AFRICAN DIASPORA IN JAMAICA
Knowledge Is Power
Intro
The concept of slavery started once the English settlers started to grow tobacco, indigo and cocoa soon giving their way to sugar which became the main crop for the island. Enslaved Africans filled the large labour force required for the industry. The colonists were impressed with the performance and endurance of the Africans, as well as the fact that African labour was cheaper and more promising. They continued to ship Africans to the West Indies to be sold to planters who forced them to work on sugar plantations.
The Maroons
How Slaves Rebelled
Unhappy with their status, they rebelled whenever and however they could. Many of them were successful in running away from the plantations and joining the Maroons in the almost inaccessible mountains. The Maroons were escaped slaves that ran away from their Spanish-owned plantations. They ran away to the mountainous areas in Jamaica, where it was hard for their owners to catch them, and formed independent communities as free men and women.
How Is African Culture Still In Jamaica Today
Many African cultures such as music and a form of witchcraft were used in Africa are seen in Jamaica today. African slaves brought over their culture to Jamaica. They had a instrument that was called the African lute. They also had the harp, a Koromanti instrument. The style of the dances, including style of movements, done by the Jamaicans were also very similar to that of the Koromanti. These dances and instruments were brought from Africa and stayed in Jamaica.
http://discoveringbristol.org.uk/slavery/against-slavery/black-resistance-against-slavery/the-maroons-of-jamaica/
https://jis.gov.jm/information/jamaican-history/
“There are only two kinds of people who are really fascinating--people who know absolutely everything, and people who know absolutely nothing”
Oscar Wilde
