Essay intro

Going back into Jamaican history music was and still is a very important part of the culture. The music made in Jamaica is called reggae music and it dates back to the 1940s and 50s. Before it was given the name reggae it was first called Mento. Reggae music is a mixture of many different music styles from different times. One of the founders of reggae music Toots Hibert and he ended up mixing the sounds of rock and ska music and created his own little rhythm. Ska was a type of mento and calypso-sounding rhythm. It is the music of the people and it mainly focused on bringing coming together as one like unity and it also stood for hope. During the 1970s in Jamaica a new type of music came out and it was called Dancehall. It all started with a couple of DJs named Coxsone Dodd and Prince Buster, but one of the biggest DJs is Yellowman. They had made a couple of different sounding rhythms other than just the basic ska and rock sound, they decided to add some urban funk to it and while that is going on they decided to rap or sing over the rhythm. Dancehall changed regular-sounding reggae to more up-to-date sounds and making events more electrifying. Not only does dancehall get the parties going it also impacted many people. People profited a lot from the music because a lot of speakers were purchased and, and it wasn’t only an impact to Jamaicbut it was many more islands. Dancehall music is one of the biggest impacts on Jamaican culture making everyone see the difference in music.

History and politics of Jamaica

Since Jamaica was taken over by an Engilsh colony in 1655 then a British colony came around during the years 1702 through 1962. After they came to Jamaica it becamse and independent island. The country became mostly democratic right after the British arrived. That is how its been for many years. Even though the majority is mostly democractic there are three types of parties. The first one being the Jamaican Labour Party, next the People's Natioanal Party, and last and the fairly newest party is the National Democratic Movement. The Jamaican Labour party started in 1943 and it was founded by Alexander Bustamante and is being lead by Andrew Holness. Holness is also the Prime Minister of Jamaica as well. The People's National Party was founded in 1938 by Osomond Theodore Fairclough. It is being lead by Mark Golding whos is also the president. The National Democratic Movement(NDM) being the most recent was founded in 1995 by two people Bobby Marsh and Brascoe Lee. the part eventually broke up after Golding was. going to become the president. The group is now lead by Peter Townsend and the chairman is Michael Williams. The NDM eventually split from the Jamaican Labour Party.The reason the party split was because it was understood that JA was suffering a lot from the economy and population was growing quickly. There are a number of treaties in Jamaica. There are treaties for victim of armed conflicts, methods and means of warfare, crimanal repression,

and last other treaties related to IHL which stands for International humanitarian law.

Murray, Lorraine. "Portia Simpson Miller". Encyclopedia Britannica, 8 Dec. 2020, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Portia-Simpson-Miller. Accessed 30 March 2021. History. (2014, January 21). Retrieved March 30, 2021, from http://ndmjamaica.com/history/ Site designed and built by Hydrant (http://www.hydrant.co.uk). (n.d.). Jamaica : Constitution and politics. Retrieved March 29, 2021, from https://thecommonwealth.org/our-member-countries/jamaica/constitution-politics

Self-Assessment

I feel like my blogs haven't been the best and they could use a little more work. For example, my choice of words could be better. Another thing I can fix is definitely how long all my posts are. Not all of them meet the 300-word mark. I usually just get to the point without explaining much detail about whatever I am talking about. Nothing really confuses me about the blogs but, It does stress me out just a little bit because of the research I have to do sometimes. I've never really been that good a researching and writing for that matter. English has always been my weakest subject so that does create a lot of stress for me when I have to write blogs. I could put a little more effort into the blog post but like I said earlier I just type what is asked for and that's it. I can really put more effort into adding more ideas to my sentences and that would help extend my word count for sure. We all procrastinate but I try not to because I am taking so many other classes and they are piled with work so sometimes I do forget about this class and end up doing it at the last minute. And work on top of that takes away more time. I rarely look back at my work but when I do I do see some errors here and there and I try to fix them but, a lot of times I just leave it as it is. I don't mind other students reading my post honestly and especially if they can give me some input on what is good or what to fix. I find it very helpful. Back in high school, I used to be scared of stuff like that but, I got over that because at the end of the day I can become a better writer. There isn't much we could talk about to help it's just more of practice. I've learned how to express myself a little more and make you a little more social. 

Jamaica Research

 I am choosing this island because it is a great vacation place for everyone. Although a lot of people say it is a great place there are some things about the island that isn't the best. There is a number of crimes that have been going on for many years now. It is known to be the world's third most dangerous place for women to travel to. Ever since 2018, murder rates have increased by 3.4%. Jamaica has had some of the world's highest murder rates for a couple years now. And is still a huge issue. Because of these crimes unemployment has been been a major problem on the island. It all starts with growing up as a child there. If children run with the wrong crowd and not having good parents in their lives it'll most likely lead to drugs and crime. Uneducated kids also end up being a problem and would lead to the wrong path. I want to do more research on these people I don't want people to think Jamaica is so bad even though there a major problems on the island people are finding ways to make it a better place. It will take some time to fix but it defiantly can be done. The reason this topic interests me the most is that I've never witnessed any sort of crime all the times I've visited and it just blows my mind about all the stories I hear about the crimes going on, but when I go it seems like the most peaceful place on the planet like nothing there can go wrong.

Jamaica's History

To begin, Jamaica was founded on August 6, 1963, which is their independence day, and was founded by the Europeans, and the man who found it was Christopher Columbus. Columbus finding Jamaica was actually new information to me even though I am coming from a Jamaican family. I always knew the British took over at some point because they drive on the opposite side over there, and the steering wheels are also on the opposite side from the US.  There were three colonies that went after Jamaica, the first being the English, then the Spanish, and the last the British from 1707 until 1962. It was then a Crown colony. What keeps the island going is the culture that comes with it. The music and food are a big part of it and those will never stop. I met a couple of big artists in Jamaica too while visiting a couple times. I find it very interesting how they don't treat the artist any different from just a regular person unlike how America does with a lot of paparazzi. 

1)Jamaica

2) the Bahamas

3) Belize

Island Travel

 Jamaica! A wonderful island to visit for a family vacation, a honeymoon, or even to go by yourself. The food there is to die for. From their curry chicken to jerked chicken and even to the beef patties, Jamaicas food is very good and very well known for it. Celebrities from all over have come to visit just because of the food. The culture there is amazing, Jamaicans are some of the nicest people you would ever meet. It is uplifting to place to be. Dancing and music are essential to the culture as well. Dancehall is the most popular music out there which was made in the late 70s and catchy. If you love to party there is no need to worry Jamaica is great to get your party on for sure. If parting isn't you're thing there are many places to see around the island, especially their beaches. This island has some of the most beautiful beaches around. One beach I would recommend visiting is Ocho Rios beach. One of the most relaxing beaches in my opinion and I can speak from experience. I've visited a hand full of times and I promise you will not regret it. Once you go you will not want to leave. You will in love with everything that the island will offer you. 

About Me

     My name is Brandon and I am a biology major. This is my second to last semester at GGC. I plan to go to Morehouse for PA school. After that, I want to branch off into radiology. I'm 24 and I was born in New Jersey. My family is from Jamaica. I have family all over the country and I even have some in Europe. I love to travel and been to most of the Caribbean, and I've been on 10 different cruises. I've also studied abroad in Costa Rica for about a week. That was a really great experience and it was a wonderful place to visit.  One thing that I love to do is watch movies. I usually watch more than five movies a week. Going to the gym is also another hobby of mine. My favorite sport would have to be basketball and my favorite player is Lebron James.