The Mona

campus of the University of the West Indies (UWI) will be hosting several

activities over the next few months to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the

birthday of late cultural icon, Dr the Hon Louise Bennett Coverley, popularly

known as ‘Miss Lou’.

The activities, under the theme ‘Miss Lou 100’, include a debate titled, ‘Louise Bennett for National Icon’; a poetry clash; an exhibition celebrating Miss Lou’s centennial; public consultations on the issue of language rights in Jamaica; and a Walter Rodney lecture dedicated to Miss Lou.

Director of

the UWI’s Institute for Gender and Development Studies, Professor Opal Palmer

Adisa, who is spearheading the activities, said that several departments were

brought together to organise the tribute to the cultural icon.

These

include the Department of Literatures in English; Jamaican Language Unit; the

Institute for Gender and Development Studies (IGDS), Regional Coordinating

Office; the Main Library; Institute for Caribbean Studies; the Faculties of

Humanities and Education; and other stakeholders.

“I brought

the various departments together because I wanted it to be a university-wide

function,” she said.

Adisa said

that a ‘Regional Day’ will be held on October 7 at the Regional Headquarters

while a Miss Lou symposium focused on gender-based violence will take place on

November 25.

She said

that the symposium, which will be held on International Day for the Elimination

of Violence Against Women (IDEVAW), will explore Miss Lou’s work and its

relevance in addressing gender-based violence in Jamaica.