Beverley Anderson-Manley
Miss Lou passed on quietly last week. In an insightful interview with Michael Anthony Cuff which was replayed on CVM Television last week, Miss Lou took us across the landscape of a life in which she described her early years as ones during which she had the love of both parents although her father died when she was only seven years old. Her beloved grandmother died two years later. She grew up in a Jamaica where extended families were the norm. There were always loving, nurturing and guiding adults around her. One of the lasting impacts of this type of 'grounding' in family and extended family is that she exuded quiet confidence, resilience and a high level of commitment all her life. In addition, she loved being with people and she was never afraid to take on the mission that was to be her life.
Until today, almost anything that is seen to be of the masses of the people is still derided by elements in our society. Rex Nettleford reminds us constantly that in Jamaica we are all just "one step removed from the cane piece." This was the 'cass cass' that Miss Lou stepped into. But the point is that she stepped nonetheless and remained on a path that was to bring her worldwide fame.
Ambivalence
There is no doubt that a great deal of things have changed in Jamaica, but one of the constants is this ambivalence and even denial about our African ancestry. For example, in spite of Miss Lou's work, the Jamaican dialect is still associated with the working class and, therefore, seen as inferior. A significant number of Jamaicans of African ancestry still have a sense of shame about Africa and things African. Apart from anything else, like others in our world, we do not deal with diversity well. My 'Afro' upset many in the 1970s. I received accolades for having the courage to wear this hairstyle. But equally, I received hate mail. The common sentiment was "Please straighten your hair!" As for the African wraps that I wore - this was even worse. Again - the veil of shame around Africa.
The Middle Passage
So we have come a long way but indeed, we still have such a long way to go. Let us place Africa and things African squarely on the national agenda. Let us continue to have meaningful discourse on a critical aspect of our history that impacts on us today, that which Marcus Garvey and later Bob Marley appropriately described as 'mental slavery'. The mental and emotional re-crossing of the Middle Passage is a psychological journey that we neglect to take at our own risk. It is on this journey that we can unearth what was buried deep down in "the waters of the rivers of life" - those ancestral memories and traditions that challenge and offer alternatives to the way of life in the West that we have accepted as the only way. A better understanding of where we came from augurs well for us in determining who we really are.
Louise Bennett-Coverley through her powerful writings revealed for us elements of our identity that are steeped in our Africanness and our African traditions. Her methodology was humour and satire. Her writings are a prism through which we can continue to observe our history, our culture and our social relationships. Her writings encourage us to hold our behavioural patterns up in front of us. They help us stay out of denial. They assist us in not taking ourselves too seriously.
Learning The Lessons
As we celebrate her life and her work - let us do what she would have liked best - let us learn lessons from her personal life and her writings. While we will miss not seeing you physically, Miss Lou, we know that somewhere in our mental landscape, you loom large as we continue to struggle to escape the mental slavery that still resides in our collective consciousness.
As your grandmother would say: "Walk good, Miss Lou."
Beverley Anderson-Manley is a political scientist, gender specialist, broadcaster and corporate coach. Email: BManley@kasnet.com.
