The Editor, Sir:

We need not look very hard to see that it is for socio-economic reasons that more Jamaican males are not entering places of higher learning. Just imagine a young man leaving high school with five CXC subjects.

The likelihood of his entering college or university depends on factors outside his control. Many of our young men have had to, prematurely, put themselves in positions where they are able to provide financial assistance to their families, often at the expense of their own education.

The males are socialised in the Jamaican cultural milieu, at best, to grow up and help their families out of poverty and, at worst, to relieve their parents of their financial responsibilities to them.

Adulthood found me in a family which had nowhere to live; with my mother, alone, having the financial burden of four children. I could not possibly think of college, at least not immediately after leaving high school.

Socialised differently

The Jamaican women are socialised differently. It does not bother the females as much to depend on their family for financial assistance after leaving high school.

This explains why it is more fashionable for a young woman to boast of the fact that she is in school at age 25. A man's strength, according to our culture, resides in his ability to help his family.

As a result, men seek immediate employment. With only a glance you will see them in the transportation industry, the police service, the army, the fire service and in agriculture. And note, a lot of these females at college are there largely due to sustained assistance from these men.

It is not my intention to downplay the importance of tertiary education. I am only saying that considering the socio-economic reality we are not doing so badly.

And, that the male's low showing at our universities is not such a great concern. It is only because we are a society that overvalues middle-class elitism. Too often we undervalue the creative energy of our people, namely our young men.

Male ingenuity

It is time for the society to begin to show appreciation for the Jamaican male's ingenuity. We currently, and will continue to, dominate the creative and entrepreneurial industries.

We do this to compensate for the fact that we are pressured to provide financial assistance, too early, in a society of economic stagnation. The Jamaican intelligentsia must stop looking down on the careers we have carved out for our social and economic mobility.

I had an experience a few weeks ago with a friend of mine who is pursuing a degree at the University of Technology. He asked why was I not thinking of pursuing higher studies and that I was a joker for not doing so.

Self employment

I responded almost angrily, reminding him that my dream is to be a successful farmer and that I had started my own agricultural enterprise. I went on to ask why he thought that university graduates were superior to the thousands of Jamaican men who have succeeded through their own sweat and imagination. I need education to be a successful farmer, not a university certification.

The males of Jamaica would do well with some greater encourage-ment. For the most part the resuscitation of this economy depends on the degree to which its people will use their imagination to create opportunities for themselves. We have to continue to be doers, I want to be seen as a doer.

I am, etc.,

RICARDO McKenzie

nine_zero13@yahoo.com