• Category

  • Content Type

Advertisement

Jamaican Leg of CARICOM Reparations Youth Baton Relays Launched

By: , October 19, 2017

The Key Point:

The Jamaican leg of the CARICOM Reparations Youth Baton Relays and Rallies was launched in St. Thomas on Wednesday (October 18) to encourage participation from young people and the general public for the success of the region-wide movement.
Jamaican Leg of CARICOM Reparations Youth Baton Relays Launched
Photo: Rudranath Fraser
Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment, and Sport, Hon. Olivia Grange (2nd left), assists in displaying the CARICOM Reparations Youth Relays Baton at the launch of the Jamaican leg of the project on Wednesday (October 18) at the Morant Villas in St. Thomas. Others (from left) are member of the National Council on Reparations (NCR), Steven Golding; Head Boy at Paul Bogle High School, Daniel Reid; Head Girl at the school, Renae Robinson; and teacher at the institution, Lorraine Williams.

The Facts

  • She said that the programme seeks to build awareness and encourage persons to play a role “in ensuring that the movement for reparations for slavery gains momentum, and ultimately success”.
  • Relays have been held in Barbados, Guyana, Suriname, St. Lucia, and Antigua and Barbuda. The exchange of the baton from Antigua to Jamaica took place on Tuesday, October 10.

The Full Story

The Jamaican leg of the CARICOM Reparations Youth Baton Relays and Rallies was launched in St. Thomas on Wednesday (October 18) to encourage participation from young people and the general public for the success of the region-wide movement.

Speaking at the ceremony held at the Morant Villas, Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Hon. Olivia Grange, said Jamaica is sending a signal to the world that the reparations agenda is “alive”.

She said that the programme seeks to build awareness and encourage persons to play a role “in ensuring that the movement for reparations for slavery gains momentum, and ultimately success”.

Noting that the ancestors suffered horribly during slavery, she said that the system has left serious social, psychological and economic scars on Caribbean societies, “leaving the legacies of poor education, crippling national debt, persistent poverty, inadequate healthcare, violence and crime, among others”.

The relays will be staged islandwide over the period October 19 to December 27, commencing at the Paul Bogle High School in Morant Bay, where the baton will be handed to Mayor Lenworth Rawle, followed by a rally in the town’s square.

During the three-month activity, the atrocities of slavery and the economic and social impact on Caribbean countries will be highlighted.

Other events are scheduled for Port Antonio, Portland, on October 24; Port Maria, St. Mary, October 26; Kingston and St. Andrew, October 31; and Kensington, St. James, on December 27 during the observation of the Sam Sharpe rebellion.

Each leg of the route will be run by a group of young people, with one of them carrying the baton and transferring it at the end of their leg to another group.

Relays have been held in Barbados, Guyana, Suriname, St. Lucia, and Antigua and Barbuda. The exchange of the baton from Antigua to Jamaica took place on Tuesday, October 10.

Last Updated: October 19, 2017

Skip to content