Tanya Batson-Savage, Freelance Writer
Dr. Donna Hope speaks at the launch of her book, 'Inna di Dancehall: Popular Culture and the Politics of Identity in Jamaica', at the Old Dramatic Theatre, University of the West Indies, Mona, last Friday. - PHOTO BY NATHANIEL STEWART
THE REGGAE academia expanded by another volume on Friday night when Donna Hope's Inna di Dancehall: Popular Culture and the Politics of Identity in Jamaica was launched at the Old Dramatic Theatre, University of the West Indies, Mona.
Inna di Dancehall, Hope's first book, resulted from her Master of Philosophy (MPhil) thesis which was completed in 2001 in the political sciences department at the UWI. Her then supervisor, Professor Rupert Lewis, chaired the event. He pointed out that Hope was now a 'freshly minted' doctor having very recently successfully defended her PhD from George Mason University, with a change in focus to masculinities in dancehall.
Minister of Finance and planning Omar Davies was the evening's guest speaker. Davies noted that he believed that we have an obligation to support those who write, especially by reading their work because Jamaica is neither a 'reading' nor a 'writing' country.
NON-JAMAICAN WRITERS
"In areas in which we excel, most of that which is written about us is written by non-Jamaicans," he added. He therefore explained that he was quite appreciative of those who write and it was commendable that the writing comes from a Jamaican. However, he spent most of his address pointing to areas he believed the book could have addressed without ever evaluating the book on any merits it may possess or simply in light of the goals it may have set for itself.
Davies expressed concern that there was a broader definition than the one the book proffered and that issues of sexuality, explicit content and violence needed to be grounded in a broader context which would allow for an explanation as to why they occurred.
'CAREFUL READING'
Nonetheless, he advised that the book was deserving of "careful reading" by both academics and non-academics. In response to Davies' address, Hope explained that Inna di Dancehall was an exploratory work into 'gender dynamics' and the 'underlying cause for the outburst of violence' which intended to lay a foundation for further exploration of post Marley reggae.
The event also featured a short performance by DJ Macka Diamond who delivered Money O and Bun Him in spite of a bit of early trouble from the microphone. "Yuh know weh mi respeck bout dis book," Macka Diamond declared, "It translate dancehall fi wi." In direct contradiction to Davies highlighting of the need for rigorous study, Macka Diamond declared that Inna di Dancehall explained that dancehall is "just a fun ting".
Inna di Dancehall is published by the University of the West Indies Press.
