ORVILLE W. TAYLOR'What a li bam bam bale when the two sevens clash!'
REMEMBER THIS song? It was by Culture with Joseph Hill on lead vocals, belting out one of the alleged prophecies of Marcus Garvey. As teenagers we waited with bated breath and Colin Channer, still a mischievous invader from another school, 'waited in vain' for the great cataclysm that was predicted by the 'prophet'.
According to some obscure prediction by Marcus, we should expect big things when two sevens lined up with each other. The 1970s was a period of unprecedented governmental support for black pride even though we had Michael Manley, the whitest prime minister ever.
Understandably then, more attention would be paid to the works of our first and blackest national hero. Given the enhanced status that Garvey was then accorded, many Afro-centric Jamaicans, especially the Rastafarians, elevated him to the level of a modern-day Nostra-damus, the "man who saw tomorrow." Therefore, from the man who had predicted the coming of a black king in the person of "Jah Jah," the year 1977 was to have a special significance in the history of Jamaica.
The entire nation expected an explosion but as Jamaicans say, when a 'clappaz' (firecracker) fails to detonate, "It toosh!"
Yet, sometimes it is just that we are not forward-looking enough and thus we fail to see 'processes' simply because we are looking for 'events.' This is precisely what happened and we therefore failed to realise that the sevens did clash with far-reaching consequences being felt up to today. For this insight I thank 'Mr. Glen'.
The year 1977 marked the beginning of a new series of social and economic challenges for this country. After a number of economic shortfalls caused by a range of factors, both internal and external, Jamaica had an unemployment rate of 25 per cent, negative economic growth of -2.3 per cent, which was preceded by -6.3 per cent in 1976 and owed millions to foreign commercial banks.
'ONE-SIZE-FITS-ALL' POLICY
In response, Manley approached the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and this caused a major 'bangarang' in the party. What? Bruce Golding does not have exclusive rights to this word?
Anyway, the IMF is a shrewd lender and it tends to squeeze its borrowers tighter than the fat man's shirt. With its 'one-size-fits-all' policy the IMF required a devaluation of the local currency. Now, the majority of Jamaicans today were born to know a Jamaican dollar that needs CPR, a touch of Viagra and a bottle of real Jamaican roots. However, just before the sevens clashed, 90 Jamaican cents were worth a U.S. dollar. After the first in a long series of devaluation curses, it slipped to $1.25 Jamaican to one 'Yankee'. Since 1977, the Jamaican dollar has been more unstable than a seat in the Portland Parish Council.
In 1975, the Labour Relations and Industrial Disputes Act was passed. Yet, two years later, a move was afoot to abridge the collective bargaining process. Therefore, in 1977, the Govern-ment, under indirect influence of the IMF, proposed Section 11A which essentially took free collective bargaining from unions and employers and gave the Minister of Labour the right to refer matters to compulsory arbitration even if both parties objected. It is interesting to note that Sir Alexander Bustamante, fabled father of our modern trade unionism, and advocate of workers rights died in 1977 too.
WAGE GUIDELINES REBORN
After 1977, wage guidelines became part of our landscape and were to last until 1993. Say what? The MoU is wage guidelines reborn like a zombie or other creature from 77 Horror Greats. Remember the series?
Apart from the labour scene, crime and political violence became institutionalised bed-fellows after 1977 as well. Around that year, we saw the emergence of area dons with clear political allegiances. The murder rate peaked in 1977. In response and to lock down political opponents, Manley had declared a state of emergency in 1976, which lasted until mid-1977. He then enacted the Suppression of Crime Act (Hush Pearnel, you got a bestseller out of it).
Barclay's Bank was 'nationalised' or more appropriately, taken over by Government and renamed National Commercial Bank. This marked the beginnings of attempts to create a black financial sector and perhaps the genesis of the crash of the sector in the mid-1990s.
The People's National Party Government also nationalised the then internationally-owned Radio Jamaica, also in 1977. It is to be noted that the Government had already owned the Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation (JBC) giving it an awesome (or awful) role in the media. By the way, talk shows began anew to operate 'in the public interest' in 1977.
On the entertainment scene Trinity's Three Piece Suit an' Ting was the first song where the DJ rapped non-stop from beginning to end, starting the real dance hall revolution in 1977. Luther Vandross, thitherto known only as a back-up singer who grew up "under Dionne Warwick's nose," had his first 'real' album in 1977.
This year, 2005, the sevens have met several times with great impact. A few weeks ago two sevens met in Asafa Powell's 9.77. The first hurricane to come this way made landfall on July 7. On this same day, seven bombs were exploded in a country that was one of the original G7, while the other seven met with Tony Blair. Coincidence?
Oh! By the way, my headmaster told me in 1977 that I would have come to nothing. So blame him for some of my mischief.
Dr. Orville Taylor is lecturer in the Department of Sociology, Psychology and Social Work at the University of the West Indies, Mona.
