“Everyone has their own unique identity and culture, it plays a significant role in shaping the way we perceive ourselves and others”, Mr.Morgan said. A person’s beliefs and morals are directly affected by their culture throughout the rest of their lives. My interviewee Malique Morgan, is a Jamaican American, both of his grandparents are from Jamaica and moved to the U.S. in the 1980s. Throughout the interview, Mr.Morgan shares his insights and stories about Jamaicans and society. Others might think that an island located in the Caribbean Sea with its culture would have very little outside influence, yet Jamaica is rich in its culture and traces its roots to European and African history. By 1492, the island was discovered by Christopher Columbus and became a Spanish Territory. The Caribbean developed with characteristics of people who were enslaved there to provide labor. These were the Tainos, Caribs, Africans, Indians, and the Chinese. Its formation marked the first phase of globalization and it happened through the process of colonialism being an island, it has a population of close to forty million people with diverse ethnicities. Regardless of the remnants of colonial institutions such as slavery and the plantation system that the Caribbean had experienced, the Jamaicans valued their culture, their people, and their country.
The official language of the Jamaican people is English, which is commonly used in towns and among the more privileged social classes. On the other hand, “Creole” which is an amalgamation of English and other African languages is also widely spoken. In Mr. Morgan’s family, several traditions play a very important role in defining his family values and cultures. These traditions and cultures have been passed to his parents from their ancestors. Every Sunday, his mother always prepares dinner for their family dinner and makes sure that every member of the family is coming. This tradition has been there in his family for a long period even if they already moved away from their homeland. The family dinner helps them to strengthen the family bond and serves as a prime setting for socialization regarding the norms and rules on the values of the family, especially for children. As part of the tradition, the family meal is a symbol of shared family life, everyone in the family is involved in this activity. I believe that the families engaging in frequent traditional practices would have a strong relationship and unity.
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In each family gender roles are perceived differently. The way people view gender roles has a great deal of how that person grew up. During the interview, Mr. Morgan stated, “Ever since I was a kid, I have been experiencing gender inequality in my family. I feel like Jamaicans are very male-dominated. There are a lot of traditional gender norms and stereotypes at play, and women are seen as their primary function to be a mother, and to work in the house and that is it. Because of that, women aren’t allowed to participate in the contribution of society”. In Mr.Morgan’s family, his mother is taking care of everything, meeting all the needs of her children and husband. According to Mr. Morgan, I learned about how the gender roles play in a traditional Jamaican family. Now, everything is changing, not only can roles be switched, but many families are counting on having two main income providers and sharing household duties.
Immersing ourselves in a new culture different than our own can be challenging. In the last part of the interview, Mr. Morgan explained the most misconceptions that people might have about Jamaicans. From Mr.Morgan, he said “Like, Jamaicans are poor. There is no denying that Jamaica’s economy needs help. But the fact remains that even developed countries are facing similar economic crises like Jamaica. There are rich, poor, and middle class in every country. And people might think that Jamaicans are aggressive. Aggressive is the wrong word. We are very opinionated, we will tell you how we feel without a political correctness filter. Stereotypes may rob you of the ability to get to know a person’s nature and discover the similarities with your own culture. Jamaicans are warm people with an exciting culture that we are always willing to share with the world”.
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