How to Discover & Shape Your Personal Brand: (Build Your Personal Brand Series Part II)

Now that you understand the importance of personal branding whether you are a celebrity or not, the next logical step ought to be discovering and determining what your brand is. For some people, this will be easy because they already know what they stand for and what they wish to be known for. But for the majority of us, the question, “what do you want to be known for” is a very hard question which requires deep and deliberate thought. It is not easy for these folks largely because from high school, their goals, directions, skills and interests have been fluid, changing or unformed. And nothing about this has changed for them since leaving high school 10, 20 and 30 years.  Face it – many people still have not figured out who they are or what they want to do. So let me ask the question of you? : What are you good at? What do you want to be known for – professionally and personally?  You must be good at something!

 HOW TO DISCOVER AND IDENTIFY YOUR BRAND?

Here is a simple exercise I would like you to perform. Take a sheet of paper ad write down some adjectives which you think could best describe the kind of person you are. Ok, if this is hard, you may want to clue yourself in by what others say about you; what do people say you are good at? A good suggestion is the testimonials widget on Facebook. Ask a few of your friends to write a few testimonials about you and use this to become clearer as to how others perceive you. Or you could do what I do! Each time I am leaving Jamaica (to return Down Under), I host a mini farewell away party (mostly because living in Australia is tantamount to being out of space!) where my colleagues/friends would invariably eulogise me by standing and giving these speeches about me. I pay close attention to what they say. Given the fact that people very often talk only behind your back about you, these events would be the rare opportunity to gain real insights into what they think of you.

 So stage a party … LOL! I am just kidding! The point is if you are unsure about your assets and reputation, use the praise, commendation or criticism leveled at you by others to clue yourself in. All of what you hear is a sum total of how you are seen, in short, the personal brand you are projecting. It may give you the first start point at correcting behaviours that aren’t helping your personal brand or honing those that have potential to draw benefits to you.

 For example, do you have a reputation for being reliable? Can people take you at your word? Can they trust you to always do what you say you are going to do?  Are you always late for a meeting, function, event? If you answered yes, then punctuality is not part of your personal brand. If you would like to be known as a punctual, reliable, disciplined person, then its time to make that extra effort to turn up on time, do what you say you are going to do, and if you can’t, say so in advance and mean it!

 Years ago, as a member of the Prime Minister’s Advisory Council, I was asked to take the minutes a few times in the absence of the Secretary. My notes were detailed and well–presented and I became known for that. I was later elected as Secretary of the Executive. You may have a reputation as a caring listener, someone who will give 100 % to a task, or an initiative-taker. You may be identified as a person with assertiveness and positive leadership skills. Maybe you are an excellent problem-solver, or a charming, easy going personality who knows how to deflate a conflict. Ask yourself: what makes me different for stand out? For businesses, the same is true. Suppose everytime customers come to your food establishment, they find it dirty, flies all about etc. Wouldn’t you become known as that place where people are advised not to eat? The same is true of your personal brand. The idea is you will recognise your brand definition when it is aligned to your values.

 So go ahead – NOW – Sum up in one word or a group of work what you stand for. So answer all of these questions honestly, listen to the feedback, take them on board, and revisit your values to uncover what you want to be known for. Experts agree that you will then how to align how you look, sound and behave to this new brand.

 ALIGNING YOUR ACHIEVEMENTS WITH YOUR BRAND STRATEGY

Andrea Molloy in her book, “Work Happy: Get the Job you want, Love the Job You Have” stated what, to me, is perhaps the most profound statement on personal branding. She said:  “While some celebrities are famous for being famous, in the real world, YOU NEED TO DELIVER RESULTS and be able to follow through”. She advises that you think about your track record and areas in which you are most competent. Are you renowned for promising to meet deadlines and then missing them? Maybe you are well known for being late to appointments. The idea is to be able to ‘walk the talk’ and deliver on your promises. The more I read the literature on branding, the more it redounds to personal credibility; Walking the talk is not to live in theory of all this knowledge but to actually use it. It is doing exactly what you know is right. It is about becoming that respected brand that we talked about in the first of this series. So ACTION TASK: Decide what you want to be known for? What is your personal brand and how can it potentially be expressed. 

SELLING AND SHARING YOUR BRAND

So you have discovered your personal brand and you are ready to show “Me Inc” to the world.  In the next few posts, I will pass on tips that I have picked up from personal experiences and reading books like Molloy’s on how to express your brand through how you look, sound and behave. Molloy maintains that “your brand will evolve over time as your knowledge and experience grows”. It certainly did for me as I moved from being a broadcaster to the wider field of communications and later embraced fully the study and practice of politics. I have used my own developed perspectives on a range of issues, my gift of gab; a highly-developed penmanship, an innate political instinct and personal credibility of giving 100 %, being reliable, turning up on time and offering critique, and workable ideas and suggestions to high profile business entrepreneurs, politicians over a period of now 20 years.

 What I have now is the “Hume Johnson brand”. It is by no means a celebrity brand. It is one crafted on my skills, experience and expertise as a broadcast journalist, academic, political analyst/advisor; and strategic communication specialist. If you flick to Simone Harris’ webpage here on Facebook or her website www.simoneharris.com you will also see a superb example of an ordinary individual (not a celebrity) taking her set of skills, experience, interests, abilities, passion and values to create and sell a personal brand.

 Of course, as you change careers, or move through lifestyle changes, experts agree that you will need to adjust and check in with your values. Some celebrities such as Madonna, Michael Jackson or Prince go for dramatic reinventions. In the same way, some companies would upgrade a product by improving the packaging. Jamaican artistes such as “Frisco Kid” and “Yogie” changed their names to “Ancient Monarchy” and “Courtney John” respectively to reflect amendments to their brand strategy.

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Remember to check out www.reverbnation.com/humejohnson for audio and video samples of my work.

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Build Your Personal Brand, It Isn’t Only for the Product, Celebrity

 Branding is like breathing for today’s celebrity. It is their life. Without it, they are likely to suffocate and die, Well their career that is, although some celebrities would literally expire from lack of exposure. The same goes for the modern business corporation; they understand fully (hopefully!) that proper branding of their product is essential to success. But what about you – yes, you regular chum sitting at your PC – surfing the internet? Please – catch on to the idea that branding is not reserved for the celebrity. It is as much for the janitor sweeping the office as much as it is for the senior executive or the line staff.

I have been talking a lot in recent days about the “ReBrand Jamaica” project and the ‘nation-as-product’ concept. It occurred to me that many of the discussions/writings on branding focus on corporations, products and the celebrity person. But what of the average person who is not a celebrity? Is branding important for the ordinary professional? In researching materials for a series of career seminars with soon-to-be communication interns at James Cook University, I have developed a personal view on this very important area of personal development which I will share with you over several posts.

First of all, you have got to know the now popular name for personal branding! It is called – get this – “Me Inc”. Got it? Amazing isn’t it. It’s all about me- Me Me Me Me Me Me Me! I mean YOU! You get the idea. It simply means that you are the one in charge of your own brand. THE IMPORTANCE OF PERSONAL BRANDING Let me hasten to say that we are not here talking about a narcissistic selfishness and shallow attention-seeking behaviours for which some celebrities are known. Neither ought it to be dismissed as celebrity styling.

Andrew Molloy, author of “Work Happy; Get the Job You Want and Love the Job You have” says branding is the image you project to others – your individuality. Branding is thus fundamental in how we choose to present ourselves to others. It also refers to the sum total of your assets, skills, abilities, experiences and values. She says when it comes to getting a new job, lining up for promotion, being taken seriously, returning to work or running your own business, you need to stand out from the crowd as your own person.

I am attracted to this definition and philosophy on branding because it is more than mere image and instead a honest reflection of your identity and reputation. The idea is that of you develop your personal brand, you may get not only noticed for your talents and expertise, but you have a real opportunity to make a genuine first impression and of course be remembered once you left the room- for all the right reasons (Molloy, 2005)!

JUDGE THE BOOK BY ITS COVER

We live in an image oriented world. The media surrounds us and focuses our attention to as moving images and symbols. We have no choice to judge based on what our eyes can see. When you are attracted to someone for the first time, t is usually some physical aspect of them that we are drawn to. It is later that we begin to appreciate their other wonderful qualities. A friend of mine said once “you have to look good to attract people to your brain: Funny and cynical but this remark holds some profound truths. The reality is that we do lean heavily on that first impression to make judgments about others. Your brand thus influences how others perceive you.

 In Molloy’s book, she argues that psychologists say when we meet someone our brain compiles all the information we can gather about image, body language, stance, posture, smell and tone of voice to make an impression. Most of the information is communicated non-verbally (55%). The words you say form only &% of the message and your tone and voice 38%. This process happens in less than 30 seconds and often the clues we receive don’t add up.

The idea is that if you don’t look sound and behave the part, it’s not surprising that incorrect assumptions can be made about your ability to do a job professionally.

GET NOTICED

 If you are like some of my own colleagues here on facebook, you will draw on your marketing expertise and experience and brand yourself in the same way a company would promote a product. I am not suggesting you go make yourself into a superstar. What I am saying is LEARN to position yourself to capture the opportunities that may be passing you by. Please, don’t take concept of positioning yourself well in the workplace and in the workforce for granted. It is important to recognise that selling yourself can mean you stand a better chance of getting that well-needed promotion at work; standing out above others for a sought after job.

I give you an example; of the 600 persons turned up Downtown Kingston (Jamaica) in March 2009 for the 3 positions that Captain’s Bakery advertised, it would be the applicant who stand out (in a crowd literally!) or gets ‘noticed” (for their skill, talent, experience – brand) that would most likely land this position. To brand yourself is about selling yourself. What about you that makes you a cut above the rest? Molloy in her book suggests that the next time you go shopping, you should take note of the brands which are most well known to you. It’s no accident she says that you can pick the next known brands because millions are spent on advertising their qualities.

Think about big names like Adidas, Coca Cola, McDonalds, Microsoft, Nike and Vodafone. How does your perception of each brand influence your buying habits? The idea, Molly states, is that “Just as global brands present an image of what they stand for, the same applies to us as individuals”. Well-known personalities, she continues, can give us insight into how branding works with people: “Life style guru Martha Stewart; The Body Shop’s Anita Rodduck; Bill Clinton, Nelson Mandela, David Beckham, Tiger Woods; Richard Branson and Donald Trump need little introduction. Despite Martha Stewart’s legal woes, her fans still look to her for domestic solutions. Likewise, Madonna and Oprah have brands so strong that they are known by their first names only”. Indeed – what the heck is Oprah’s surname?! Oh – Winfrey! Wow – I forgot for a second there – it is rarely ever used.

If we can consider some of the Jamaican personalities– Usain Bolt, PJ Patterson; Lisa Hanna, Courtney Walsh, Chris Gayle; Tony Rebel; Elephant man, Rex Nettleford and Gordon Butch Stewart – each of them present a consistent brand and the sum total of how they look sound and behave express the type of person they are and determines how we perceive them. Finally, it is important to reiterate that you aren’t required to be well-known (famous; a celebrity) to have or create your own brand image. It goes without saying however that branding will enhance and improve your reputation and what you are best known for. Don’t allow yourself to be misconstrued and misinterpreted by permitting others to determine who you are. Create your own narratives. In short – manage your own brand.

The next piece in this series will focus on helping you to discover and use your brand and later, how to look, sound and behave the part.

Who is Hume Johnson?

From the moment Dr Hume Nicola Johnson opens her mouth to speak, particularly about political affairs and political ideas, you can tell that she has a rare political instinct. And as soon as her signature deliberate, measured tone and compelling yet charming manner of speech reverberates from her clearly trained vocal chords, you know that communication is her game.  At only 33 years old, this charismatic national of the Caribbean island of Jamaica ranks in the top 5 percent of communication specialists and broadcast journalists in Jamaica, having amassed some 15 years of combined experience in the media and communications industries spanning television and radio broadcasting with both government and commercial broadcasters; public relations within the cultural industries sector and strategic political communication. At present, Dr Johnson passes on her expertise and experience as a lecturer in Journalism and Communication at James Cook University, Queensland, AUSTRALIA. She teaches Advanced Television, and Radio Broadcasting and Public Relations.

 Dr. Johnson holds a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Political Science & Public Policy (University of Waikato, New Zealand), a Masters of Science Degree in Government (UWI, Mona, Jamaica) and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Media and Communications (CARIMAC, UWI, Jamaica). Her current research focuses on citizenship and governance, popular citizen participation, social movements and civil society. Other significant interests include media studies, political communication, the conduct of elections and the workings of political parties.

 Dr. Johnson is currently working on her first book entitled ‘Roadblocks to Civil Society: Popular Protest and Governance in Jamaica”. She is the co-author of ‘Jamaican Dons, Italian Mafias and the chances of a reversible destiny’ (Political Studies, Vol. 56, March 2008); ‘Performing Protest: The Mass Media as Stage’ (International Journal of Media and Cultural Politics, Vol 2, no. 4, 2008) and “Ode to Quasheba: Resistance Rituals of Higgler Women in Jamaica” (On the Edges of Development: Cultural Interventions, New York: Routledge, 2009). Dr. Johnson has also published on the politics of incivility among the marginalised in Jamaica (Political Studies, Vol. 53 (3), 2005) and the role of civil society in degarrisonisation (Forthcoming, International Journal of Crime and community Safety).

Hume Johnson

 Hume Johnson’s deepening interest and passion for political affairs and political communication began in her early teens when she became particularly attentive to and fascinated by the ideas of former Jamaican Prime Minister, Michael Manley; the practice of governance in her native Jamaica and issues of social justice which beset her fellow Jamaicans. Her genuine interests in Jamaican politics and media made her well-placed to assume a role as a producer at the government’s news agency, Jamaica Information Service (JISTV) and Anchor of its flagship programme, Jamaica Magazine. Her extraordinary talent for broadcasting led Hume to her employment as a Specialist Newsreader at Radio Jamaica (RJR) and FAME FM.

 Dr. Johnson’s expertise and gift as a communicator was beginning to spread. In 1995, Jamaican reggae superstar, Tony Rebel, contracted the communication services of Dr. Johnson to position his personal brand, publicise his reggae festival, Rebel Salute; production firm, Flames Production as well as artistes under the Flames label, including the now popular Queen Ifrica. Dr. Johnson nearly two-decade old association with Tony Rebel, Flames Production, Rebel Salute and the Jamaican reggae industry underscores her enormous regard for the talent and mission of Tony Rebel. Hume was influential in getting the revered artiste to be properly recognised with a national honour for his contribution to music in Jamaica. Tony Rebel was conferred with an Order of Distinction by the Government of Jamaica in 1999.   

Hume (L) with entertainers Tony Rebel and Queen Ifrica

 Dr. Johnson has over the last decade been actively engaged in the Jamaican public sector as a communications consultant with the Jamaican government and strategic advisor with political parties. For example, Hume served as a political speechwriter in the Ministry of National Security, a researcher/writer with author and former Senator and State Minister in Foreign Affairs, Delano Franklyn, and as a youth advisor on a Prime Ministerial Advisory Council convened by former Prime Minister of Jamaica, Most. Hon. P.J. Patterson. Dr. Johnson’s extraordinary capacity for strategic communication analysis, her ability to articulate and make lucid complex issues, and her public profile as an excellent broadcaster made her a valuable member of the Youth Advisory Council.

 Hume’s remarkable political instinct and keen political observations has caused her expertise to be solicited by the academic community, local community groups, media professionals and political parties. In 2007, Hume was engaged as a political analyst on the post political debates coverage of the Jamaican General Elections, and commentator on public issues on several media programmes, including guest host of radio talk show, Disclosure (HOT 102 FM).

 

Hume getting ready to deliver a media training workshop to students at Howard University, Washington DC

Today, Dr Johnson operates under her own professional brand, HUME JOHNSON CONSULTANTS. She offers services in political and public affairs counselling, research as well as strategic political communication. Dr. Johnson also offers communications consultancy and training through a media/communication training series called THE COMMUNICATION WORKSHOP, which she co-founded with best friend, Dr. Nickesia Gordon.  You are welcome to surf their blog at http://thecommunicationexperts.blogspot.com

Dr. Johnson is committed to her country Jamaica and in this regard has recently launched the REBRAND JAMAICA PROJECT, an international public relations initiative designed to improve Jamaica’s global image and reputation using strategic communication tools. Dr. Hume Johnson maybe contacted at by email: humepela@gmail.com and at the following URLs: www.twitter.com/humejohnson

www.reverbnation.com/humejohnson

 www.facebook.com/hume.johnsonphd

www.myspace.com/humejohnson

Lymie Murray: A True Jamaican Talent

http://www.reverbnation.com/tunepak/song_1757972

From the moment the usual penetrating percussion – synonymous with much of reggae – give way to the horns and piano unlocking some of Lymie Murray’s music, you know you are in for something refreshingly different. When the soothing, warm vocals of this superbly gifted Jamaican singer greet your eardrums, you know for sure.  Take a listen to ‘Love and Happiness’, ‘Every time I touch you’ and ‘Blessed’’ from Murray’s first album, ‘Happy Days’, or ‘Only Conversation’ from the album of the same name and you will be captivated.

Lymie Murray’s ballads are about love and life; He sings about the beauty and power of romantic love, of passion and togetherness. The melodies are comforting and accessible and you get the sense that unlike many reggae musicians, Lymie Murray is coming from a different place. Murray’s style is often labelled classical lover’s rock, the kind of reggae offered by the likes of Beresford Hammond and Glen Washington. But oh it is so much more!   Lymie transmits a distinct cosmopolitanism, a new, soft, honey-glazed mellow sound more akin to Europeans balladeers than a Jamaican reggae singer. Make no mistake however; the beautiful reggae instrumentals and powerful message music are close at hand but beautifully melded with Murray’s cheerful and optimistic vocals.  

 ‘Happiness is when you really feel good with someone’, Murray sings in a warm silky smooth vocal delivery that has made him one of Jamaica’s most-admired singer/songwriters. Lymie does not merely sing; he inhabits the songs, breathing meaning and purpose into them. ‘I see the children dying; I hear their mothers’ cry’..   It’s been more than a decade since Lymie Murray sang his way onto on the Jamaican entertainment scene. Lymie Murray counts three albums – Happy Days, Only Conversation and Start all over, though by his own admission his complete body of unpublished work are several albums in total! ‘Only Conversation’ features songs such as the title track of the same name, La La La (means I Love you) and Jah Fire.  

His body of work carries with it a positive, uplifting energy. Radiating through the beautiful recent singles ‘Only Conversation’, ‘Rolling Thunder’ and ‘Love for the People’ are a mix of romance and hardcore reggae about righteousness and social justice – reflecting his embedded Rastafarian consciousness.  

 A captivating stage presence, personal allure, and old-fashioned good looks, Lymie Murray is far too talented and accomplished to remain in the dim light of the background. Catapulting himself from singing background vocals for one time mentor, reggae great, Freddy McGregor, to claim his own space centre stage, Lymie Murray’s time has come. Increasingly recognised for his endearing and enchanting vocals, as well as superb writing and producing abilities, Lymie Murray has earned attention and new levels of respect in the demanding Jamaican reggae music industry.  

Early Years

 Lymie Murray was born Paul Hugh Murray on October 24, 1970 in Royal Flats, Manchester. This central Jamaican parish has produced an impressive list of outstanding Jamaican artistes, including Tony Rebel, Luciano and Garnett Silk. Although his vocal talent was obvious from his teenage years, Lymie Murray pursued seriously a career in Business Management at Decarteret and Knox colleges in Manchester. Upon graduation, Lymie made a bold move, migrating to capital city Kingston to assume a 9-5 job in corporate Jamaica.   Although a corporate career at that time was certainly more stable than the often unforgiving and unpredictable reggae music industry, Lymie says it was writing, producing and performing music that envisioned his career: ‘I was singing at school concerts, – at Church and at private parties.

I had a burning desire to sing’, says Lymie Murray. Introduced to producer, Desmond ‘Shangul’ Lawson in 1993 soon led to Murray’s debut single, ‘Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head’.   By 1995, Lymie was singing with popular reggae band, Skool led by former Chalice drummer, Desi Jones. By this time, the Skool band was playing on all of the US Sunsplash (reggae festival) tours from 1993 onwards. This means that Lymie was working alongside some of Jamaica’s finest artistes, including Diana King, Dennis Brown, Barrington Levy, Steele Pulse, Judy Mowatt, Big Mountain, Toots Hibbert and Gregory Isaacs. Lymie and Skool band toured extensively throughout the United States Europe, South America and Asia. He is featured on the compilation ‘live’ album entitled ‘Skool in Session’.  

During 1997, while still on tour with Skool band, a young Lymie Murray developed a professional relationship with lovers rock crooner, Freddie McGregor. Murray’s first release on McGregor’s popular Big Ship Label was the very poignant ‘Jah I Wanna Be With You Now’, featured on the Midem 1997 compilation. His second release was a charmingly sung cover of the Tammi Tyrell and Marvin Gaye classic ‘Aint Nothing Like the Real Thing’, featuring the beautiful songstress Zoe Fox. Lymie Murray’s terrific vocal talent was undeniable and almost immediately he was touring and opening with Freddie McGregor.   Although Lymie Murray’s career has a backing vocalist has been stellar, he was eager to accelerate his solo career. Collaboration among reggae producers, Barry Clarke (BCR International), Dalton Browne (Busy Bee Records), UK-based Stingray Records and the Big Ship Label resulted in the album, ‘Start All Over’, released by Jet Star (UK).  

Performances

 By 2000, Lymie Murray’s magical vocals and extraordinary song writing skills had not only made him recognisable, but gave him a secure foothold as a potentially powerful participant in the contemporary reggae music industry. Indeed, Lymie was included in the UB40 21^st Anniversary Concert celebration held in Birmingham, England in September 2001. He also performed on the London Philharmonic Series headlined by Jamaican reggae greats, John Holt and Ken Boothe.   In December of 2001, Lymie released the album, Only Conversation released on the Big Ship/VP records label. The singer’s positive energy emanate through this album. All the elements that fans love about great musicians are present – powerful vocals, honest emotions and the sing-along melodies that people love. In 2002, Lymie embarked on tours of Japan, United States and the Caribbean to promote Only Conversation, returning home to launch his own production company called Lime Lite. He continued to perform in Jamaica from 2003 onwards, delivering superb performances on Rebel Salute, Western Consciousness, To Mom With Love, which featured American singer, Johnny Gill and the Isley Brothers and Capleton’s St Mary me Come From, East Fest and Summer Hype.   2006 was a remarkable year for this seasoned performer. He launched an album compilation entitled ‘Time for Love’ at The Jamaica Pegasus Hotel Poolside. Here, Lymie brought to life the words of his single ‘Slow and Easy’ with a soulful rendition, featuring passionate animations and distinctive melodic inflections unique to him. Lymie also mesmerised audiences on International Reggae day and Summer Hype 06.    

Lymie Murray – Writer and Producer

When he is not on stage, Lymie Murray’s haven is in the studio. Without a doubt, Lymie Murray is one of those old fashioned Jamaican workaholics – the type who immerses himself in work thoroughly and convincingly that people sometimes forget who he is. Then with little or no fanfare, he moves on to the next demanding project – ignoring the glitzy Jamaican entertainment circuit.   Lymie admits his addiction to the process of producing music. ‘I spend a considerable amount of time in studio both recording and contributing to the work of colleague artistes. I love making music’. Recent collaborations include ‘Breath of Life’ with Jah Thunda (David House, Kingston, Jamaica) and the powerful remake of Bob Marley’s ‘Who the Cap Fit’ with the firebrand deejay, Jah Mason, and produced by Gumption.   Fully in charge of his career, Lymie Murray has found renewed buoyancy.

‘ at  The singer’s innate confidence is there in ‘Only Conversation’, the title track to the album of the same name, as well as in his upbeat recent singles ‘Rolling Thunder’ and ‘Real High Grade’ where he ignores the more intimate and romantic ballads to pay tribute to his Rastafarian faith.   Inspired by love and life – and the latter’s immense possibilities, Lymie Murray’s star is ready to shine and his fans can expect the same kind of excellence he has exhibited over the years. For those who have watched and admired Lymie Murray and celebrated the career of this exceptionally gifted artiste fully know the obvious – Lymie Murray was born for the stage… and made for success.               

Check out Lymie’s Music on www.reverbnation.com/lymiemurray

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‘Performing’ Protest: The Mass Media as Stage

Contemporary citizen activism, especially street protests and demonstrations, can hardly be imagined without the mass media to amplify and sustain its message as well as mobilize a following and encourage support. The attendance of news media at the site of protest campaigns also exerts a powerful influence on their overall functioning and management and particularly on the ‘performance’ of protestors. Using empirical data from Jamaica and drawing on aspects of Douglas Kellner’s (2003) work on media spectacle, I explore this acute interdependence between popular protest and popular media; the varied and multiple ways to which the news media, particularly television, is integral to the performance of protest, how protestors manoeuvre themselves, and deploy spectacle to secure their interests within the media spotlight. Conversely, I explore the media’s coverage and treatment of protest and protestors and what impact, if any, this may have on how protestors are driven to ‘perform’ them.

‘…a [it is] poor people press conference’. 

This is how a former media colleague once described street protests and demonstrations in Jamaica. The remark was meant as a comedic reference to the extraordinary frequency of citizen protest (some 200-300 roadblock-demonstrations annually) and the regularity with which the news media lend it coverage. The description is an intriguing one because, as my colleague continued, ‘the media is where a forum is established which allows poor people to speak and be heard’. Given the economic and political powerlessness of disadvantaged classes and their historical exclusion from the ‘bourgeois’ public sphere, there are few opportunities for announcing grievances or making demands on the system. Direct popular citizen action, including roadblocks and placard-bearing street protests, are, very often, the only chance for the poor to come into contact with the power of the media. And popular protest, as broadcast by the news media, is often the only means through which political representatives and other bureaucrats are alerted to the concerns of their constituents. The quest to influence the authorities has thus resulted in the mass media gaining prominence in Jamaica, as elsewhere, within the context of newer and more dynamic modes of action and self-expression.  

 Indeed, it is becoming decidedly impossible to analyse and make sense of the dynamics of popular protest without systematic attention to its utilization of and relationship with media. The theoretical and political intersection between popular protest and the media is embedded in as much in the way the news media cover protests and portray protestors as the extent to which protestors are becoming active participants and performers in the stories told about them. Within the context of the inherent power of the media to (positively or negatively) shape perceptions, I focus on how protestors, especially those from the disadvantaged classes, exploit this media opportunity to make public their concerns. For example, within the protestor–media nexus, whose ends are being served and how? Are protestors, in other words, obliged to concern themselves with how they are portrayed and similarly with how they represent themselves within media? If so, how do they direct and manage their protest performance to attract maximum media coverage? What kinds of discursive resources and political techniques do they deploy to disseminate their political message? In turn, how do the media produce and reproduce these discourses and performances and to what extent might the protestors’ goals and interests be compromised in this process?

 These are vital questions, which illuminate the increasingly contentious interaction between media gatekeepers and protestors’ politics of (mediated) ‘image’ in contexts such as Jamaica. Responses depend on, first, examining the actions of protestors as they engage in the performance of protest, and, second, the way the news media plays into and becomes subsumed and assimilated in the performance of protest. It is important to also acknowledge as a context the growing impact of media culture, particularly the politics of spectacle, its new and significant entry into domains such as politics, economy, society and everyday life, and the consequent impact of this new development on citizen interaction with media as well as media functioning itself. As a point of departure however, it is essential to outline the reasons popular protest has assumed such importance for Jamaican citizens, how media politics have evolved here, and how the increasing intersection between popular protest and popular media has played out in this postcolonial West Indian society.

 Popular Protest and Media Politics in Jamaica: An Overview

Jamaica’s history is the history of protest. For close to four hundred years, popular protest in all its forms (marches, riots, and demonstrations) has been the official answer of the Afro-Jamaican people to enslavement, colonisation, domination, tyranny, oppression and injustice. This long-continuing resistance movement stretches from the Maroon Wars against the English of the 16^th and 17^th centuries to the massive slave uprisings from 1831 onwards, culminating in emancipation in 1838. Riots and civil disturbances became commonplace even after slaves were freed. According to Simmonds (1983:1), ‘to protest against negative developments and stagnation, Jamaicans assembled and participated in acts of open defiance and violence’. This model of resistance manifested in the violent labour unrest of the 1930s and 1940s, the Black Power movements of the 1960s, (including the Walter Rodney riots of 1968), the violent partisan political upheavals of the 1970s as well as the fuel protests of 1979, all-island strike of 1985, and the Gas riots of 1999.

Since the mid 1990s, deficient delivery of social services – water, proper roads, sewerage, electrification and public transportation – as well as growing concerns over inflationary standards of living and issues of justice embodied in human rights violations (police killings and abuse) regularly drive large numbers of Jamaican citizens onto the streets mounting roadblocks and engaging in disorderly demonstrations. Together these issues are fundamental to basic survival and the quality of life. In the face of widespread perception of state neglect, citizens therefore feel unable to exercise any effective control over the policies of the state and the nature of their socio-economic condition except through vigorous, and many times, violent protest.  These violent strategies are embodied in fiery roadblocks, disruptive street demonstrations and, in extreme cases, arson (burning police vehicles; public and private property), gunfire, mob activity (looting and vandalism) as well as all out and out war between citizens and the police .

 Any assessment of the performance of protest in Jamaica must also take account of the following historical reality: citizen politics in Jamaica resides and operates within the context of a heavily factionalised and highly-charged political culture involving intense political violence and patron-client politics. That this political milieu is so polarised and often violent means that (1) citizen politics, including popular protest, also operate with an intense emotional and often partisan charge, and (2) a range of actors, including the media, becomes implicated in the production of violent politics.  

Recent scholarly work has recognised the importance of the media to democratic participation (Norris, 1997; Clarke 2002; Street, 2001; McGregor & Comrie, 2002; Barber, 1984:166-167; cf. 1998; Putnam, 1995). The utilitarian nature of the mass media underscores its pervasiveness particularly throughout developing countries as tools to enable development, empower citizens, foster education among less literate populations as well as promote democracy and social change.  In the Caribbean island-nation of Jamaica, home to some 2.7 million people, the media have assumed enormous importance. The media, for example, have been central in the evolution of this post-colonial society, playing critical roles in helping to shape its institutions, cultural norms and political values. The news media in modern Jamaica is a corollary to this development. The recognition by Jamaican citizens of the media’s physical and political reach, along with their ongoing struggle vis-à-vis public protestations for the protection of their rights, means that there is effectively a contract between citizens and the mass media. By the terms of this agreement, it might be said that citizens allow the media unrestricted access to their lives in exchange for their capacity to act as ‘political watchdog’ and reach the corridors of power to secure and protect their interests. Citizens also enter into this contract with the media in order to strengthen the relationship between themselves and their government.

The media and their audience clearly need each other, but so often this co-dependent relationship is fraught with problems, as each party tries to manipulate the other to secure their particular interests. It is within this powerful media-citizen negotiated encounter (a mutually constitutive relationship even) that the notions of performance and media spectacle finds relevance. In the full paper, I highlight the importance of seeing protest as a kind of performance by drawing on recent theoretical offerings on performance politics. Using protest politics in Jamaica as a case study, I also examine the possibility and reality of protest as spectacle when media become fully participant. Here is a snapshot of that discussion.

 The Politics of Performance

Performance politics is experiencing a renaissance. So is the production of spectacle. Indeed the two seems locked in a symbiotic relationship in our increasingly mediatised world. Performance has always been given to extravagance and spectacle whereas spectacle depends for its state of being on performance (albeit exaggerated). In his seminal work on the subject, The Triumph of the Spectacle, Kellner (2003:1-2), drawing on the earlier work of Guy Debord, addresses this subject in its totality, particularly its modern reincarnation in contemporary American society. For example, Kellner’s recollection of the spectacles of Ancient Rome and Classical Greece with its open air rhetorical battles, extravagant demonstrations of Gladiator violence, titanic political battles, orgies and triumphant displays of conquest, empire and power (manifested in Hollywood blockbusters such as ‘Troy’; ‘Lord of the Rings’ and ‘The Gladiator’) illustrates the pervasive and longstanding presence of spectacle, and also of performance.

 Although these historical examples of performances are contained within a particular sphere, performance and spectacle are nowadays important rituals of negotiating everyday life.  Theatre scholar, Ben Kershaw (1996:6) maintains that the increasing ‘mediatisation of societies disperses the theatrical by inserting performance into everyday life’ (my emphasis).  By this, he means that the very concept of performance is no longer limited to what we call drama or necessarily constrained within the space of the stage/theatre but has managed to extend itself beyond this institutionalized arena to find and occupy place within socio-political domains.

 Kellner (2003:1-2), drawing on the case of America, insists that spectacle is becoming one of the organising principles of the economy, polity, society and everyday life, helped along by the power of media. Social and political conflicts, Kellner (2003) maintains, are increasingly played out on the screens of media culture, which display spectacles such as sensational murder cases, terrorist bombings, celebrity and political sex scandals, and the explosive violence of everyday life. Kellner (2003:1-2) also calls attention to the centrality of performance in the modern organisation of everyday life by arguing that today’s internet-based economy deploys spectacle as a means of promotion, reproduction, and the circulation and selling of commodities. Media culture, in turn proliferates ever more technologically sophisticated spectacles to seize audiences and increase the media’s power and profit.

 That performance is now less theoretically affixed to a stage and more diffuse into socio-political domains, and that contemporary media culture has deep investments in its revivification also means that the performative quality of power is also becoming more evident. For example, citizens across the world are not only deploying performance politics as part of an armoury of innovative weapons to confront/challenge inequities in the distribution of power in their societies but also capitalising on the media’s attention to the propagation of spectacle as an avenue to make claims upon their governments, and negotiate to secure their interests and demands.

 In a broader vein, however, that offers a particular rethinking of political action, Hannah Arendt (1965:153) declares that politics itself is ‘a performing art’. In this theatrical rendering of politics, the accomplishment is seen to lie in the performance itself as it is in drama, dance or music. In short, the value of performance is prized for its own sake, as something intrinsic to political action itself, not as something extrinsic and thus dependent on outcomes (cf. Torgerson, 2005:510). Is political performance the same? Is the performance embedded in a protest event concerned intrinsically with entertainment/entertaining and not political outcomes? This question is important as theatre is, after all, fundamentally about entertainment. Its purpose (and power) is to get a strong reaction from the audience (see Cole, 1983). Theatre, in this performative, political sense, can therefore be the strongest of weapons but like all weapons, it works both ways – it can produce great benefits as well as become the nesting place for malevolence (ibid, 1983). Performance (of any kind) therefore has goals and outcomes and therefore cannot, as Arendt suggests, be merely intrinsic.

 Arendt’s (1965:154) argument, however, has value. For her, ‘performing artistes need an audience to show their virtuosity and acting men need the presence of others before whom they can appear; both need a publicly organized space for their work and both depend upon others for the performance itself’. If popular citizen protest is a performing art, then it is the street which represents a public stage upon which it is performed. The street is, however, not the only platform. There is today an even more powerful political stage – the mass media. It is from this powerful communications arena that Jamaican protestors, for example,  deploy different kinds of performances – block roads with boulders, old cars and debris; create bonfires from burning tires; shout and scream, march with placards, undress and engage the police in gunfire exchanges. Their goal is to reach and address their mass audience, which, more often than not, comprises state actors and various anonymous publics. It is also on this powerful media platform that protest performers encounter the seductive power and spectacle of media culture.

For more on this article, see Johnson, Hume (2008), International Journal of Media and Cultural Politics, Vol 4 (2), pp 163-182.

Crisis Management Post Hijacking: How did the Jamaican Government Fare?

The murder of Pakistan’s cricket coach, Bob Woolmer in Jamaica at the height of the Cricket World Cup Tournament in 2007 was the last time the Jamaican government has had to confront a massive (negative) global media attention. Remember that CNN and BBC are transmitted in over 600 countries and the internet is the only truly global medium used by millions in every country across the world. What did the world see and learn. It learned that a gunman had forced his way unto an aircraft in the resort town of Montego Bay (the hub of Jamaica’s tourism and one could say our tourism-dependent economy), and held some 160 passengers and 6 crew hostage. We learned that he had a gun and shots were fired which surely speaks to the traumatic conditions under which passengers were held as they possibly feared for their lives. We learned later that the gunman-hijacker was of unsound mind and that having released 160 hostages/passengers, he held six crew members hostage for a total of nine hours.

The suspense was chilling because one ever knows what a person of unsound mind with a gun will do in desperation or anger. That the airliner was not Air Jamaica, and the passengers were mostly foreigners; and it was CanJet (a Canadian Jet) and Canada’s PM was on the Caribbean on an official visit only compounded the magnitude of the crisis. That the story was broadcast continuously around the world during the 12 hour duration of this incident means that the world awaited for either the escalation of the crisis (possibly killing of passengers or crew) and Jamaica’s response to the crisis and how it may be contained and resolved.

Yet what is often not reported and what is not seen when the camera stops recording, the lights are out and the microphones and tape recorders put away is the fall-out for the country on whom the negative spotlight was shed. This was without a doubt a major crisis for the Government of Jamaica – the global notion banded about in recent years (and most recently manifestly so in Australia with the prime time airing of a rather scathing documentary on crime and corruption in Jamaica) that Jamaica is an unsafe place to visit/holiday- was compounded/ (possibly confirmed) on Sunday night (April 19). The idea that the airports are unsafe fosters images of ‘terrorist threat’ in Jamaica. That the incident occurred in the tourist capital and at the gateway for tourist visitors chips away at the already declining image of Montego Bay. Here, uncontrolled crime, an unplanned and undeveloped city, and a poorly run Parish Council create havoc on a city meant to be the country’s economic lifeline.

Yet, it is often at this point – after the fact/post incident- that we fail to undertake proper damage control and crisis management strategies. Sadly, we often allow it to blow over and carry on in a merry way, the consequence of which is Jamaica’s deteriorating international image without an effective counter response. Jamaica relies almost entirely on its ‘brand’ – its image and international perception – to claim its place in the world. It cannot afford to not protect its image, and its real public relations terms rebuild relationships with its various publics when they go awry. So what was the likely response the Government of Jamaica ought to have taken in this latest crisis and how did it fair?

CRISIS MANAGEMENT 101- WHAT WAS THE MOST APPROPRIATE RESPONSE IN THE MONTEGO BAY HIJACKING.

Minutes after the news broke, (and there was absolutely no information on the Gleaner website except a breaking news headline), I posted a Facebook note in which I said damage control was immediately required. Here are the steps I proposed for the post hijacking crisis management response.

1. RESPOND IMMEDIATELY (Call press conference)

2. ACKNOWLEDGE THE INCIDENT

3. TAKE ACTION (Arrest; Prosecution)

4. APOLOGISE TO ALL CONCERNED

5. APPEASE PASSENGERS/CANADIAN GOVERNMENT

5. REITERATE THAT NO ONE WAS INJURED

6. THANK CREW FOR CALM RESPONSE

7. RECTIFY (institute new airport security measures now)

8. DECLARE INCIDENT UNPRECEDENTED/ONE-OFF

9. EMPHASIZE THAT JAMAICA IS SAFE FOR VISITORS
HOW DID THE GOVERNMENT FAIR?

I believe overall the Government of Jamaica faired well in its management of the disaster and its post incident crisis management response. The actions taken were for the most part appropriate. The acknowledgment of the incident and the actions taken to arrest the passenger has to be high on the list of effective responses. Indeed, the fact that the police and military which cordoned off the Sangster International Airport did not storm into the aircraft with guns blazing was quite frankly pleasantly surprising to me. With the world watching, this would have made us look like complete baboons – as we did during the Bob Woolmer saga.

The timely appeasement of the passengers, bussing them to the nearby Cornwall regional hospital for shock treatment; the establishment of a hotline for them to make contact with their relatives overseas were appropriate. I am not sure if an official apology was offered by the Government but I would hope so since this was a clear breach of security which ought to have been prevented. The fact that the crew endured nine hours of torture and did not further aggravate an unstable, anxious gunman was a blessing and ought to be recognised as part of the reasons for a less than dramatic ending to this disaster.

THINGS THAT BOTHERED ME

There are a few things which irked me while I watched the continuing reports of the crisis on CNN and BBC, and spoke to colleague journalists at home. I will outline them here:

Simply ordering an investigation will not do. Surely, it would be nice to find out what happened; what the procedures are for entry at the tail end of checking in as if a plane is getting ready for take off, unless you suited off in your Air Jamaica or Airports authority gear, then a simply ID on your neck cannot be sufficient to let you through. Yet, I would’ve liked to have heard about how the Government plans to rectify the situation. I would’ve preferred to hear something to the effect that ‘the security arrangements at airports will be revised in light of the incident’. Surely, this will not just blow over as the next incident will not end this happily. This is not usual for us….

Another issue which concerns me is the seemingly strategic response by Government officials to turn up at the scene of disasters. I know we are a small country but I don’t get it. Why was Bruce on the tarmac? Why isn’t the Security Minister, Dwight Nelson and Information Minister, Daryl Vaz sufficient a presence – if there needs to be such official presence outside the police. Is Bruce the police? Is he a disaster management expert? Is he a hostage negotiator? Is he a reporter? Is he a priest? Is he a doctor? Someone please tell me what the role of the Prime Minister is under these circumstances. Like the disaster in December of 2008 when 14 persons lost their lives when the market truck overturned in Portland, the PM wants to show/lend his support to the victims. In my view, lend your support elsewhere – allow the police and the relevant persons to do their job! The presence of the PM is a disruptive force- he will have to be factored into all discussions and cannot give expert advice so should not be there. The representative officials are sufficient to provide him with updates on what is happening and perhaps away from the disaster he has a clearer head as to how to respond overall when the incident is resolved. God forbid another incident should occur and he is busy on the tarmac in Mobay mini-managing! This pandering in the spotlight is more disguised vote-buying than actual leadership or genuine care.

Finally, what is with the government’s deference for the international press? Is it that we wish to be on international news or shall our Ministers learn to navigate media interviews no matter who is asking the questions? Who are the real spokespersons? This is a decision that cannot be taken on the tarmac during a disaster. In the first place, a disaster plan must be in place that factors in all possible incidents in your country. This is the reason the Metropolitan Police in London were so excellent in their response to the London Bombings. Nothing was taken for granted and Scotland Yard was working from a script. I was fortunate to have been one of the journalists trained by their Public Affairs team to handle crises during the preparatory phase of the Cricket World Cup West Indies 2007. A spokesperson must be nominated so that one information is coming through. The press must not be chasing up individual persons for an interview. You may contradict each other and your reports of the facts may not be so or you may divulge something that may be inappropriate to say at that stage this brings me back to Bruce on the tarmac.

THE TRIED AND TESTED “WIGGLE UP” APPROACH

I have learned that the best response is a ‘wiggle-up’ approach. This means that in a disaster, you may want to use your lower level spokesman to do the talking (Govt Media Liaison). If needs be, you ‘wiggle up’ to a Minister of Security, and if the situation warrants, we move to the Prime Minister. The idea is that you never know when/if the crisis will escalate – in this case – the gunman killing a hostage, killing himself, killing the crew and/or the police storming in and making a bad situation worse. In this sense, it is best to hear from the Minister of National Security. If the Minister’s credibility is shot because he promised the safe return of passengers and this does not eventuate, then we would now – mandatorily – hear from the Prime Minister. Now if the PM is already on the tarmac, his presence alone overshadows the proceedings; his Ministers would be press corps gleeful and forget all the universal globally-recognised tenets of effective crisis management.

PS: Jamaica is a brand, but the brand is not only positive. A brand is, for all intents and purposes, dynamic – it continually changes and variable factors often impact on it. This means that we are obliged to respond effectively and urgently and continually to events and circumstances which alters people’s perception and opinion of that brand. Enough said.

Ode to “Quasheba”: Resistance Rituals Among Higgler Women in Jamaica

This is an excerpt from my chapter in the book: On the Edges of Development: Cultural Interventions, New York: Routledge, 2009. (eds. John Foran, Priya Kurian, Debashish Munshi, & Kum Kum Bhavnani). The volume examines the struggles undertaken by the subaltern class across the Third World (Thailand, Jamaica, India etc) to challenge the deficits of globalisation and to improve their economic and socio-political status.

My chapter entitled  – ” Ode to “Quasheba”: Resistance Rituals Among Higgler Women in Jamaica” – talks about the modes of struggle and expression undertaken by higglers in the Jamaican informal economy. On the Edges of Development is a must read for those interested in development studies, history, participatory politics, globalisation & civil society from a Third World perspective.

 Get your copy at Amazon.com! You will be able to see inside at other chapters!
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Excerpts from Chapter 2, – by Hume Johnson

The name “Quasheba” recalls the popular nineteenth century colonial stereotype and caricature of the Afro-Jamaican slave woman. Quasheba was synonymous with “warrior woman” or “queen of the rebels,” and was used to describe an independent, outspoken, feisty female slave; a noisy and aggressive troublemaker. But beyond literary satire, Quasheba was the public voice of female leadership and a pillar of active resistance in the Jamaican slave community. It is therefore through a theoretical resurrection of the symbolism of Quasheba during the slavery and post-emancipation periods that we may be able to gain a better understanding of the political economy, continuities, manifestations and symbolic meaning of contemporary women’s activism in Jamaica, particularly, the disguised and overt forms of popular protest carried out by higgler women in the informal economy.
Significantly, it was street/market context which facilitated the materialization of “Quasheba” and her transformation as a central actor in both historical and contemporary cultures of peasant resistance. This is because the street in the contemporary period is home to an expanding informal (or “hustle”) economy which has emerged in peripheral countries such as Jamaica. This economy finds its bases and is contextualised by modern capitalism, globalization and transnational trade as well as the failed development experiments of Structural Adjustment  and economic liberalization.

The poor, including vast networks of women became the major casualties of global recession and austerity policies. Informalization has been an almost organic response to chronic joblessness, growing destitution and a way out of misery for massive numbers of poor in the urban slums who were driven to rely on their own devices and to seek imaginative ways to eke out an existence . This street-turned-economic space became dominated by hordes of sidewalk vendors, higglers, mobile hawkers, peddlars and hustlers determined to stitch together a livelihood, and confront/resist their marginal status.

I illustrate the ways in which gender, social class and economic status intersect and collaborate to structure these women’s interest and participation in popular political action and establish/project their identity as feminized power-holders in this economic public sphere. Without romanticizing these struggles (or abstracting them from their counterpoint to the quest for “law and order” by the Jamaican State), I examine the combination of circumstances which drive inner-city women from a focus on their routinized economic activities to become “disorderly” figures at the forefront of spontaneous and episodic protestations and collective action.

For these poor women, resistance is a must against what they see as the encroachment of the modern capitalist state, big business and other super-ordinate groups on their livelihood. The development orchestrated by the state has failed them, by not serving their interests and taking account off their struggles. But rather than succumbing as victims of inequity and marginalization, these subaltern women have “refused” development. In so doing, they expose its flaws and calamitous effects on the poor, revise the terms dictated by globalization and effect development on their own terms and at their own convenience. Indeed, rather than necessarily “buying into” the trappings of modern capitalism by merely selling consumer goods, they see it as an inescapable, requisite aspect of the struggle to survive poverty and improve their lives. By resisting efforts by the Jamaican state to streamline their operations and remove them from the street, these women unconsciously re-imagine development. They demand that it become more equitable and livable.
THE STREET AS ECONOMIC SPACE: HISTORICAL BEGINNINGS OF QUASHEBA

The antecedent to the modern informal economy in Jamaica was the plantation market culture which emerged during slavery. The market and the street, for example, acquired prominence during the transitional apprenticeship (period of “half-freedom” between 1834-1838 aimed at preparing slaves for “full freedom”) and post-emancipation phases. British planters and estate owners, aiming to escape the enormous costs and burden to feed a massive slave population, allotted both male and female slaves plots of land (later called “provision grounds”) on which to cultivate their own crops, on their own time, for their own consumption.

Both male and female slaves sold the surplus from their provision grounds at weekend markets (Sherlock and Bennett 1998; Momsen 1996; French 1995) . It was, however, women who dominated marketing and effectively claimed ownership of this economic domain. Although many worked in the urban domestic services as nannies, cooks and washerwomen, a large majority became involved in higglering and hawking goods about the streets almost exclusively for profit. Indeed, as early as 1672 in Jamaica, slave women were involved in buying and selling the surplus production from their provision grounds on Sunday mornings in public markets.

The very exercise of planting, harvesting and selling their own crops transformed the (still estate-owned and controlled) provision grounds into an arena of independence and material betterment as well as a source of personhood. In other words, the mostly illiterate slave women had officially entered the money economy as skilled entrepreneurs and autonomous financial brokers (SEE Sherlock and Bennett 1998; French 1995) . So important had the Sunday market become that the otherwise stringent laws restricting the mobility of the slaves were relaxed during the apprenticeship years (1834-1838), at least where marketing activities were concerned.

According to Sheller (1997), the presence of the vast and highly visible networks of women facilitated crucial flows of information between town centres and the countryside and between markets and fields which enabled the slaves to orchestrate and execute collection action. Indeed, given their numerical dominance in urban public spaces, it was also women who filled the streets and squares during popular mobilizations or demonstrations and played impressive roles in some of the most violent public disturbances and riots.

The historical record reveals the heavy involvement of women in popular petitioning, court-based contestations as well as open and violent rebellions and demand-making urban riots over social, economic and political rights. A bulk of the popular protestations and collective struggles focused on the rights of the free peoples to practice their indigenous religions. However, in the main, the issues over which women protested include low wages, unfair terms of unemployment, growing destitution and a deep sense that justice was unavailable through the courts (see Wilmot 1995, 284-287; Reddock 1995; Mintz 1996; Momsen 1996; Sheller 1997).

Significantly, however, it was this arena of small-scale entrepreneurship, marketization and informalism, dominated by a ready and active network of women exhibiting elements of civic engagement and social capital which ultimately created an enabling environment for organized slave resistance in Jamaica. Recent historical scholarship on slave resistance is awash with evidentiary transcripts of the impact of Quasheba in this domain during and after slavery. Together, these analyses confirm that it was the near permanent presence of black women in the public spaces of towns, and notably, their monopolization of the public spaces of the markets which played an important role in the ultimate development of a politically active Afro-Jamaican public.

PROTEST PARTICIPATION BY WOMEN HIGGLERS- MEANINGS AND LESSONS

There is widespread agreement that “participation in social protests raises the political consciousness of women, sometimes, but not always contributing to a revised view of their subordinate status in society” (West and Blumberg 1990, 31). It is unquestionable that the cultural and political dimensions of the informal processes described in this essay hold potentially transformative effects for those engaged in them. In the first place, it is important to acknowledge that the informal economy, as an economic site, in a context of capitalism and the free-market, facilitates small-scale entrepreneurship and thus provides a thriving source of income and a better way of life for a vast number of women, many of whom, based on their social identities as members of Jamaica’s disadvantaged and marginalized underclass, are unable to claim real access to resources through the formalized, recognized channels of the society.  Through free enterprise, higgler women are offered a range of social and political resources which allows them to realize some “success” and “social betterment” within the otherwise confining socio-economic structures of the Jamaican society. 

But beyond street entrepreneurship, the informal economy is also a space of political negotiation and resistance as well as social and cultural engagement, and thus provides the enabling environment for protest participation and performance. Here, the power of the street demonstration offers higglers real weapons by which to “refuse development,” as defined by their counterparts in the formal economy as well as launch a counter-war against the encroachments of the Jamaican State and other super-ordinate groups and structures. Therefore, while higgler women retain an interdependency with global capitalism in their quest to survive poverty and improve their social standing, they simultaneously utilize the political/cultural arena of the street to physically, materially, symbolically struggle against the efforts to deny them this way of life.
 
At the same time, the higglering and vending class are left with limited options. For example, they can continue to resist the moves of the state to remove them from the streets and invite the seizure of their goods and hefty fines. They can relocate to the allotted vending areas and face a loss in profit or, although unlikely, they can seize operating informal trading altogether. Clearly, imitating large-scale merchants/store owners whose businesses are defined by statis is not an option for masses of higglers who operate more roaming enterprises. It also goes against the interests of these informal folks whose lives often demand flexibility, innovativeness and constant change (of places and priorities). Interminable mobilization may seem unrealistic but based on the empirical evidence, there seems to be general agreement among the higglering sector that disruptive, confrontational tactics cannot be abandoned.

These deliberately offensive challenges illustrate the higglers’ physical and moral dominance over the street as public sphere and assert/consolidate their right to inclusion and voice participation here. At the very least, it forces the state to rethink its position, change its objectives and consider alternate/subordinate voices in decision-making. Within this process of struggle, Afro-Jamaican higglers, like their traditional Quasheba counterparts, are learning the importance and potency of unity. This means networking, supporting each other and acting together in opposition to a common enemy – the Jamaican State as embodied in the police and removal officers of Metropolitan Parks and Markets. Rather than passive victims, they are increasingly recognized as empowered actors. Their confidence and esteem has also increased enormously as they realize the power of (violent) protest. Many are increasingly unafraid to defy the law, challenge the police and, in instances, accept the assistance and commanding influence of extra-legal actors – criminal gangs and dons (see Johnson 2005). Based on the argument presented in this essay, it is clear that Jamaican women have always challenged traditional views of poverty.

For centuries, higglers and street vendors have been mobilizing hundreds of their colleagues in the streets in popular collective struggles aimed at resisting encroachments on their livelihood by super-ordinate groups led by the Jamaican state. The reasons for their persistence and contemporary success are manifold. Perhaps most fundamental is that the vendor protests of the last decade were operative at a time when the Jamaican political climate has been overwhelmingly tolerant of protests. For the massive numbers of higglers and vendors, this means that the momentum of resistance can be maintained even in the face of sporadic state clampdown. Secondly, there is no disillusionment among higglers regarding their ability to maintain long term invisibility on the streets and guarantee the continued existence of this way of life. This resolve is based on their increasing awareness, not only of their own subordination and lack of rights but also that it is the state which is the source of their oppression. The attempt by the Jamaican state to introduce renovated market areas does not therefore reduce the incentives for protest and the vendors’ commitment to defend their means of livelihood. Thirdly, public opinion, while at times highly critical (of their sometimes uncivil/illegal) behaviours, has largely been in the favour of the need of disadvantaged classes to survive poverty and better their lives.

“The Right Move” : Corporate Leadership & Governance in Jamaica – A Review

It is a story of conglomerates, echoing tales of mergers, acquisitions, profitability and pride. It is a narrative of human failure, defeat, deft, inefficiency and mismanagement. But it is also the story of triumph, perseverance, courage and character. It is the record of Jamaica’s corporate leaders, bastions of entrepreneurship.

Authored by Delano Franklyn (former Minister of State, Foreign Affairs and Trade), the book is called ‘The Right Move: Corporate Leadership and Governance in Jamaica’. Written with a zest and pace sadly missing from much of the discourse on business and entrepreneurship, The Right Move is a bold attempt to celebrate the accomplishments of 39 of Jamaica’s business leaders, nominated for the Jamaica Observer’s Business Leader of the Year, 1996. This, Franklyn has done by locating the successes and failures of these businessmen and women within the context of the country’s prevailing economic environment and the extent to which this environment impacts on the way businesses are forced to operate.

Refraining from the use of theoretical economic jargons, the book contributes to a solid structure of knowledge while easing readers through the vicissitudes of being an entrepreneur. Utilizing personal interviews, business materials and the annual reports of publicly listed companies, Franklyn succeeds in exposing the entrepreneurial shrewdness of some of Jamaica’s corporate leaders, probes the thinking and decisions made by them – in an effort to understand the criteria which underlay their success and the reasons behind their failures. This, the author has accomplished in a manner which is best described as non-judgmental but not necessarily uncritical.

Without making direct reference to it, Franklyn in The Right Move cleverly engages readers in a discussion about leadership and governance, of course without placing excessive attention on political leadership. Rather, he manages to pull into sharp focus the whole notion of corporate governance, embarking on a meticulous appraisal of Jamaica’s business leaders, particularly their responsibility in driving a market economy.

WHO ARE JAMAICA’S REAL ENTREPRENEURS?
In the preface of The Right Move, the author poses a question which I contend forms the fundamental basis of the book: “Why are some businesspersons able to do well, particularly in arduous and demanding situations while others are less able to do so”? Such a blunt, candid question underlines what Franklyn has posited as the “qualitative difference between businesspersons who view challenges and changes as insurmountable obstacles to business development and those who are prepared to apply new methods, new techniques and creative innovations to cope with challenges and changes”. Who then are the entrepreneurs in Jamaica? It is a question which is left hanging but even a cursory reading of the book will furnish a certain answer.

ASSESSING THE BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT
No objective assessment of any entrepreneur or commercial enterprise in Jamaica, small or expanding, can be accomplished without a keen analysis of the country’s prevailing business environment. The Right Move therefore takes as its point of departure a detailed review of the Jamaica economy and the state’s attempt to create the kind of environment which fosters growth and development. Evaluated within the milieu of the intrinsic worth as well as the snares of globalization and liberalization, Franklyn shows demonstrable prrof of the significant structural adjustments that government has been compelled to undertake in order to ensure increased productivity and competitiveness.

In this regard, Jamaica is said to have experimented with a range of economic strategies since the 1950s, aimed at achieving economic growth and development. The Right Move is a comprehensible testimony of the symbiotic relationship that ought to exist between the private sector, government’s policies and the responsibility of the business community to perform within such a framework. It is of course beyond contention that many of the structural adjustment policies undertaken by government to respond to varied economic conditions have hampered some businesses.

THE JAMAICA FINANCIAL SECTOR IN THE MID 1990S: FRANK PERSPECTIVES
Corporate leaders such as then Chairman of Bank of Nova Scotia, William ‘Bill’ Clarke posit other factors that he claims primarily caused the meltdown of the financial and insurance sectors. Clarke declares in Franklyn’s book that there are certain fundamental principles that banks ought to be guided by. ‘Banks ought not to be pawnbrokers and should stick to their core principles and core business’. Many operators of financial institutions interviewed by Delano Franklyn have failed in this regard. Mutual Life’s Jim Parkes in an extraordinary admission in the book says: “we forgot we were an insurance company”.

GOVERNMENT INTERVENTION VIA FINSAC: A LOOK BACK
Based on Franklyn’s studies of Mutual Life, Life of Jamaica, the Eagle Financial Network and national Commercial Bank (NCB), the government’s intervention in the financial sector in the mid 1990s through the Financial Sector Adjustment company (FINSAC) has been touted as a necessary evil. It may well have been but at the same time, its very existence exposed the vulnerability of many entities and the seeming ineptitude of its leadership. In the end, Franklyn establishes that radical reforms had become mandatory in order to, literally, resuscitate some of these companies and to restore profitability in others. Many such as NCB, according to Franklyn, “sought to divest itself of its non-core business assets, reduce its operating costs and concentrate on financial services, its core business”.

From tourism and manufacturing to commerce and entertainment, serious management decisions were undertaken, many of which focused on fielding the best human resource. Importantly, in my opinion, these decisions were, perhaps for the first time, not based on loyalty to company or shallow friendship. Says LOJ’s Dennis Lalor, “there was no need to dismiss anyone; we simply raised the performance bar;  Those who were not able to meet the new criteria dropped out” (p. 56). Meanwhile, Roy D’Cambre, described by Franklyn as a feisty, self-deprecating entrepreneur declares “anyone in my organisation who tells me that something can’t be done is gone! What the employee means is that he cannot do the job and I simply have to find someone who can”! (p. 249).

FROM THE MOUTHS OF JAMAICA’S BUSINESS LEADERS
Wayne Chen of Superplus says he is  an  “unrelenting believer in a market economy”. The masterminds behind the Asylum and Margueritaville, Brian Chung and Christopher Cargill vow to continue to invest in Jamaica. Meanwhile for female business powerhouse, Doreen Frankson of Edgechem, crime is no deterrent, and Roy D’ Cambre declares “I love a fight”. It is clear that many of the business leaders interviewed by Delano Franklyn for this book have demonstrated gritty tenacity in the face of mounting problems; have taken risks but have ultimately been recognized as victors in their field.

THE ENTREPRENEURIAL PERSONALITY: WHAT IS IT?
With razor sharp precision, Delano Franklyn has managed to arrive at some elements of what constitutes what he calls the ‘entrepreneurial personality’. They are first and foremost risk takers whose ambition and determination drives their success. They tend to have confidence in their ability to succeed, demonstrate a high level of energy and commitment and a desire for responsibility. Skill and experience are touted as necessary but not sufficient prerequisites of a “real” entrepreneur. Throughout the book, however, other elements of this “entrepreneurial personality” took shape in the desire of many of these business leaders to provide quality service at reasonable prices, ensure that their staff is highly trained and competent and illustrate the capacity to respond quickly and adroitly to changes in the surrounding business environment.

IS FAILURE A NECESSARY PART OF BUSINESS?
It must be understood that many entrepreneurs can and do exhibit these characteristics and still fail. Fortunately, Delano Franklyn, author of The Right Move does not regard business failure as something to be ashamed of. Rather, Franklyn presents business failure as part and parcel of the risks inherent in business. Indeed, Franklyn advises that “calculated risk taking must be encouraged among those who desire to become entrepreneurs”. This is obviously not novel advice but there are those who have failed and have claimed that they have lost the “spirit” to pull themselves from the “ashes” while others declare that “businessmen are businessmen and will always look for opportunities regardless of the situation”. Who are the real entrepreneurs then?  You choose!

WHO ARE THE REAL ENTREPRENEURS THEN? MY ANSWER…
To my mind, from the street side vendors and cart pushers to the peanut man and the individuals who earn a living selling from their vehicles, Jamaican people are fully possessed with the “entrepreneurial personality”. Obviously, there is no singular set of criteria, which maybe adhered to if one desires to be successful at entrepreneurship. The business leaders featured in The Right Move is verifiable evidence of this.

The Right Move, authored by Delano Franklyn is a highly recommended book for students and teachers of Business administration, Management Studies, Political Science and Journalism, as well as anyone interested in entrepreneurship or the Jamaican business environment. The book is thought-provoking and instructive. At the same time, it opens the way for further discussion on business in Jamaica, and calls attention- unconsciously perhaps- also to the varied and creative ways the operators of small-business exist in the prevailing economic environment. The subject of another publication? Maybe

To purchase this book, and others from this author, including his latest, Sprinting into History, see www.delanofranklynbooks.com.