The Editor, Sir:

At times, it is very hard to tell whether or not we are truly interested in curing our society's ills. It is hard to tell if we areeven aware of what some of those ills are.

The question has to be asked: Why as a society we either fail to see, or have seen, but ignored the effect that current dancehall music is having on our society?

Why do we fail to come to terms with the fact that the lyrics contained in the dancehall songs that a large section of our society embraces are fuelling a violent and aggressive cultural lifestyle, as well as creating a society of equally violent and aggressive young people?

Playing violent songs

The other day, while watching the cable TV station, Tempo, I realised that they were endorsing a week of peace in the Caribbean. However, after telling us that 'badness is out of style', the video jock proceeded to announced the next song on the countdown: $1,000 Bill, by Mavado. This is one of Mavado's many songs that is replete with violence.

I was again listening to the radio the morning after the incident at the Braeton All-Age and Junior high school, where a 15-year-old youth was fatally stabbed.

Two radio personalities were discussing the issue, preaching about the lawlessness in the Jamaican society, as well as the breakdown of our family structure.

After speaking, a violent song was played, one sung by Munga Honourable, a new dancehall entertainer who calls himself the 'Gangsta Ras'. This 'Gangsta Ras' has been adding his share of violent music to dancehall, and has been getting heavy rotations on some radio stations.

Suffice to say, Munga Honourable did a video for his song Bad from me Born in which he was standing on top of a police car. This 'honourable' gesture is symbolic of the trampling of law and order that we are seeing in the Jamaican society.

Busy Signal's song, Step Out, was given heavy rotation on many of our radio stations, the violence in its content being diluted by replacing the word 'gun', with the sound of gunshots.

This is mockery in every sense of the word; it must be believed by the radio and TV stations that people arenot sensible enough to associate the sound of gunshots with a gun.

Our young people are being heavily influenced by dancehall music; just listen to the things they say! And no wonder. Music is art, and art is a refection of society, and society in turn becomes a reflection of art.

Need to break cycle

Therefore, we need to break the cycle. We need to ban the violent songs of dancehall artistes from our radios and television stations.

While this will not prevent them from being played in the home and at street dances, this will at least make entertainers find other things to sing about, as radio and TV rotations are very important to their career.

A simple bleep does not hide the violent content in songs, and the sound of gunshots certainly does not make a good substitute for the word 'gun'.

We need to get rid of violent music from our media, which is fuelling this violent culture, that is, if we have any intention to, or see the necessity of, protecting the minds of our youths, and the future of our country.

I am, etc.,

COURTNEY LINDSAY

UWI, Mona