Raquel Wright
Alicia Roache, Entertainment Co-ordinator
RAQUEL WRIGHT came back from China and the Miss Universe 2005 pageant determined to make a mark. But she probably did not dream that that would come through children making several marks of their own.
Raquel is part of the 'Lesson for Life Visual and Performing Arts Initiative', which asks children from one to 16 years to express their thoughts and feelings about HIV/AIDS through the arts.
"It's really something that is dear to my heart," says Raquel. "I came back from Miss Universe and I had this desire to work with this initiative," she says. "It's like I'm making a meaningful contribution and creating my legacy. I want to be remembered as the Miss Jamaica Universe who did a lot for her country."
And so it is that the pitter patter of little hands and feet will become the main weapons in the latest attack in the ongoing fight against HIV/AIDS and a beauty queen will act as their public voice.
Raquel is working in conjunction with the HIV/AIDS Response Team of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Culture, the Ministry of Health and UNICEF.
'Lesson for Life', organised by the Ministry of Education, targets children in the preparatory, primary and secondary schools and aims at teaching children about the HIV/AIDS virus in terms that they can understand and use. And because HIV/AIDS affects children, mainly through mother-to-child transmission, it is thought that children should learn about the disease and how to deal with others who may be infected.
Raquel will give her first lesson to Grade 4 students at the Erwin Primary School in Montego Bay in the coming week. Shawni Wilson, guidance councellor at the school, has been teaching the grades five and six students and will continue the instruction of the other grades for the next week. "We have activities, read stories, have posters and charts with information about the disease," she explains.
RECEPTIVE, CURIOUS
According to Miss Wilson, the students have been receptive and curious regarding the lessons, some even displaying more knowledge than would be expected. "It's really interesting, the kinds of questions they ask about the disease", says Miss Wilson. "They ask questions about how they can contract it, like 'Miss, if I touch somebody like this can I get it?' I say no." Others, she says, ask about kissing, sharing and going to the barber for a shave. One student even suggested that people can contract the disease only if they have unprotected sex.
"We educate them about it so that they can take the message to parents, the community and so on," says Miss Wilson.
If this is successful, the children may be the most effective preventative strategy undertaken by the response team. "It's better to develop a young person, because when you are older it is harder for your value system to change," says Jenelle Babb, public relations specialist of the HIV/AIDS Response Team for the Ministry of Education and National Coordinator of the Lesson for Life project.
And it is not wise to hide children from sex education, especially since they are at times victims of sexual predators. "Sexuality begins the moment we are formed," says Miss Babb.
But there is another way that the children will become valuable allies.
Behaviour change or modification requires reinforcement. And one way of reinforcing the values and judging how well the lessons have been learnt is through the competition, so the lessons are not just theoretical.
The 'Make The Promise' Creative Arts Competition (a play on the World AIDS Day tagline 'Keep the Promise') allows children aged six to 11 to compete through the form of a poster, a puppet show or dub poem. Children seven to nine and 12 -16 years can compete with banners, skits or DJ/rap.
NOT A JUVENILE UNDERTAKING
The areas that the children should address suggest a far more mature response than one would normally expect from tots; but then, the idea of teaching and allowing children to express their ideas about HIV/AIDS and its effects is not a juvenile undertaking.
Miss Wilson says she has already begun practice for the competition with the grade 5 and 6 students. "We want them to continue the education process," she said. One student has already written a dub poem about the disease, she said.
One of three areas, 'What Children Can do to Support the Fight Against HIV/AIDS', 'How Society Can Protect and Care for Children Living With and Affected by the Virus', and 'What Actions Should be Taken by the Government or World Leaders to Protect the Human Rights of Children Living with the Disease' will be addressed by the children in the competition.
The expectations are mammoth, but Raquel says that she has seen a practical example of it working.
STRONG PARTICIPATION
The launch of the competition, which took place at the Half-Way Tree Primary School, St. Andrew, with Minister Maxine Henry-Wilson last month, also had strong participation from the children. According to Raquel, the interaction between the Minister and the students highlighted that the lessons can be taught and learnt in ways that are accessible to children.
The competition, which has a November 11 deadline for entries, will culminate on November 29 with the national finals.
Outside of this there is the aim to get all the schools to display their work on World AIDS Day, December 1. Winners of each category will receive prizes, which include DVDs, VCRs and other electronic items for their schools.
On World AIDS Day there will be a free concert at Emancipation Park, which will feature "various entertainment packages" and where the response team will offer free AIDS testing.
"Not enough people are getting tested," says Raquel. She says she will be the first to get tested at the Park that day, because she believes knowing one's HIV/AIDS status is very important in preventing the spread of the disease.
In spite of this, Jamaica is still ahead of many Caribbean countries in its HIV/AIDS response and the new focus on children seem a step in the right direction.
Jamaica has been named the HIV/AIDs 'champion' in the Caribbean for being the best at practising its HIV/AIDS response campaigns with Ministry of Education, UNICEF and the Ministry of Health. And Raquel says the title of Miss Jamaica Universe 2005 has helped her to get things done more efficiently. "It definitely makes a difference, because I think that people take me more seriously. They are like 'what can I do?' I definitely have been able to use the title to the benefit of the campaign," she said.
She is trying to raise $1 million for the cause, to be donated to non-governmental organisations involved in the fight against HIV/AIDS.
