the city- their "role models"- the charm of a life of crime. We all hear of these cases that leave a hole in our hearts, a bitter taste in our mouth and tears streaming down our cheeks. What has happened to sweet, sweet Jamaica?

SOURCE: BBC HARDTALK

This series of blogs will look at the development of the culture of  violence in Jamaica over the years. Is violence a new thing for Jamaica or has it been brewing centuries prior to now? Have we hit rock bottom and are currently seeing the worse? Where do we go from here? Can we ever become the friendliest people on earth once more?

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