Impact of Garveyism for Conversation on July 20

On Sunday, July 20, the second session of the Independence Signature Conversations will get underway at the Institute of Jamaica’s (IOJ) East Street complex in downtown, Kingston.

The three-hour long session, starting at 2:00 p.m, is entitled: ‘Up Ye Mighty Race: Garveyism and the National Agenda’.

It will explore the profound impact of the teachings of Jamaica’s first National Hero, The Right Excellent Marcus Mosiah Garvey. This year marks 100 years since he formed the Universal Negro Improvement Association.

The discussions will highlight the extent to which Garvey’s philosophy and teachings have influenced Jamaica’s economic, political, and cultural development.

Signature Conversations is one of the programmmes that the Ministry of Youth and Culture introduced for Jamaica Festival 2014.

Director and Curator of the Jamaica Music Museum, Herbie Miller, said the sessions aim to educate audiences about the Jamaican culture.

“It will enlighten individuals of the groundbreaking efforts established by cultural pioneers, many of whom have been submerged in the consciousness of those engaged in the discourse surrounding culture,” he expressed.

Head of Department of History and Archaeology at the University of the West Indies (UWI), Professor Verene Shepherd, will lead the discussion, with contributions from Director of Culture in Education Programme at the Ministry of Education, Amina Blackwood Meeks; Chairman of the Jamaica Association of Composers, Authors and Publishers Limited, Steven Golding; Director of Liberty Hall, Dr. Donna McFarlane, and Lecturer in the Department of Culture at the UWI, Dr. Clinton Hutton.

The first Conversation, which was held on Sunday, July 6, reflected on the music and legacy of singer and songwriter, Keith Anderson, also known as Bob Andy.

The penultimate July 27 session entitled: ‘Stuart Hall: Representation and Jamaican Identity’, will focus on the contributions of Jamaican-born cultural theorist and sociologist, Stuart Hall.

The final session dubbed: ‘The Jamaican Maroons: Towards Recognition of an Indigenous People’, is on Sunday, August 10. It will examine the criteria used in aligning the Jamaican Maroons to other maroons and indigenous groups of people in the region.