Project title: Is this Jamaica? My Jamaica? Is This the Land of My Birth?
Selected for scholarships 2009-2010, Course of Graphic Design, School of Visual Arts, IED Milan

The title of my entry is from a nationally recognized Jamaican song that expresses the immense pride and love the singer has for his small yet magnificent country. The last line of the chorus sings, “This is Jamaica, MY Jamaica. This is the land of my birth.” Living and learning on the small Caribbean island for more than half my life, I undoubtedly feel the same pride and love for my striving country that is expressed in the lyrics of the well-known tune, even today as I go to school abroad.

Imagine, then, the horror I must have felt when, upon leaving my paradise, I learned of the grossly skewed view the rest of the world seemed to have of my home.

No one in my new surroundings seemed to know of the amazing culture of delicious food, or meaningful folklore, or sustaining history that defines my island. Everyone knows Bob Marley though.

I’ve never been asked about the doctors or professors, the judges or lawyers, the deacons or bishops; about any of the hard-working people who secure Jamaica’s future. I have been asked many a time, however, if I’m lying when I say I’ve never smoked weed.

I’m not sure if the world knows about the excellent quality of education I received there, or about the sensational fashion revolution now brewing. Do they know about our social and economic problems? Do they know that Catholicism is one of the largest religious denominations in my country? Or that it was headline news for a month that a Rastafarian was going to be enrolling in one of the top schools there? Or about the ever-rising crime rate or about our governing body? I’ve never really had someone from my new environment discuss those things with me. I have been asked how we use computers if we all live on the beach.

Sadly, they are these kinds of ideas that keep the rest of the world from knowing the true magnificence of Jamaica. Of course, Bob Marley is very much a part of our culture, in the same way in which marijuana use is prevalent and we do enjoy our beautiful beaches. Those things make up only a very small portion of our vast culture, however. Jamaica is so much more than these things, and I’m proud to be an advocate for this wondrous country.