National Library Mounts Online Exhibit on Sam Sharpe Rebellion

An online exhibition on the Sam Sharpe Rebellion of 1831 has been established by the National Library of Jamaica (NLJ) for Labour Day.
The exhibit will open on Monday, May 17 at the NLJ’s new website at www.nlj.gov.jm.
Public Relations and Marketing Officer at the NLJ, Denise Walker, told JIS News that persons visiting the site will be able to view a map, which shows the sugar estates in the parishes of St. James, Trelawny and St. Elizabeth that were burnt during the uprising.
This map, which was drawn in 1832, shortly after the slave rebellion was quashed, has been digitised and set in a format that cAN be accessed by computer.
Mrs. Walker told JIS News that the Sam Sharpe Rebellion is being highlighted to show the link between the revolt and the modern day labour movement.
The uprising, she said, is significant, as it was the first strike action undertaken by persons, who were born in Jamaica. “There were other slave revolts before but these were by slaves who came directly from Africa,” she pointed out.
The NLJ officer is encouraging young persons, who have access to the Internet, to visit the site in order to learn more about Jamaica’s history.
“Now that it is online and accessible to everybody, persons who are interested can look at it and do not have to come into the library,” she said.
She informed that the exhibition provides links to the labour laws pertaining to children, information on the rights of children, and there is a section, which deals with the origins of modern day Labour Day.
“It started in 1938 and has changed over the years with leaders adding different things, and so we have all of that in the exhibition for persons to learn about,” Mrs. Walker noted.