I am encouraged to see that well-thinking Jamaicans are expressing outrage over the exposure of our children to the lewd and violent lyrics that are destroying their innocence. I congratulate the Broadcasting Commission on the ban on these lyrics being played on the airwaves. As a nation, we need now to work together to clean up what is aired on the buses and taxis. In addition, music that is for adults should be played in restricted areas, away from the ears of children.
The minister of education, in addressing the press conference at Jamaica House to launch Peace and Love in Society's Peace Day 2009, at Jamaica House, informed us that the powers that be would be engaging the franchise holders of the buses to educate the bus drivers on the type of music that is suitable to be aired, as well as songs that are not suitable. In addition, the minister of national security has said that the police would be enforcing the ban on lewd and violent lyrics on the buses.
All well-thinking citizens need to play their part in making sure that the guidelines laid down by the Broadcasting Commission are followed, as well as insist that these unacceptable lyrics are not aired in public passenger vehicles.
X-rated productions
The behaviour of many of our young people, especially those from dysfunctional homes, is largely directed by the music that they listen to and the videos that they see. The children gravitate towards the buses in which they can hear the X-rated songs and watch the X-rated videos. If you go to Half-Way Tree, you would realise that many students are not going to the Transportation Centre to take the JUTC buses; rather, they are by Mandela Park and the Mother's bus stop to take the franchise buses that will offer them this diet of violence and slackness. These buses need to be monitored.
Marcia Forbes, coming out of research that she did for her doctoral thesis, wrote an article titled Big People Business Outa Road, in which she quoted someone as saying: "You find that the schoolgirls dem try to copy what the video do. Because you see in the Coaster dem, dem play the music video and the girls dem have sex inna di bus. Dem have some secret holes in some a di bus dem."
Not only do they imitate sexual behaviour, but both boys and girls adopt the attitude and violent behaviour which these lyrics reflect. One of our popular reggae artistes, speaking at a forum at Jamaica House on this aspect of our music, stated that in Jamaica, the artistes have the manual for behaviour. Further to this, the prime minister made the point that no one could counter the fact that music has great power in Jamaica.
Right values and attitudes
These statements ring true, since as Jamaicans, we can see that the music has helped to transform our culture to one where to be disrespected is the greatest offence. The music gives the right to anyone who is disrespected to use violence in retaliation. It is our music that has helped to develop among us the culture that to speak out against wrong means that you are an 'informer' and that ' informer fi dead'.
If we are to become a nation where violence is no longer our hallmark, the music must change. The music, with its power and influence, can be used to help our children to learn appropriate values and attitudes. The music can help children who will not learn at school to begin to take their schoolwork seriously. More of our artistes need to use their creativity and sense of rhythm to accomplish this. We know this from hearing about mothers who, instead of teaching children their 'ABCs', are having their little three-year-olds sing all the 'daggerin' songs and are teaching them the dances. Can you imagine what could be done if the music were used to teach positive messages about life and to teach them how to read?
I want to encourage the powers that be, do something about the violation of the rights of decent well-thinking citizens who live in the inner cities and who have to be subjected to the diet of music filled with lewdness and violence. I agree with Ian Boyne on this matter. Why do we assume that decent people who go to church and who want to bring up their children in a right and godly way don't live in the inner cities?
I read the letter in last Tuesday's Gleaner written by one such citizen who made it clear that he wanted to be able to live in peace, to raise his children free from this violation and to have his elderly father be able to sleep and rest, free from lewdness and violence. In addition, I will quote from a letter sent to me by another citizen who lives in a community where children are being violated by adults using the music to stir their base behaviour.
"In my community, every Wednesday night they have daggerin' in the middle of the road. Anyway after 10 o'clock, they play all dirty song. They had a mattress. They made the girls from nine years old to 15 years old, put dem one one on the matress, then the music man started to play. Then he say, 'Little gal, you go on the matress'.
"He call the man dem by dem name. Say get on top. Then he began work. He say words like this, 'We inna the rampin room, so a just sex'. 'Wine gal, sen it in ... hold her down, give it to her, doan mek she get way'. Bad word, bad word! It sick my stomach! When you hear eight-year-old child say the song make she want sex, it getting out of hand.
"Everywhere you went di man dem dying for Wednesday night to come to go dagger di pickney dem. I wish if di police dem could lock off it all the times. Too much ting happening now. We want back Jamaica from the nasty song, from rape, from gunman, from all who doing this to our country, to our nation, to our people. Enough is enough now man!"
Esther Tyson is principal of Ardenne High School, St Andrew. Feedback may be sent to columns@gleanerjm.com.