03-15-2015, 06:45 PM
Westender, I was not directing the caveat to any of your comments. I've seen several mentions of it.
I think you make an excellent point with the following:
"What is interesting to me is what has caused this tidal wave of change where tourists are regularly being robbed in tourist areas, which in the past would have been a huge no no, for fear of repercussion from the police...and negril getting a bad name where tourists are afraid to visit. That was the ethos that I was familiar with for a long while..."
I am interested in knowing the answer to your question too. Because I can tell you that I have unequivocally seen a difference in the way I am sometimes treated as a tourist in comparison to about six or seven years ago. I remember well the first time I encountered any Jamaican be downright hostile toward me was when I innocently smiled and said hello to a young woman while walking alone on the Bloody Bay Beach at sunset. It was in April, 2010. I also want to go on to emphasize that the majority of Jamaicans treat me and each other with respect from what I have observed.
I have some theories on why. Just like I believe some rap music glorifies and encourages gangsters and criminals in the U.S., I believe some dancehall music and the culture around it glorifies what the scammers and criminals have been doing. The song "Reparation" by Vybz Cartel is an excellent example.
You take this cultural phenomenon along with the hopelessness and poverty many young people experience today in Jamaica and you end up with where we are now, a place where things are so bad for some that they just don't care anymore about what happens to them.
I think you make an excellent point with the following:
"What is interesting to me is what has caused this tidal wave of change where tourists are regularly being robbed in tourist areas, which in the past would have been a huge no no, for fear of repercussion from the police...and negril getting a bad name where tourists are afraid to visit. That was the ethos that I was familiar with for a long while..."
I am interested in knowing the answer to your question too. Because I can tell you that I have unequivocally seen a difference in the way I am sometimes treated as a tourist in comparison to about six or seven years ago. I remember well the first time I encountered any Jamaican be downright hostile toward me was when I innocently smiled and said hello to a young woman while walking alone on the Bloody Bay Beach at sunset. It was in April, 2010. I also want to go on to emphasize that the majority of Jamaicans treat me and each other with respect from what I have observed.
I have some theories on why. Just like I believe some rap music glorifies and encourages gangsters and criminals in the U.S., I believe some dancehall music and the culture around it glorifies what the scammers and criminals have been doing. The song "Reparation" by Vybz Cartel is an excellent example.
You take this cultural phenomenon along with the hopelessness and poverty many young people experience today in Jamaica and you end up with where we are now, a place where things are so bad for some that they just don't care anymore about what happens to them.