I Won't Have To Trim To Win - Crawford

[Skeng DX]

People's National Party (PNP) candidate for East Rural St Andrew, Damion Crawford, has scoffed at calls for him to cut his dreadlocks to gain acceptance from some persons in the society.

"I hear dem going around 'bout cut me locks, let me tell yuh sup'm, it is not about only Rasta. I am the example of the struggle. I am the example for the persons who feel that dem have to bleach to reach.

"I am the example for every single individual that there is oppression and injustice against and that it has been made harder for them because of how they look or because of what they say or because of where they are from. I am the example of that struggle."

According to Crawford: "I am going to prove to Jamaican people that they don't have to bleach to reach because I won't have to trim to win."

[Skeng DX]

comments

click here to read them(funny)



http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/2...ead/lead5.html

Bunch a crap, is that your message? What do you plan to do for your constituency? what will you do for your people? Do you plan you make them all dreadloacks and smoke weed?

[Skeng DX]

Are you for real, what about all the so called ladies and gentlemen by looks only that has been leading us nowhere for the past fifty years.Wake up and smell the coffee. It is no more the color of a man's skin or the length of his hair that makes him a gentleman. How about examining the contents of his character and his ability to uplift this nation out of the serious troubles that the ladies and gentlemen of the past has taken us. You remind me of the days when the rastaman was called the BLACK HEART MAN and we as kids was conditioned to think that it was a bad thing. Well guess what? today everything that was derided and shunned about the rastaman is now not only acceptable in our society today but is also regarded as an improvement on the previously accepted customs like the fact that too much meat is not good for the body and who can forget the fact that the rasta first recognized the ills of too much salt in our diet not to mention the benefits of being self reliant guess what those are the people we now regard as small business men and women.Please get your mind out of the colonial gutter and recognize that just as the days of the brown skin only bank teller or receptionist is a thing of the past the days of the clean shaven scoundrels are also numbered. IT IS TIME TO SELECT OUR REPRESENTATIVES BASED ON THEIR VISION FOR THIS COUNTRY ALONG WITH THEIR ABILITY TO EXECUTE THAT VISION.

He and many like him are fearful. The thing with Damion Crawford, is not just his locks, but the man is dark skinned, eloquent, knowledgeable and is a visionary.

Many fear that in a Black man as in Jamaica that 'model' must not be. We in Jamaica suffer from classism, and a genuine hatred of self.

The Rich is fearful that yes the Damion Crawford's of our time, may just be able to energize and motivate the masses into becoming more than they think they can be, achieving what they thought was impossible.

Fear that despite his humble beginnings, he is way ahead of his time, and he is getting a wide cross section of the masses, locally and abroad energized with our Country.

Like everything else that has its time, it is now Mr Crawford's time and they cannot stop this.

Sheldon Carter
I'm not a fan of the PNP (to a lesser extent JLP either) nor them leader, but mi know you a 'good youth'. we party Friday night and Saturday morning your up organizing/teaching free math class for corporate area (failing) schools students. then math summer camp fi Papine high, Edith Dalton James high, vauxhall high students etc. if a one seat mi waa see PNP win a yours!!!

[Rudi]

Bway, the backwardness in Jamaica is mindboggling. Why is his hairstyle or religion even an issue. I am beginning to understand the fullness of Brownman time. Revolting to say the least.
Nuff a unuh dead before unuh born and this is the 2st century.

[Sickko]

The ganja smoking accusation really scares me... I expect this from people in my parents' age group but from some one who is obviously computer literate and follow chat rooms, which tells me they are under 45 or so or much younger

[Rudi]

Explain please.

[Sickko]

There was a comment that all Damion will teach his constituents are to grow locks and smoke ganja and it is frightening to me that younger generation who we expect to be better educated that the older folks and more exposed can so easily associate locks with negativity so easily.

[Willi]

Brownman???

From over 25 years ago I heard MANY young thugs on the street hurling disdainful comments against rastas and dreadlocks. This was a massive backlash after the 1970s when Bob gave rastas a coolness factor.

Damian (Milli-Vanilli) is more likely to get a better reception from uptown middle class compared to ghetto young men, just based on mindless prejudice. Weird, because he is well kept and very presentable and has a very respectable job...he seems like a potential role model.

[Rudi]

The defense rises. Sorry to mention the Brownman thing but reality is reality. I am curius though this Ghetto backlash against Rasta that you mention that wouln't be in the 80's would it? And I think backlash is a bit stong to describe what happenned and is still happenning.

[Willi]

cut the crap and deal with reality and not the silly soundbites.

I am no supporter of brownman, blackman, chineyman time or any other such nonsense. Homey dont play that. Jamaican time. We all in the same blenda and must ensure right, justice and opportunity for all. However we are cauldron of prejudices and it not just the stereotypical ones.

The backlash I speak of was from the 1980s into the 1990s and it was seen in street toughs, who in the 1970s would be pro-Bob and pro-rastas. When the fashion moved away and the coolness factor fled, you could see there was no deep understanding to fall back on and hence the rasta repudiation.

Anyway, it strikes me that certain man here dont want to deal with substantive issues, just self-serving stereotypical assumptions, etc. Carry on, the cycle bound to continue... that is why we have middle class black PNP saying no Portia over their dead body.

The most serious attempt to solve all this come from the social contract argument, where we would be forced to go back to basics and truly understand ourselves.