Search diligently for the heroes among us

Monday, October 17, 2011

WE hope that today's investiture ceremony of national honours and awards at King's House will signify to the country more than an appropriate gesture of a grateful nation.

For implicit in this morning's ceremony are the contributions to our national development made by many Jamaicans in previous years that have led to this moment.

While the country has so far found it fitting to grant the title of National Hero to seven outstanding citizens, Nanny, Sam Sharpe, George William Gordon, Paul Bogle, Marcus Garvey, Alexander Bustamante and Norman Manley, the fact is that Jamaica has continued to benefit from the works of hundreds of unsung heroes, many of whom are more concerned with the humanity of their actions rather than self-aggrandisement.

They cover many fields, and, in most cases, are not financially wealthy individuals. However, the simple, yet important things that they do impact on peoples lives, giving them hope and, in the process, stirring our collective conscience.

We pay tribute to those unsung heroes today, in much the same way that we hail the struggles of our national heroes for emancipation, equality, democracy and the right to self-government.

For this reason we again urge those charged with the noble task of selecting Jamaicans for honour to rise above petty partisan considerations and search most diligently for those most deserving. Otherwise, the honours will amount to little in value and will be soon of no relevance among our emerging generations.

We have also lamented in this space before, the unfortunate reality of the existence of a view among the wider population that there's no currency in recalling our history. However, we hold firmly to the view that it is by knowing and exploring our history that we can truly understand why and how we have got to this point.

And that knowledge, we believe, equips us better to advance, particularly in today's world in which shrinking borders have contributed to increased levels of cultural penetration and diversity.

It is, therefore, important that we respond to those developments with the kind of zeal that drove our national heroes' vision for a better Jamaica. And, if we are to achieve that ideal, it is also vital that we continue to draw strength and inspiration from their struggles.

Against that background, we are heartened by the Ministry of Education's decision to reintroduce Civics into the school curriculum at the primary and secondary levels. For while our students are equipped with biographical knowledge of our heroes from Social Studies, their exposure to the teachings and philosophies of the national heroes will provide them with a better foundation on which their transformation to responsible citizens can be built.

No one can deny that all seven national heroes have left a legacy of which we can be justly proud. Our task now is to preserve that legacy and build on it.

The persons who are being recognised today for their contribution to Jamaica's development are to be congratulated. We also hope that they will regard this honour as a call to further national duty.

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COMMENTS (4)

Delroy Reid--Salmon
12/24/2011

Dear Editor:
REMEMBERING THE SAM SHARPE REVOLT: BEYOND MEMORIALIZATION
By
Delroy A. Reid-Salmon,PhD.
Pastor, Grace Baptist Chapel & Research Fellow, Oxford Center for Christianity & Culture,
Delroy.reid-salmon@regents.ox.ac.uk
The celebration of Christmas, anticipation of electing a new government and excitement of the beginning of a New Year, could all eclipse from our memory one of the most monumental events that took place in our national history. If we are not careful, we could forget that December 27, 2011, is the 180th Anniversary of the Sam Sharpe Revolt. We may want to ask if it is fortuitous or providential that the Sam Sharpe Revolt took place at the time and during the season of the year when it did. We could also advance the argument that the Revolt has theological and political significance premised on the time of the year it occurred, its nature and objective, and the impact it had and continues to have on society. Taking these into account, it would be a missed opportunity not to at least remember this event.
On this, the 180th Anniversary of The Sharpe Revolt, I seek to go beyond memorializing this event to discovering its deeper meaning. Sharpe, who is the embodiment of this Revolt, is a visible yet invisible presence in our society. He is visible in terms of our immortalizing him as a National Hero, engraving his image on our $50.00 currency note, naming a college in his memory, erecting a statue in his honor and celebrating his life through various other events. But we need to ask ourselves- are these merely symbols and expressions of empty sentiments or are they true portrayals of a national role model? For notwithstanding all these memorabilia, it seems correct to say that Sharpe’s history and achievements are still largely unknown. While we know about these events, I wonder if we are truly aware of their meaning and significance. If we are not aware of them, it would suggest that our knowledge of Sharpe is at best superficial and his actions not fully understood. If so, we cannot remain at this level but should go beyond it to discover and unearth the deeper meaning of his work.
If we are serious about having Sharpe as a National Hero, his life and work should be a source for moral discourse and should be reflected in the making of public policy. It would be an attempt to emulate his life – what he sought to accomplish for the good of humanity – highlighting, for example, his desire to have a society where justice, freedom and equality define and govern national life.
Using Sharpe as a moral compass would necessitate rejecting the idolization of neo-liberalism, committing ourselves to the cause of the poor, critically and constructively dialoguing with the various ideologies that inform progressive social analysis for the transformation of society. If we are going to truly go beyond memorialization of Sam Sharpe, we have no option but to devote ourselves to the same cause to which he gave his life. Essentially, this is to produce, emulate and learn from the memorialized in answering new questions, facing new challenges, and continuing the process of building a better world in the spirit of his thought and manner of life.

Al Jhn
10/20/2011

We don't have to look very hard for these individuals as they are in every community in the Island, they stand out like a sore thumb. Inner City is filled with them, people who genuinely care maybe if more news was written about people like these then better things would come out of Inner City. Lime light is what they crave when they act up more time. Print the positive and see what happens over time.

James Bond
10/17/2011

I am suggesting Michael Manley should be made a national hero. If his work was not sabotaged by partisan political operatives from the JLP today Jamaica would have been a first world developed nation. Many of our younger Jamaicans has no knowledge of what M M did for Jacans especially youths (students) and women. Let us all as Jacans be united on this one, put political preferences aside because to date no other PM or political leader has implemented programs to move Ja forward since M Manley

David Armstrong
10/17/2011

In a society where there is too much political corruption and too much violent crime you would expect to hear voices of protest demanding an end to these serious problems. The relationship of powerful people like politicians with criminals and thugs makes it difficult for the police to apprehend criminals. And because of fear of reprisal people do not express their feelings of outrage. it is difficult then to find heroes in this kind of society. the one person I can think of is GREG CHRISTIE.

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Search diligently for the heroes among us