# data[].attributes.headline
Objective 1: The Danger of a Single Story by Chimamanda Adichie (2017.11.29)

# data[].attributes.subject
Objective 1: The Danger of a Single Story by Chimamanda Adichie (2017.11.29)

# data[].attributes.body
The novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie discusses the effects of the single story upon mankind. She states that for one to create a single story of a people, it would only show the people as one thing repeatedly and then that is what the people become. She states that throughout the course of time people have this one single story about the African continent and she believes that this has occurred through Western literature. An example of this can be seen from the London merchant John Lok who documented his travels to West Africa. He depicted African people as “black beasts who have no houses.” He also said “they are people without heads having their mouths and eyes in their breasts.” From then on people could only see Sub-Saharan Africa as a place of negativity and darkness. The colonial powers were telling their single story of the African people which created stereotypes and also robbed them of their dignity.

What the novelist has described can be related to what occurred when the Spanish explorers came upon shores of the Caribbean region and discovered the Kalinago civilization. In the artefact presented it can be seen that in Christopher Columbus’ diary, he describes the Caribs as people who were blood-thirsty cannibals when this was not truly so. Carib cannibalism was an allegation made by the explorers to justify the enslavement as well as genocide of the people. The Caribs were hunters, they gathered their food and engaged in agricultural practices. However, since Columbus was the colonial power, he created his single story of the Kalinagos and he made cannibalism definitive of their people. Up until
present day the myth of Carib cannibalism still persists because historians
continue to write their histories based on these same biased stereotypes of the
first European explorers.

# data[].attributes.headline
Objective 2: Religion and Education in the Formation of Caribbean Society (2017.11.29)

# data[].attributes.subject
Objective 2: Religion and Education in the Formation of Caribbean Society (2017.11.29)

# data[].attributes.body
When the Spanish explorers came to the Caribbean region they were motivated by the Three G’s which were Gold, Glory and God. They came with the intention to spread Christianity and convert the natives. When the Spanish arrived they brought their clergymen to spread the Roman Catholic faith, churches were built in each village and schools were also built most importantly to teach the doctrines of the Catholic church. After the end of the Spanish reign, other European countries came into the region thus bringing other Christian faiths such as the Anglicans, Methodists, Moravians, the Dutch Reformed and Lutheran church and the Presbyterian. The only form of education that existed in the Caribbean was Sunday Schools and this was available to the entire population. This school taught morals and values based on Christianity in order to make the colonized passive and diligent. The main aim of education during this period was to produce a docile and God-fearing individuals.

In the artefact presented it can be stated that the main goal of the missionaries was to ensure that the ex-slaves were truly converted. After British slavery had ended in the Caribbean there were church run schools that the freed people enrolled their children in. Education was an opportunity for upward mobility within society so the freed people took an advantage of this. Education was intertwined with religion because Bible teachings was what the ex-slaves learnt but they were still given the opportunity to learn to read in spite of this. Most of the schools that the missionaries had built were close to a church. The church members built these schools and gave voluntary donations to support them. The missionaries helped them embrace their freedom and helped them transition from being slaves to being free by offering them education and jobs.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
in the mid 1700's and remained throughout the late 1800's.Very early, they began preaching the gospel to the slaves and tirelessly attempted to bring change to the cruel situation in the plantations. They were present during apprenticeship and especially dominant during the period of emancipation.

# data[].attributes.headline
Objective 3: Free movement within CARICOM (2017.12.01)

# data[].attributes.subject
Objective 3: Free movement within CARICOM (2017.12.01)

# data[].attributes.body
The Treaty of Chaguaramas was signed on the 4th of July, 1973. It was signed by Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago. However, the treaty only came into effect on the 1st of August 1973. The treaty helped to establish the Caribbean Community and the Caribbean Common Market. The Caribbean Community and the Caribbean Common Market replaced the Caribbean Free Trade Association which ceased to exist on the 1st of May 1974. The main purpose of CARICOM is to promote economic integration and development, especially in the less-developed areas of the region. As well, it formulates policies regarding health, education, labour, science and technology, tourism, foreign policy, and the environment. CARICOM is based on the four main pillars which are economic integration, foreign policy coordination, human and social development and security. One of the objectives of stated by CARICOM is “full employment of labour and other factors of production,” therefore persons from different countries are able to move freely around the region to seek jobs. This is seen evidently where persons from Jamaica are flooding the labour market of Trinidad and Tobago.

However, in the artefact presented, the free movement of people can have its negative aspects because some persons are coming across to Trinidad and Tobago without the intention of becoming a productive citizen. For example, the persons from Jamaica who landed in Trinidad and were deported back to their home country. Persons who come to Trinidad sometimes come with the intention to live an unproductive life or to commit crimes making it harder for those persons who are actually hardworking. The lack of understanding of the free movement of nationals is evident and the government of Trinidad and Tobago will feel the effects of this because persons are residing in the country without contributing to the society.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley has made the right move in going to Jamaica to, among other things, address the thorny immigration issues between Trinidad and Tobago and its Caricom partner to the north. After the recent problems which erupted in calls by Jamaicans for a boycott of Trinidad and Tobago products, Dr Rowley's visit should soothe Jamaican anxieties and calm the troubled waters kicked up by the deportation of Jamaicans from Piarco.

Hopefully, the visit will also give the PM an opportunity to focus on the source of the problems that have been wreaking havoc in T&T-Jamaica relations, especially since the ruling of the Caribbean Court of Justice in the Shanique Myrie case.

It has been clear since that 2013 ruling that immigration authorities across Caricom have not yet come to terms with the requirements and implications of the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas as they relate to the Caricom Single Market (CSM) and free movement of nationals. Had territorial governments done what was required of them, immigration officers and Caricom nationals would have been spared the conflicts created by a lack of understanding of the free movement regime.

It has been clear from comments by members of both the Persad-Bissessar and Rowley cabinets that, even at the highest level of government, there exists a lack of understanding of the free movement aspect of the Caricom Single Market. This is an indictment on both the politicians who come to office with little knowledge of public policy issues as well as the public servants who carry the responsibility for policy implementation and continuity across administrations.

Now that Dr Rowley is engaging the issue with the Jamaica government, one expects that he will move swiftly to ensure that Trinidad and Tobago becomes compliant with the CSM, including its free movement provisions. As a priority, this requires a solid orientation of the cabinet, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of National Security, all the way from the officials at the top down to immigration officers on the frontline of the process.

In today's globalised world, where people and products are leaping over traditional barriers to access opportunity beyond their boundaries, Trinidad and Tobago cannot continue to hold on to insular attitudes. Without trust, solidarity and a willingness to engage the societies and economies of Caricom there would be no rationale for the regional grouping. If Caricom is to work at all-and that's a very big "if"-our governments have to demonstrate the capacity for regional leadership that unites rather than divides our people.

In the wake of the Shanique Myrie ruling which laid out the free movement responsibilities of each Caricom country, the tone has become decidedly hostile against free movement. This issue cannot be shirked. In July, when they confer at the next Heads of Government meeting, Caricom leaders should find a way to put the issue on the table. It would be irresponsible in the extreme to allow the situation to fester.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley has made the right move in going to Jamaica to, among other things, address the thorny immigration issues between Trinidad and Tobago and its Caricom partner to the north.

# data[].attributes.body
The course Caribbean Civilization has truly been an eye opener to me. Over the twelve period, I have learnt about historical facts that have been revised by historians. I had a new outlook on history, not an ethnocentric view of it. This course was conducted through online lectures but I attended the tutorials that were face-to-face. The online sessions included audio as well as power point presentations. The online sessions were really helpful because it was truly informative but a disadvantage to them were that they were not as clear in terms of hearing. I gained a great deal of knowledge about Caribbean history and learning in the comfort of my own home made the learning process easier because there were no distractions. The tutorial sessions however made things clearer for me because my tutor was well versed in every topic and she kept an interactive class where everyone could have expressed their ideas. The tutorials made me think critically about questions I would never have thought of before about the society that I live in. I think this course was extremely beneficial and it should always remain as a course because it impacted me greatly and made me view Caribbean society in a different light.