By Howard Campbell, Gleaner WriterTRENCH TOWN, the community that inspired some of Bob Marley's most memorable songs, will this weekend try and forget the bloodshed that tainted it in 2004 by celebrating the achievements of its most famous son who would have been 60 years-old tomorrow.
Today, the fifth staging of the Trench Town Community Festival takes place at the Vin Lawrence Park on First Street, a complex facing the Trench Town Culture Yard, the former tenement where Marley once lived.
Activities start at 7:00 am with a 5K road race, to be followed by football and netball tournaments. There will also be a craft exhibition showcasing the artistry of some of Trench Town's residents.
"It's really held to showcase the talent of people in Trench Town. We hope to raise funds and start an education and skills fund," Sophia Skeen, one of the event's organizers, told The Gleaner.
First held in 2001, the Trench Town Community Festival is jointly sponsored this year by the Trench Town Development Association, the Trench Town Mediators, the Dispute Resolution Foundation and the Social Development Commission.
Ms. Skeen says the festival has not lived up to monetary expectations but believes there will be an improvement this year.
Marley was born in Nine Miles, St. Ann in 1945. He came to Trench Town to join his mother Cedella in the early 1950s and lived at First Street for many years.
Several of his songs, including Concrete Jungle, Burning and Trench Town, depicting life in the community during the 1960s.
The Rastafarian singer/songwriter is credited for giving reggae an international profile in the 1970s. He died in May, 1981 in Miami from cancer.
Trench Town is part of the South St. Andrew constituency. It experienced violent exchanges between gangs in 2004 resulting in the closure of schools and deaths of several persons including area leader Horace 'Ram Johnnie' Murphy in August.
