Misguided Concept of Beauty Must Be Corrected – Minister Hanna

Minister of Youth and Culture, Hon. Lisa Hanna, says it is imperative to correct the misguided concept of beauty, held by modern day young people.

According to the Minister, if this is done, it will increase self confidence and the value youth place on themselves.

“We realize that many of our young women have low self esteem, as they hold wrong concepts of beauty and self. Sometimes they take external concepts of the European model of beauty, and use it to devalue themselves,” Miss Hanna said.

The Minister was speaking at a recent JIS ‘Think Tank’, held at the agency’s headquarters on Half-Way Tree Road, in Kingston.

She argued that discussions outside the boundaries of the social group play a vital role in changing misconceptions of beauty, held by the young people.

“We need to highlight some of those pertinent conversations that must be held, especially as it relates to young women and men. The social dialogue cannot only be within their communities, it has to be shared dialogue with all classes,” she noted.

Miss Hanna said that the introduction of reasoning sessions, as part of the recent Emancipation celebrations, gave youth the opportunity to engage in meaningful discussions on a variety of themes, including ‘Beauty and the modern day woman’.

The Minister pointed out that several modern day women resort to risky medical practices in their effort to enhance beauty, and informed that an increase in knowledge on historical events will strengthen the value that youth place on themselves.

“As an emancipated people, we have to share with our young people their history. We feel if they know their history they will get strength. We want to tell persons that whatever road you choose to beauty and the concept of beauty, at the end of the day, you must be comfortable in your skin,” she said.

Meanwhile, Festival Queen 2013, Krystal Tomlinson, extended the concept of beauty to include self consciousness and the contribution made to one’s community.

“Beauty for me is a full package. It is a commitment in giving your best at all times, displaying humility and relating well to people around you. If your traits indicate a level of inner beauty, you will become physically beautiful,” Miss Tomlinson said.

She argued that the concept of beauty stems from Jamaica’s cultural heritage, underlined by the plantation regime, noting that in the plantation regime, beauty by non-Europeans was seen within the context of having straight hair, straight nose and light skin.

She said that based on such perceptions, it is no surprise that Jamaicans continue to struggle with perceptions of beauty. However, she asserts that beauty is defined within cultural boundaries.

“Culture is directly related to beauty. Culture is a way of life and part of the way of life is the way you speak, it is the way you perceive other people and that inevitably translates into how people view themselves in a particular culture,” Miss Tomlinson said.

The Festival Queen, who received a sectional prize for being most culturally aware, urged the youth to develop a sense of cultural awareness.

“Cultural awareness is about coming to terms with questions of identity that we [Jamaicans] face as a people. It is about how we treat self esteem issues that relate to our cultural experiences and how we treat our heritage, including our language and music,” she said.

Miss Tomlinson said that during her reign, she will be engaging in projects with school culture clubs, aimed at increasing access, application and the sharing of cultural information among young people.