There is a popular French phrase, 'Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose'. Loosely translated it means 'the more things change, the more they remain the same'. I am stunned that a segment of our Jamaican society seems so upset at the crowning of the new Miss Jamaica World 2009, Kerrie Baylis.

I am transformed to 1973 when another stunning beauty, Patsy Yuen, won the title.

Will we ever fully break the psychological barriers surrounding colour and race? Here again in 2009 is a woman who has every right to call herself a Jamaican and we smugly wish to exclude her from the title based solely on skin colour and race. This is almost 40 years since the Patsy Yuen story and we know what a great representative and ambassador she was. Is this not what we identify as racism? We cannot have it both ways.

Grow up, Jamaica. In the most recent Miss Universe Contest, Miss France was black, along with a contestant from one of the Scandinavian countries. Deal with the realities of a changing world. Jamaica actually has had a head start based on our motto 'Out of many, one people'. The rest of the world is now playing catch up.

I am, etc.,

HENRY MORGAN

zekelucky@yahoo.ca

Toronto, Canada