By Clifton Segree, ContributorIT WAS the night of Sunday, April 4, 1968, three days after my birthdate. A group of us was not comfortable with the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jnr's visit to Memphis, Tennessee, USA. Then the news came that he had been shot on the balcony of a motel in Memphis. The killing triggered off riots, with looting and burning of nearly 20 cities across the United States.
The Civil Rights Movement in the United States was at its peak. The world was taking notice and Jamaica was no exception.
I had been employed for three years in one of Jamaica's two radio newsrooms and the more experienced newsmen and women were keeping a constant watch on the wire services during that era for anything that had to do with the Civil Rights Movement or the Black Panther Party. So the newsroom monitored constantly the Voice of America and other US radio stations, as well as the BBC.
You may ask why would young Jamaican journalists be interested in these developments? Jamaica was not like it is today. Black people were not welcomed with open arms in our local hotels and they were made to know this. Even young Jamaican politicians could be seen giving the Black Power sign.
On the day of writing this article, I listened to Byron Lee on KLAS FM recall the time he played at the house of a schoolmate's father and being told that he and his group could go for drinks and food under a mango tree around the back of the house. Lee said he and his musicians packed and left the premises immediately.
As we enter the 21st century, we need to reflect on those who paved the way for a better life for black people.
James Earl Ray was sentenced to 99 years for the murder, although many said he only pulled the trigger, as it has been reported that FBI chief, J. Edgar Hoover, was believed to have been behind the assassination.
White America was scared at the level of uprising in reaction to Dr. King's death and the power of such black music idols as James Brown, who was called upon to appeal to the rioters. The people listened and the riots cooled.
Aretha Franklyn also made an appeal through her memorable song Think and Curtis Mayfield's Moving On Up might have been optimistic. The riots and protests never really stopped, as many black men were to die in the Vietnam War. One of the legends of boxing, ACassius Clay - Muhammid Ali -- refused to go to Vietnam and Marvin Gaye asked What's Going On?
Around that time, more Jamaicans began to travel to the United States, especially Miami. And it was the in-thing to dine at Greek restaurants and Sloppy Joes. But the Whites Only and Coloreds Only signs still hung at public places.
This time around, the music of protest is pop with a new attitude. Unfortunately, it is revolutionary music portrayed by rappers who seem to have got lost in the course of the struggle. I fear 'gangsta' rap is not the way.
