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Dancehall Music and Caribbean Identity  15/4/17

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Dancehall Music and Caribbean Identity  15/4/17

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N.B The video included is is the Raw version meant to show the extent of Dancehall music, be warned it contains expletives.
Caribbean Identity is multi-faceted as the Caribbean is a melting pot. There are many islands that have many identities and aspects of their culture that express their sense of identity. Identity itself is a collection of shared attributes in a society that can help identify its members. Identity is also how a person views themselves and the world. One way identity is expressed, is through music, this holds especially true for the Caribbean as a number of unique musical genres have arisen. Zouk from Martinique and Guadeloupe, Soca emanating from Trinidad, as well as Reggae and Dancehall in Jamacia. Jamaican identity is strongly expressed in its unique culture, Reggae music gave birth to Dancehall music and Dancehall. Reggae music which is the ancestor of dancehall expresses an important part of Jamaican culture, that of the Rastafarian movement. Dancehall, however, does not reflect the ideals of Rastafarianism but changed to radical themes such as violence, sexuality and fashion. Dancehall artist then began to command a large portion of Jamacia's culture dictating fashion trends, loyalties and condemning aspects of society they deemed unfit such as homosexuality or certain sexual acts. Thus dancehall became a solid part of Jamaica's identity and you could identify a Jamaican by listening to the lyrics of a dancehall song as much as listening to a reggae track. Recently this identity has been carried globally and adopted by a number of international artists who adopt dancehall beats and tracks into their music. In 2016 Red Bull hosted it an annual culture clash, a sound off in the UK. Mixpak, comprised solely of Jamaican dancehall artists such as Popcann, Spice Kranium. This artist went on to defeat famous rapper Wiz Khalifa and his group. This goes to show how much Dancehall is respected and loved globally now. Recently Popcann joined grammy winning rapper Drake on his European tour. Therefore Jamaican identity globally is now deeply associated with Dancehall music. In the past Reggae superstars such as Bob Marley were icons of Jamacia to the world. Slowly the Dancehall artist of today are solidifying their place in the global trends and are showing the world another identity of Jamacia, one that not everyone may agree with. The anti-gay, hypersexual and sometimes violent lyrics of Dancehall may give some the wrong impression of Jamacia and thereby the Caribbean. The violent stance taken by Popcann in his song Jungle Justice when it comes to the rising issue of violence against women is one that will be viewed globally due to his international ties. This can reflect on the Caribbean and Jamacia especially creating a false identity in the heads of the Global community. It goes to show how the identity of one Caribbean island if powerful enough can become global.

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Popcaan - Jungle Justice (Raw) February 2017

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Popcaan - Jungle Justice © 2017 Produced by Unruly Entertainment Subscribe to Akam Entertainment for More: http://www.akamentertainment.com Check out more of Akam Entertainment here: Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/akam.ent Instagram: http://instagram.com/akam_ent Instagram: http://instagram.com/akamentertainment Twitter: https://twitter.com/akam_ent Twitter: https://twitter.com/kenardonelson YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/kenardonelson SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/akamentertainment SnapChat: https://www.snapchat.com/add/akam_ent Google Plus: https://plus.google.com/+kenardonelson Contact: 📧 akamentertainment@gmail.com 📞 +1(876) 298-2267 Akam Entertainment Est © 2011, with the aim of promoting dancehall music throughout the entire world.

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My formative years were spent in Religious Schools, I attended Tacariqua Presbyterian Primary and then Trinity College East Secondary which is run by the Anglican board. To me, it seemed commonplace to have schools so closely tied to the major religions in the country. Through this course, I have gained a deeper understanding of the relationship between Religion and Education. In 1960 the concordat was formed in Trinidad gave religious boards the right to continue running their schools while making it public. Some of the earliest schools were religious and therefore made many freed Africans and East Indians adopt a religion so they could get an education for their children. This is evident from my primary school which was built in the 1884s by the first Presbyterian Missionary. The community it resides in Dinsley is full of members of the Presbyterian faith today. One had to be of the faith to attend such schools after the Concordat this changed and today these schools among the premiere educational institutions in the country. Many of the nations scholarship winners, prime ministers and globally recognised persons emanate from these institutions. Schools such as St. Marys College and Holy Name Convent who are Catholic, Naparima College and Naparima Girls which are Presbyterian as well as Lakshmi Girls high school which is Hindu. These institutions are seen as the 'prestige' schools and are the first choice of children when picking schools to attend. This course has taught me how highly religious our society is as a result of our history, therefore it comes as no surprise that person would wish their child to gain a religious grounding while receiving a top class education. Most of the denominational schools have prayers throughout the day and instal the teaching of their respective religions into the students. These values are another reason they are the preferred schools. The Government established schools are looked down upon in society. They are in fact not sub-standard but as a result of the time, they have garnered a negative reputation as they lack the discipline and success rates of the denominational schools. In certain cases, the infrastructure of the denominational schools is superior to the Government schools. Such as Bishops Anstey and Trinity College East pictured below. This school built and run by the Anglican church has one of the newest and state of the art structures, the sixth form is air conditioned and there are many computer labs some even specialised to teach topics such as graphic design. There is also renovations and additions constantly to improve the infrastructure. This is because they are funded by the Anglican board that can spend more money on the school's development than the Government can at times. As a result, the denominational schools are some of the top tier institutions and promote the continued integration of Religion in society today.

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The Caribbean has a blessing and a curse in its placement between South America, North America and Europe. Historically the Caribbean was exploited by the Europeans for its resources. In the early Post Independence many islands struggle to maintian their economies as they lacked resources to devleop as well as facing competition from the rising global makrets. As a result social conditions were tense and drug use and distribution grew in the Caribbean. Then many islands took loans from international organizations such as the International Montetary Fund as well as the World Bank. This deteoriated social conditions on the islands further as organizations such as the IMF and World Banks have strict policies that see social welfare programs as unnescary. The cotunries therefore are in high debt and lack radical social welfare programs. Crime is fuelled and a social divide between those who are vastly wealthy and highly impovrished communities develop. The promixty of these islands to South America and the cocaine and cannabis trade provides lucrative alternative. How does the drugs get into the islands however, the impoverished cannot afford to import it. Corrupt wealthy politicans and bussiness men import it and spread it among the less fortunate. To these destitute memembers of society Drugs provide a quick cash grab and therefore they become dealers and after some time there are a number of Drug Lords on each island. While the corrupt members of the higher echelons continue in large scale distribution to North America and Europe. Recently over 640 millon worth of cocaine was found in juice containers from Trinidad. Instances such as these and negative reports such as the one featured below continue to deter investors to come to the Caribbean and invest in our development.

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WASHINGTON DC, USA, Monday March 27, 2017 - The Eastern Caribbean has been branded a "transit point for drug traffickers going to the United States and Europe" by the US State Department.

The department's International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR), released this month, claims that the Eastern Caribbean hosts abundant transhipment points for illicit narcotics, primarily from Venezuela destined for North American, European and domestic Caribbean markets.

According to the report, marijuana remains the most commonly used illicit drug within the region and many of the homicides in the seven countries occur as a result of turf wars between factions fighting for control of drug distribution.

The report named St Vincent as a primary source for cannabis in the Eastern Caribbean.

Data provided to the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) indicates that, during the first nine months of last year, drug seizures in the Eastern Caribbean totalled 196.65 metric tons of marijuana and
1,103.8 kg of cocaine, along with 159 drug trafficking-related arrests.

According to the State Department, law enforcement capacity in the region is under increasing stress and, while Eastern Caribbean governments made some improvements, their criminal codes remained antiquated.

The US encouraged the seven countries to continue to pass legislation to modernize their criminal codes, making use of regional best practices in fighting transnational organized crime.

The US asserted that "in some countries, leaders failed to address public concerns about official corruption," compounding the problem.

The INSCR nevertheless pointed out that: "As a matter of policy, the region's governments do not encourage or facilitate the illicit production or distribution of narcotic or psychotropic drugs or other controlled substances, or the laundering of proceeds from illegal drug transactions.

"No senior government officials in the Eastern Caribbean were prosecuted for engaging in or facilitating the illicit production or distribution of controlled drugs or laundering of proceeds from illegal drug transactions.

"Nonetheless, many observers believe that drug trafficking organizations sometimes elude law enforcement through bribery, influence, or coercion."

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Eastern Caribbean Branded a Transit Point For Drug Traffickers By US | Caribbean360

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WASHINGTON DC, USA, Monday March 27, 2017 - The Eastern Caribbean has been branded a "transit point for drug traffickers going to the United States and Europe" by the US State Department. The department's International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR), released this month, claims that the Eastern Caribbean hosts abundant transhipment points for illicit narcotics, primarily from Venezuela destined for North American, European and domestic Caribbean markets.

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This course has been influential to me. I came into it with a negative outlook as it seemed repetitive as it seemed to be common knowledge. As I continued in the course, however, I realised how much the Caribbean is truly linked by our shared heritage. It gave me an appreciation for the role of religion in our society as well as showed me the opinions others hold about our history. The lectures were a new experience to me having them online and proved to be highly convenient. It was eye opening to explore the history is such depth and see how this history still impacts us to this day. Going into how the Europeans treated the indigenous persons and lead to their demise and marginalisation in society was especially impactful to me. I felt the course was well planned and the content provided for further reading on My E-Learning was the most insightful to me. It got me thinking and analysing my environment in a new light. The projects given were a good way to use my new found knowledge in a practical manner, Assignment one was quite a fun endeavour. This portfolio was more difficult but an enlightening experience none the less. In the end, this course left a lasting impression on me and provided a new appreciation for my region.