Tue | Dec 5, 2023

Debating can strengthen our music and culture – JN rep

National Debaters Week for October 7 to 14

Published:Tuesday | September 26, 2023 | 12:08 AM
High school students from the Jamaican Association for Debating and Empowerment (JADE) Secondary Level Gold Club paid a courtesy call on JN Foundation at the JN Group Corporate Office on September 19. Pictured are (from front row left): Kimberly Simms, stu
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High school students from the Jamaican Association for Debating and Empowerment (JADE) Secondary Level Gold Club paid a courtesy call on JN Foundation at the JN Group Corporate Office on September 19. Pictured are (from front row left): Kimberly Simms, student, Montego Bay High School for Girls, St James; Claudine Allen, general manager, JN Foundation; Germaine Barret, founder and executive director of JADE; Rushana Jarrett, special projects manager, JADE; Shanna-Kay Wright-Vaughn, JN Foundation youth and education programme lead. (Second row from left): Lacian Munroe, student, Mount Alvernia High School, St James; Ronaldhino McLean, student, Campion College, St Andrew; Ravonne Thomas-Matthews, communications and technology manager, JADE. (Back row) Dejanae Fagan, student, Knox College; Andrew Coleman, student, Wolmer’s Boy’s High School, Kingston; Amoya Chambers, student, Morant Bay High School, St Thomas; Matthew White, student, Cornwall College, St James; and Chevanese Peters, JN Foundation programme coordinator.

Claudine Allen, general manager of the JN Foundation, is mooting that Jamaica can strengthen its music and culture by honing and engendering the skill of debating.

She made the remark during a courtesy call by members of the Jamaican Association for Debating and Empowerment (JADE) on the JN Foundation at the JN Corporate Office in New Kingston on Tuesday, September 19.

Allen, a communications specialist, called for more research to be done in the area.

“We just need to get more people to understand that it’s ok to use words to express themselves clearly without resorting to vulgarity and violence. You can use your words to have productive [clashes], and that is something that can be very useful in helping our music and culture to be more harmonious and peaceful,” she added.

Zoning in on dancehall clashes, which is a major part of Jamaica’s culture, Allen said the fundamentals of debate can help performers improve their lyrics and performances.

“It can help with mediation, conflict resolution, and even the gender issues, which are emerging out of dancehall.” she reasoned.

Germaine Barrett, founder and executive director of JADE, agreed and said he would welcome the collaboration with JN Foundation to pitch the idea to the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport “so they can see the intersectionality of what we are trying to do[with debate]”.

He added that there are also plans to launch a sustainability plan to promote debating across the country as a productive and healthy exchange.

Last October, JN Foundation sponsored the participation of a team of high school students, coached by JADE, that won the prestigious Rollins College Great Debate in the United States.

The visit by JADE was also used to set the scene for National Debaters Week, scheduled for October 7 to 14, as proclaimed by Governor General, Sir Patrick Allen. The week will be officially launched at The University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona, Faculty of Law on September 28.Barrett said JADE has several activities planned to commemorate the week, including a church service, zonal competitions for high schools across the island, and the Caribbean Conference on Dialogue and Debate, which will be held at the University of Technology, Jamaica.

During the week, JADE will host representatives from iDebate Rwanda, who, Barrett said, will be sharing their own history and culture as an organisation.

The week will culminate with the JADE ‘PeppaPot’ event, which will showcase the creative skills of members within the organisation. The full list of events can be found on JADE’s website at myjade.org.

“National Debaters Week is a concentrated national focus on debating as a tool for solving many of the social challenges that we face as a country. We tend to resort to violence when we are upset with someone, and that can be solved with debate. Debate also allows us to share ideas. We want to use the week to promote the benefits of debating and debunk certain myths about this activity,” he shared.

JADE, a non-governmental organisation, was established in 2014.