Social Impact with Emma » journalism : A Jamaica Gleaner Blog

The Vulnerable Senior Citizens, Private Care Homes and COVID-19

June 18th, 2020

I attended a press briefing by the Ministry of Health and Wellness this evening. The theme was “Protecting the Vulnerable,” a topic I have been addressing in recent posts. So, what does vulnerable mean in the Ministry’s view? Basically, older people (although the age limit varies from “over 60″ to “over 70,” etc. However, the critical […]

2019: A Year of Internet Shutdowns, Disinformation, and Distrust

December 28th, 2019

2019 has been the year of “Internet shutdowns.” No, I am not talking about Jamaican companies that fail to deliver the services that we pay for. I am talking about shutdowns initiated by governments that are afraid of their own citizens. The Internet has become the lifeblood of many societies in almost every country you […]

The Netizens of Global Voices Celebrate Fifteen Years of Activism

December 12th, 2019

Happy birthday, Global Voices! I am proud to be a contributor to Global Voices and a member of the “GV Family,” which is now celebrating its fifteenth year. What voices, and where, you might ask? Well, GV is an amazingly diverse network, a digital community populated by people you could sit down for hours and […]

Cockpit Country: Is It Really All About the Boundaries?

November 29th, 2019

Ceiling fans whirred and night sounds crept through the windows of the Webb Memorial Baptist Church in Stewart Town, Trelawny earlier this evening. A Town Hall Meeting was in progress, streamed live on Facebook on the websites of the sponsors, the Environmental Foundation of Jamaica (EFJ), the Public Access Channel (PAC) and the Jamaica Gleaner. […]

Youth Activism Is Alive and Well – If Given the Chance

May 16th, 2019

Our Jamaican youth often get a “bad rap.” Many Jamaicans believe they are lazy and self-centered. Millennials, in particular (slightly older) are seen as shallow and obsessed with material things. Jamaican adults often put young people down; between the ages of twelve and twenty-five, say, they are not entitled to express an opinion or have a seat […]

On the Anniversary of a Genocide: What Is Your Idea of Hell?

April 7th, 2019

In Bob Marley’s reflective song “Time Will Tell,” there are the lines: Time alone – oh, time will tell: Think you’re in heaven, but you’re living in hell. Marley was referring to the people he called “baldheads” – those politicians and businessmen (“big men”), whom he considered greedy, corrupt and self-satisfied in their mansions on […]

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