SO2&3 Oct 20
First Up!
… a new Windrush doc. Yes, we’re still talking about Windrush — we have to!
In 2015 Paulette Wilson, a resident of Wolverhampton in Central England, received a letter from the Home Office, instructing her to report to immigration officials. Every month. In 2017 she was detained and spent a week at Yarl’s Wood immigration removal centre before being released. The funny thing is, Wilson has been living in the UK since 1968 and has been paying taxes annually for the better part of five decades. Wilson, like so many others, is a part of the Windrush Generation. This generation has suffered due to the Windrush betrayal that has been a canker sore on the lives of numerous Caribbean immigrants living in England.
Wilson’s story was made into a short documentary by the Guardian — After Windrush: Paulette Wilson’s Story. Since its release online it has amassed close to 200,000 views on Instagram and over 182,000 views on YouTube. Not only does the doc allow us to peer into Wilson’s life in the UK but also her first trip to Jamaica in over 50 years.
Her reunion with family is bittersweet as she was sent to England at 10 years old by her mother and never saw her again. A scene where she lies on her mother’s grave and says “Mummy mi deh ya” is, in a word, heartbreaking. Kudos to the Guardian for making such a beautiful piece of art. After Windrush: Paulette Wilson’s Story is approximately 25 minutes in duration and can be viewed on YouTube.
Still across the pond…
In June the Jamaican Society Leeds opened an exhibit exploring the impact that Jamaican immigrants (especially those who were part of the Windrush Generation) have had on Leeds. Dubbed The Eulogy Project, the exhibition has been so popular that the run date has been extended and is now open to the public seven days a week. Huzzah!
On Friday, October 11 The Eulogy Project hosted a panel discussion with three authors of Jamaican descent exploring how their Jamaican roots have influenced their works. On the panel were novelists Sara Collins and Colin Grant, and poet Hannah Lowe. Each writer read excerpts from their works and had the audience mesmerised.
Next up, we jet across to Gotham…
Where Island Records’ 60th anniversary is being celebrated in a pop-up experience at the Dolby Soho. The venue previously mounted exhibitions paying tribute to pop legend Elton John and hip-hop royalty the Wu-Tang Clan (aptly called the Wu-Tang Wu-Seum). Of course, Island Records founder Chris Blackwell was in the Big Apple to take in the exhibit for himself. Congrats, Chris, on this milestone!
Speaking of Caribean art…
Kudos to Island Origins Magazine publisher Calibe Thompson! Thompson, who lives in Miami, made a case for Caribbean artists in a recent article entitled: Why You Should Be Collecting Caribbean Art on Any Budget. She shared that her first paycheque was used to purchase a piece of “burnt leather wall art” that she discovered at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel.
And…
For those of you who don’t know, Usain Bolt is a spokesperson for the PayPal service Xoom. Side note: the brand synergy here is mint, what an appropriately named product for the world’s fastest man to endorse. We peeped the new Xoom ad on Bolt’s Instagram page and had to share.
Etc…
Still on the topic of fast human beings, “Mommy Rocket” Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce will be a part of a panel at the 10th annual ESPN Women + Sports Summit in Newport Beach, California. Fraser-Pryce will take the stage on Heroes’ Day in the espnW World Class Athlete Panel. Although she deserves to be a keynote speaker, Fraser-Pryce will be joined by two-time CrossFit Games champion Katrin Tanja Davidsdottir from Iceland, and Irish professional wrestler Becky Lynch. The panel discussion will be moderated by ESPN SportsCenter co-host Sage Steele.
