Dear Editor,

Jamaica has one of the most interesting societies and one of the most interesting histories anywhere in the Americas. Both are intimately related. From the original Tainos who ranged across the island before 1492 through episodes of Spanish and English colonialism and now in its 50th year as an Independent state, Jamaica has been a microcosm of the basic changes that took place across the hemisphere. But where can these interesting changes be observed in one place in Jamaica? Nowhere.

The Institute of Jamaica downtown, the National Archives in Spanish Town, the National Library, and the extraordinary Caribbean Collection of the University of the West Indies all hold important resources that illustrate this marvellous history. But that is not enough. Scattered samples do not and cannot be expected to illustrate the rich culture and history.

Jamaica needs a new culture museum with the latest interactive technology and representing the entire range of the Jamaican experience. Such a museum should have Indian artefacts. It could have copies of houses in which Indians lived and what popular implements they used in their daily lives as well as the zemis used in their religious rituals. Spanish colonial influences abound in place names and the core buildings of Spanish Town. The English had a long association with the island, fundamentally transforming its environment, demography, society and economy.

The museum should try to portray life on plantations and common villages as well as the various peoples brought to Jamaica to construct the plantation complex. It should have English, Irish, Welsh and Scots along with Africans from all over Africa, Indians from India and Pakistan, as well as immigrants from Persia, Lebanon, Syria and China. The museum should reflect the full range of diversity and plurality that is an integral part of the Jamaican reality. That is the motto: “Out of many, one people”.

Vernacular architecture over the past 100 years should be included as well as general changes in Jamaica since Independence. Jamaicans should be able to enter the museum and watch art, still and moving pictures of their past, as well as documentaries of their history. Writers reading from their works – or others reading the poetry and prose produced on the island should be a feature of the museum. A dedicated culture museum has endless possibilities. And the best location? The National Heroes Park. But any suitable place would do. The important thing is to begin the process: a museum for Jamaicans, by Jamaicans.

Daniel Lawson

Kingston 5