I recently moved into a rural community. Here I found a most welcoming set of neighbours. Having lived in several urban communities I was able to make some comparisons. In most of the places I have lived there has been a tight-knit group of people. In some instances a sense of community had been carefully created over time. In others it required more work to build relationships. But in all cases, invariably, we looked out for each other when travelling at night, called across fences, shared the bounty of our gardens and ovens; watched each other’s houses when the other was absent; entertained each other; engaged in community projects; and kept an eye on children at play through our windows.

Where there is little emphasis on community integration and strength, there will be national fissures. This is why the ‘C’ in the PNP’s transformational acronym C.H.A.N.G.E represents community and citizen security; it naturally, therefore, addresses changing cultures and cultural development in communities and for the security of communities. Culture is seen as the negotiation of power and meaning. Culture and politics are, therefore, kissing cousins. In its manifesto, the ‘E’ in C.H.A.N.G.E stands for economy and entertainment. Culture and entertainment, therefore exist at the beginning and end of C.H.A.N.G.E. There is no accident in this thinking.

Initially, to address low-hanging fruit for immediate action items across councils, the PNP has committed to strengthening and reorienting the regulatory framework for community entertainment and community economies. This sends the signal that community enterprise and the development of the MSME sector form an important pillar of economic policy. For Jamaica to bolster its GDP, its Government must proactively place emphasis on local community economies by stimulating inclusive economic growth and unleashing the creative economic energy of our people at the local level.

Through this commitment, at the local level, emphasis is being placed on entertainment as a subsector of the broader creative industries. This is driven by community social initiatives to serve as a source of income generation in communities. This requires a proactive approach to simplifying and making new laws governing the entertainment sector, as part of a broader legislative framework that legitimises cultural production, expression, trade, consumption and recreation.

Increasing the efficiency of parish council services in relation to entertainment, making them user-friendly, transparent, and accessible is a first step. It requires immediate remedial action. The following are primary commitments of PNP local government policy and action.

Establish a one-stop shop for event approvals and an elimination of the use of permits to victimise communities. A digital platform for the issuance of permits, facilitating better planning and execution of entertainment events, will support this effort.

Establish community enterprise zones (CEZ) to stimulate investment and fortify economic activity within communities and deepen economic linkages across the economy, leveraging the creative economic energy of our people.

Empower local authorities to manage local amenities (parking facilities, bus parks, etc) to enhance revenue generation, and hold them accountable for their performance.

Introduce new regulations to address street food, vending, barbers, cosmetologists, etc, fostering a conducive and safe environment for these vibrant, local economic activities.

Review the Places of Amusement Regulations (1899) and the Spirit License Act 1928 to establish a transparent process and remove arbitrariness, ensuring fair treatment so as to enhance opportunities within the entertainment industry.

Review vending regulations and ensure dignified treatment for vendors by prescribing spaces with requisite services, and implementing proper zoning for market transformation.

Support and transform local commerce through reform and development initiatives for market districts.

Provide dignified spaces that honour and respect vendors, farmers, and consumers, contributing to community well-being and economic growth.

These are practical, remedial, first-steps on the road to re-engendering a sense of community and culture that lends itself to continued local government reform. The bigger picture requires the implementation of a participatory framework that sees each individual as part of its governance process, rather than someone who has to be represented in decision making. I propose four approaches, all grounded in governance reliant on the global best practice of a partnership of equals between the State, the private sector, and civil society — it insists that all politics is local; so too is culture.

The Four C’s of Community and Culture

Collaboration, cooperation, communication and cultural sensitivity form the core of this commitment. They are the four C’s of the cultures of community and citizen security. One example of this is stepping up to address balance in communities, the tension between entertainment and worship activities and lifestyles; and well-being regarding decibel levels affecting various communities. It is a real challenge and a contentious one. There are real points to be made on both sides. Pretending this tension does not exist will only cause greater consternation of both residential communities and the entertainment fraternity. Developing a mechanism to ensure that such issues can be addressed in short order is critical. This will require an emphasis on:

Strengthening cultures of community coordination – closer facilitation and cooperation of community organisations with Parish councils, including enhanced communication and camaraderie;

Emphasising a culture of well-being – introducing, as a matter of course, cultural expression interventions, cultural therapy, and peace management as important methods of returning and maintaining peace, security, and positive relationships in communities — particularly those where trauma is prevalent;

Engendering cultures of community economics – using planned, community-based activities like round robins, tournaments, fairs and festivals as the means for community members and enterprises to participate in income and wealth generation in and for their communities;

Facilitating cultures of public-private partnership – this should begin with Kingston, which is inscribed by UNESCO as a Creative City of Music. A plan of action for partnership-driven projects at all levels of society and the economy is required to this end; as well as a clear governance structure for the creative City.

In the political arena you learn that different communities have different codes. In violence-torn communities the men know when to take their leave and the women stand firm. Ludi, dominoes, and the games machine in the bar are a staple. In times of unrest everyone knows the clues and the cues that say move or stand. The Church convention, choir practice on Thursday, and Boys’ and Girls’ Brigade on Saturday still remain a community staple. The significance of the Church, the school, the clinic, community centre, corner shop(s), bar and even, still, the post office as institutions are as important as the community nurse, teacher, selector, shopkeeper and the fading role of post-misses.

In my new rural community, any sense of community care that I thought I knew has increased exponentially. At least once a month there is a gathering at one home or another. We all pick up eggs at the local corner supplier. We buy and sell, or simply share the fruits of our farm plots. Whether urban or rural, if all politics is local, so too is all culture. Community and culture are inextricably linked. One does not go without the other. It is in communities that cultures are formed and shaped. At the centre of this is family and family life. A community is a network of people and institutions and the ways in which we relate to each other, and behave, our belief systems, traditions and practices; the ways in which we celebrate and the ways we mourn; how we work and all other relationships — it is all about community and all about culture. The health and strength of communities islandwide are indicators of the health and strength of a nation at its core.

If local government is about community, a primary emphasis on culture is necessary. The de-emphasis on local government and ostensibly on the welfare of communities in the last eight years must be seen as a calculated erosion of the fabric of core Jamaican cultures of community that must be reversed.

Dr Deborah Hickling Gordon is a specialist in culture in development and cultural policy in SIDS and the Global South; a lecturer in cultural and creative industries; and Opposition spokesperson on culture and creative industries.