JEAN LOWRIE-CHIN
Monday, July 18, 2011
Recent events - a teen in a taxi shot in the head by a person who cannot be named, a six-year-old abducted and murdered, graves desecrated as thugs hunt for gold - call for a wickedness-prevention programme. I cannot believe that our two political parties can be so fervently on the hustings and so enthusiastically followed by the news, while ordinary citizens - and not even the dead - can be at peace.
Governor General Sir Patrick Allen's call for support from the advertising and media fraternity at last week's AAAJ Media Awards event for his "I Believe" Initiative (IBI) should be heeded. While we certainly do not want the media to become strait-laced sermonisers, we have to give ourselves a reality check.
Kathy Grant, the young talent in the Ity & Fancy Cat Show who teaches at Calabar Primary, related the challenges her young pupils are facing. While we are celebrating high fashion, there are children attending school in "shoe-shells". Shoe shells? "Yes," she explained. "They have the uppers of the shoes on, but the soles have long been worn out and fallen off so their bare feet are on the ground."
Teachers speak of children arriving hungry at school and even at our tertiary institutions, there are students who are barely eating one meal a day. When you contrast these conditions with the lifestyle being portrayed in some sections of the media, we understand how impoverished youngsters, hungry for the fast life, are at serious risk. "Your partnership is crucial to the IBI," the GG told the media, "which focuses on self-actualisation, particularly for our troubled youth who are vulnerable to abuse and easy recruitment into criminal gangs."
We have seen the great results from Parenting Seminars sponsored by USAID with a mother disclosing that she had no idea what a budget was, but now she felt empowered to tell her son, "No, I will not buy you the brand-name sneakers. This $6,000 is to go towards your schoolbooks." Basic meal-planning to show parents how to make economical, nutritious dishes have made a difference to their children's well-being.
Our pages and programmes cannot look the same as media in the developed world. We have what Sir Patrick describes as "a duty of care" to the more vulnerable among us, especially the young and the elderly. The unfolding election campaigns and the juicy Wikileaks tidbits make interesting reading, but media will have to "mother", "father" and "police" where the rest of the society is falling short.
Our ageing population
If we are lucky, one day we will be elderly so we had better take notice that if we do not address population ageing now, we may be the very victims of that lack of planning, a timely warning from Professor Denise Eldemire Shearer, head of the Mona Ageing and Wellness Centre. At the launch of World Population Day last Monday, we learned that the number of people over 65 years will be 14 per cent of Jamaica's population in 2030 and by 2050 will reach the 21 per cent mark. Executive Director of the National Family Planning Board Dr Olivia McDonald observed that "the proportion of elderly dependents continues to grow while the working-age population declines as a percentage of the overall population. These demographic trends can have potentially damaging consequences for Jamaica's social and economic future".
"The protection of persons who are in need of care in old age will be unavoidably the responsibility for public policies in the years to come," said Beverley Hall-Taylor, Executive Director of the National Council for Senior Citizens. Past NAJ President Merel Hanson noted the challenges in housing and the environment. She said that elderly folks are encouraged to walk for exercise but many live in fear and demand to know, "Where can we walk?"
In the CCRP (Caribbean Community of Retired Persons), we have young retirees who have much to offer in every sphere of national life. We need a policy that will ensure that these experienced individuals are allowed to pass on the treasure of their values, knowledge and skills to the next generation.
We have to snap out of this impoverished approach to nation-building, the constant re-invention of the wheel, with the oft-repeated studies citing the same tired findings. Meanwhile, there seems to be a conspiracy of mediocrity ( I will be writing more about this) which is stifling innovation and efficiency. Where is our compassion?
Alternative energy sources
Let us look at the matter of electricity that is taking huge bites out of every budget, whether residential or business, and a great burden for our elderly. There was a report last week that finally the people of Carron Hall, St Mary, were getting potable piped water, thanks to the installation of a solar-powered water pump. At St John Bosco Boys' Home in Hatfield, pig droppings are converted to biogas to power their stoves. Anyone can google instructions to make a solar oven with material costing less than $1,000.
Our media could save us millions by publishing diagrams of these energy-saving devices, demonstrating the how-to on television and websites. We cannot blame the JPS investors who are spending millions to keep their company running and their large workforce on the payroll. It is up to us as responsible leaders and citizens to explore the alternatives. Sun, wind and water are abundant in Jamaica, so we have limitless raw material for our research.
Bleaching and self-image
In the area of values, we in media can look beyond ridiculing those who "bleach" to addressing the negative self-image that would drive our young people to do damage to their beautiful, God-given skin. We can encourage youngsters to spend less time on ridiculous and expensive styles and gadgets, and more on their education. We can celebrate refreshing lyrics like Iceman's "Wifey" and decent families who may not be rich, but who contribute to community building.
We quote from Ken Jones's Marcus Garvey said... a statement made by the great man in 1919: "We need crusaders in journalism who will not seek to enrich themselves of crime and ignorance ... (but will promote) racial pride, self-respect, love and integrity." Time to give him a listen.
lowriechin@aim.com
www.lowrie-chin.blogspot.com
Source: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/columns/We-need--wickedness-prevention_9226549#ixzz1TLlnK6ZP
.
Monday, July 18, 2011
Recent events - a teen in a taxi shot in the head by a person who cannot be named, a six-year-old abducted and murdered, graves desecrated as thugs hunt for gold - call for a wickedness-prevention programme. I cannot believe that our two political parties can be so fervently on the hustings and so enthusiastically followed by the news, while ordinary citizens - and not even the dead - can be at peace.
Governor General Sir Patrick Allen's call for support from the advertising and media fraternity at last week's AAAJ Media Awards event for his "I Believe" Initiative (IBI) should be heeded. While we certainly do not want the media to become strait-laced sermonisers, we have to give ourselves a reality check.
Kathy Grant, the young talent in the Ity & Fancy Cat Show who teaches at Calabar Primary, related the challenges her young pupils are facing. While we are celebrating high fashion, there are children attending school in "shoe-shells". Shoe shells? "Yes," she explained. "They have the uppers of the shoes on, but the soles have long been worn out and fallen off so their bare feet are on the ground."
Teachers speak of children arriving hungry at school and even at our tertiary institutions, there are students who are barely eating one meal a day. When you contrast these conditions with the lifestyle being portrayed in some sections of the media, we understand how impoverished youngsters, hungry for the fast life, are at serious risk. "Your partnership is crucial to the IBI," the GG told the media, "which focuses on self-actualisation, particularly for our troubled youth who are vulnerable to abuse and easy recruitment into criminal gangs."
We have seen the great results from Parenting Seminars sponsored by USAID with a mother disclosing that she had no idea what a budget was, but now she felt empowered to tell her son, "No, I will not buy you the brand-name sneakers. This $6,000 is to go towards your schoolbooks." Basic meal-planning to show parents how to make economical, nutritious dishes have made a difference to their children's well-being.
Our pages and programmes cannot look the same as media in the developed world. We have what Sir Patrick describes as "a duty of care" to the more vulnerable among us, especially the young and the elderly. The unfolding election campaigns and the juicy Wikileaks tidbits make interesting reading, but media will have to "mother", "father" and "police" where the rest of the society is falling short.
Our ageing population
If we are lucky, one day we will be elderly so we had better take notice that if we do not address population ageing now, we may be the very victims of that lack of planning, a timely warning from Professor Denise Eldemire Shearer, head of the Mona Ageing and Wellness Centre. At the launch of World Population Day last Monday, we learned that the number of people over 65 years will be 14 per cent of Jamaica's population in 2030 and by 2050 will reach the 21 per cent mark. Executive Director of the National Family Planning Board Dr Olivia McDonald observed that "the proportion of elderly dependents continues to grow while the working-age population declines as a percentage of the overall population. These demographic trends can have potentially damaging consequences for Jamaica's social and economic future".
"The protection of persons who are in need of care in old age will be unavoidably the responsibility for public policies in the years to come," said Beverley Hall-Taylor, Executive Director of the National Council for Senior Citizens. Past NAJ President Merel Hanson noted the challenges in housing and the environment. She said that elderly folks are encouraged to walk for exercise but many live in fear and demand to know, "Where can we walk?"
In the CCRP (Caribbean Community of Retired Persons), we have young retirees who have much to offer in every sphere of national life. We need a policy that will ensure that these experienced individuals are allowed to pass on the treasure of their values, knowledge and skills to the next generation.
We have to snap out of this impoverished approach to nation-building, the constant re-invention of the wheel, with the oft-repeated studies citing the same tired findings. Meanwhile, there seems to be a conspiracy of mediocrity ( I will be writing more about this) which is stifling innovation and efficiency. Where is our compassion?
Alternative energy sources
Let us look at the matter of electricity that is taking huge bites out of every budget, whether residential or business, and a great burden for our elderly. There was a report last week that finally the people of Carron Hall, St Mary, were getting potable piped water, thanks to the installation of a solar-powered water pump. At St John Bosco Boys' Home in Hatfield, pig droppings are converted to biogas to power their stoves. Anyone can google instructions to make a solar oven with material costing less than $1,000.
Our media could save us millions by publishing diagrams of these energy-saving devices, demonstrating the how-to on television and websites. We cannot blame the JPS investors who are spending millions to keep their company running and their large workforce on the payroll. It is up to us as responsible leaders and citizens to explore the alternatives. Sun, wind and water are abundant in Jamaica, so we have limitless raw material for our research.
Bleaching and self-image
In the area of values, we in media can look beyond ridiculing those who "bleach" to addressing the negative self-image that would drive our young people to do damage to their beautiful, God-given skin. We can encourage youngsters to spend less time on ridiculous and expensive styles and gadgets, and more on their education. We can celebrate refreshing lyrics like Iceman's "Wifey" and decent families who may not be rich, but who contribute to community building.
We quote from Ken Jones's Marcus Garvey said... a statement made by the great man in 1919: "We need crusaders in journalism who will not seek to enrich themselves of crime and ignorance ... (but will promote) racial pride, self-respect, love and integrity." Time to give him a listen.
lowriechin@aim.com
www.lowrie-chin.blogspot.com
Source: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/columns/We-need--wickedness-prevention_9226549#ixzz1TLlnK6ZP
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