Musgrave Medals Awarded to Orlando Patterson and Myrna Hague-Bradshaw

The Institute of Jamaica (IOJ) has honoured Professor Orlando Patterson with the 2015 Musgrave Gold Medal for distinguished eminence in Literature, and Dr. Myrna Hague-Bradshaw with the Silver Medal for outstanding merit in the field of Music.

Chairman of the IOJ’s Council, Ambassador Burchell Whiteman, in congratulating the honourees, said they have inspired others through their work, and “have been a credit to Jamaicans at home and abroad.”

He was speaking at the award ceremony held on January 4, at the Institute’s downtown Kingston headquarters.

Ambassador Whiteman said Professor Patterson had “given of the excellence and greatness which were to come,” from his early years at the then May Pen Elementary School.”

He noted that Dr. Hague-Bradshaw, who has had a long and outstanding career as a jazz artiste, gracing stages in Jamaica and overseas, “has made a significant contribution to the music industry and Jamaica.”

Professor Patterson in expressing gratitude, said the recognition is “very special, because it is so deeply rooted in Jamaica, which remains for me, the homeland.”

Dr. Hague-Bradshaw, in her response, said the moment is “overwhelming” as “I never expected to receive this level of respect or acceptance.”

A historical and cultural sociologist, Professor Patterson is well known for his work regarding issues of race in the United States (US) and the Caribbean, and is also a Professor at the prestigious Harvard University.

He previously held faculty appointments at the University of the West Indies (UWI), which he attended, and the London School of Economics where he received his PhD.

His academic interests include the culture and practices of freedom; the comparative study of slavery and ethno-racial relations; and the cultural sociology of poverty and underdevelopment with special reference to the Caribbean and African American youth.

He has also written on the cultural sociology of sports, especially the game of cricket.  Professor Patterson is the author of numerous academic papers and 5 major academic books including, Slavery and Social Death; Freedom in the Making of Western Culture (1991); The Ordeal of Integration.

Known as “Jamaica’s First Lady of Jazz,” Dr. Hague-Bradshaw has performed at jazz venues in London and recorded for Studio One.

She founded the Ocho Rios Jazz Festival with her husband, jazz musician Sonny Bradshaw, and continues to organise the festival.

In November 2012, she received a Caribbean Hall of Fame Award from the Caribbean Development for the Arts, Sports and Culture Foundation.

She has a Doctorate in Cultural Studies from the UWI with her thesis examining Jazz in the Caribbean.

The Musgrave Medals are awarded by the IOJ in recognition of notable contributions to Literature, Science and Arts, in Jamaica and the West Indies.

The award was introduced as a memorial to Sir Anthony Musgrave, Governor of Jamaica, from 1877-1883, who founded the Institute of Jamaica, in 1897.