For the past three nights, most store owners in Kingston have participated in Fashion Night Out, sponsored by the Jamaica Observer. It is a chance for retailers to offer major discounts, promote their wares, raise awareness and get people shopping. Last year, it was only one night, but apparently proved so successful that it was three nights this year. On my runs early the following mornings also showed the evidence of good attendance: garbage everywhere on the streets.

We attended an event last night at Boutique No. 7, owned by ShellyAnn Curran. It is an upscale clothing store, housed in a beautiful old home on a large lot full of lush grass and trees. We checked out the clothes first (all so gorgeous) and then mingled and watched performances from several reggae artists, including a phenomenal set by Bugle. Another great night under an almost full moon.

Today was International Coastal Cleanup Day. Along with 40 youth from the community of Rockfort (where YOU is currently working), some volunteers and I ventured down to the Palisadoes area, near the airport. (Read more about the ICC Day here.)

We arrived about 9 am, were outfitted with gloves, hand sanitizer, trash bags (one for plastic, one for other trash), bananas and a form to document each and every article of garbage. We set out with a group of about 15 people from Rockfort.

Despite the proximity to the airport, the Palisadoes and Fort Rocky Beach is a placid area. The ocean was calm, flat and a grey-blue colour today, blending into the horizon. Luckily, we had some cloud cover, but i was still hot!

We picked up a few bags worth of trash, everything from plastic bottles, random pieces of plastic (seriously, so much plastic in all forms), shoes, toothpaste and toothbrushes.

After we deposited the trash at the designated area, we headed back to the buses. Congratulations to the people of Rockfort and everyone who turned out to nurture our delicate and beautiful coastlines.

Apparently, an earthquake shook Jamaica last night, of 3.4 magnitude.

The chatter on social media is such that many people felt it around midnight. I did not, guess I was sleeping too deeply.

Enjoy your Friday!

Tardiness is an issue here. So much so that the other day, two high schools locked out students who showed up late. They were also shut out for uniform infractions. Here’s the principal of one of the high schools:

Ruel Reid, principal of Jamaica College, said that he has had to demonstrate tough love at the all-boy institution. He recalled the backlash he faced from angry parents who accused him of trying to deny their children of an education.

“My position has always been, yes, you have a right to this education, but to access that right, you need to be disciplined,” he stressed.

“I don’t want to produce educated criminals. I want to produce educated young men that are going to contribute positively to the society and the world,” Reid emphasised.

Here is the counterpoint, with which I agree to a certain extent. It is not safe for students to be set free to wander the streets all day:

Executive director of the National Parenting Commission, Dr Patrece Charles-Freeman, agreed, questioning whether school administrators have security measures in place for students after they are locked out.

“Are you on the phone calling everybody’s parents because the school must ensure the safety of the students they have locked out,” Charles-Freeman told The Gleaner.

So there are two approaches to this issue: discipline will groom students to respect the rules, once and for all. Discipline is necessary, but must not endanger students and must also rely on parents or guardians to enforce rules and respect.

I am not sure what the answer is, but it is definitely not a good idea for youth to have nowhere to go or nothing to do all day.

My thoughts and prayers this morning are in my hometown of Ottawa, where at least six people have been killed in a horrible crash. Reports indicate that a double-decker OCTranspo bus collided with a VIA train, despite the fact that the safety barriers were lowered. Unbelievable.

In Kingston news, and on a related topic, the big yellow JUTC buses are ketching fire. So far, no one has been seriously injured, but this, of course, is major cause for concern.

On a less tragic note, a putrid smell is pervading the Kingston area. People were initially blaming the waste authorities, but it now appears that the culprit is a pond east of Kingston, in St. Thomas. The problem is apparently a “blockage of sand and water”.

Please have a safe day.

Abortion is still criminalized in many countries. This includes Jamaica. The Offences Against the Persons Act of 1864 states that

Every woman, being with child, who with intent to procure her own miscarriage, shall unlawfblly administer to her- self any poison or other noxious thing, or shall unlawfully use any instrument or other means whatsoever with the like in- tent; and whosoever, with intent to procure the miscarriage of any woman, whether she be or be not with child, shall unlaw- fully administer to her, or cause to be taken by her, any poison or other noxious thing, or shall unlawfblly use any instrument or other means whatsoever with the like intent, shall be guilty of felony, and, being convicted thereofl, shall be liable to be im- prisoned for life, with or without hard labour.

Despite this law, the World Health Organization reports that in Jamaica, 22,000 women between the ages of 15 and 44 will have an abortion every year. In addition, an Abortion Policy Review Group in 2007 found that in the Caribbean, between 65 and 70 per cent of women will at some point in their lives have an abortion. And according to youth advocate Jae Nelson,

Between March 1 and August 31, 2005, there were 641 patients at Ward 5, which deals exclusively with abortions at the Victoria Jubilee Hospital. All patients were from inner-city communities, single, and nearly half were Christians while a third were teenagers. About 40 per cent admitted to having had a previous termination of pregnancy and 30 per cent had two or more previous abortions.

To this end, earlier this year Minister of Youth and Culture Lisa Hanna introduced a motion to reintroduce the debate on abortion. It has yet to go anywhere, but hopefully a discussion will ensue.

Something must change, it is clear. Minister Hanna characterizes it as a state problem in that babies are having babies and costing government too much.

Sept. 28 is the Global Day of Action for Access to Legal and Safe Abortion. Youth Opportunities Unlimited will host a discussion on Twitter tomorrow on this topic. Please join in and share your thoughts. This is not just a matter of taxpayers’ dollars, it is a matter of access to safe and legal health care, women’s rights and dignity of one’s own body.

Who would do this? Why would they do it?

Someone defaced the Bob Marley statue, which sits outside the National Stadium. They threw red paint on it for some reason.

From the Jamaica Star story:

Managing Director at the Bob Marley Museum, Stephanie Marley, explained that she had also been oblivious to its defacement.

“I have no comment at this point because I wasn’t aware of this. This is sad. I know it’s a bronze statue, and I don’t know how it is going be cleaned,” she said.

Apparently it was done during a football game earlier this week, so it’s likely just an overzealous fan. Enjoy your Sunday!

You can now check it out at http://www.18degreesnorth.tv/femicide-in-the-dominican-republic/
It is episode 2, but the whole show is worth a watch.
Have a great Friday!

Last year, people around the world removed TEN MILLION POUNDS of trash from almost 18,000 miles of beaches and coastal waterways as part of the International Coastal Cleanup Day. This year, the international event, which is organized by Ocean Conservancy, will be held on Saturday, Sept 21. In Jamaica, dozens of youth from the community of Rockfort (where Youth Opportunities Unlimited is currently working) will take part. In addition to YOU youths, Jamaicans from all over will converge on Fort Rocky Beach in the Palisadoes area, among other locations, to clean up the coast. (This is a small spit of land near Kingston’s airport).

Jamaica’s island-wide event is being hosted by the Jamaica Environment Trust and the RBC Blue Water Project. This year, it seems even more timely and crucial to get people involved and raise awareness as the government debates the fate of the Goat Islands. (The Chinese government has proposed a massive industrial/commercial development that would gravely impact this protected area.)

Here are some more facts and figures for you:

Last year, more than half-a-million people participated in the global event.

Many weird items were collected: 4,159 candles; 40 lottery tickets; 2,492 sports balls; 236 toothbrushes and 117 mattresses.

97 countries participated with the top three being the U.S., the Philippines and Canada.

The most commonly found items are cigarette butts (over 2.1 million), food wrappers (over 1.4 million), and beverage containers (over a million.)

More than 2.6 billion people rely on the ocean for a source of protein.

(I urge you to check out Ocean Conservancy’s web site. It is full of practical, interesting information about how you can help.)

Ultimately, there would be no need for an NGO such as the Ocean Conservancy (who is organizing the event) to explain and advocate for healthy, clean oceans. However, there is still so much work to do to protect the world’s oceans. Jamaica is no exception. Many of the coastal areas are clogged with trash, environmental protection rules are lax or not enforced and the tourism industry thrives on cruise ships, which both pollute the waters and destroy the reefs. But hopefully through events such as this, awareness will be raised, trash will be collected and people will think twice about discarding garbage improperly.