“Let He That Is Without Sin Cast The First Stone”

Increase in Mob Killings

When the rule of law is tied up with the ideals of conscience, religion and morality it isn’t hard for everyone to believe that they can be the police. When the rule of law is at its worst, slow, profiling, disrespectful, filled with revenge and corrupt it isn’t hard for man to want to police himself. But, mob action where groups of individuals bare down justice makes the entire nation unsafe.

Demonstration against Police Brutality

The increase in the crime rate has been of great concern for a very long time in Jamaica. For years the retaliation ideology, that has been imposed by us, upon us (either because as a people  we are violent and desire the feeling of vindication when we are erred against as well as the fact that we are most times dissatisfied with the job done by the police force), has seen many murders committed, rapes inflicted against girls women and men and thus jungle justice increasing. We have nurtured on this island the murderous movie aesthetics of cowboys, mobsters and cold blooded killers from the big screen who live by greed and a code outside of the law. And we ourselves are hot-blooded – the scourge of the “hothead” mentality.

It does not take much for us to band together and we do it so quickly. We enjoy gathering in large areas together. Pay close attention to the way we converge in Half Way Tree to watch our Olympians run, or the size of our churches, public school classrooms and the numbers of us who choose between PNP and JLP and show up at rallies or conferences; even this is a clue to the  herd mentality of the Jamaicans. Abroad, everywhere across the world, we create communities not just homes.

Demonstration at UWI 

 The politicians and media have long played with this frailty by pushing us and watching as we demonstrate, beat our chest, scream out for justice and say how the murdered was an innocent man or how gas prices “nuh fi rais”; knowing this hot-headedness will only last for  nine (9) days. As a student of the University of the West Indies it was clear that there would always be a riot either against the ever increasing school fees or some injustice that plagued the school; this a legacy that was created in the 70’s by one of the most successful demonstrations labeled a “sit in” that had at its core many of the Caribbean’s leaders and revolutionary minds.  Edna Manley College of the Arts also bears a history of demonstrations. The mob idea removed from violence at the University level. While at UTECH, though demonstrations have been smaller in number, as well as at Edna Manley there has been a history of violent actions by mobs towards individuals who have been caught or suspected of stealing. All these variation of mobs have one thing in common they all begin with the notion of doing what is right and needed to reverse or respond to some error.

2007 Beating of Gay Men in Half Way Tree

Recently, I have been given to thinking about the Jamaican mob idea not just because of the violent chasing and beating of the young man at UTECH, but because we have been plagued by many counts of violence where the mob action has been at the forefront. Within the last three months there have been at least four stories in the news that have involved mob violence. One involved the killing of a teacher at Donald Quarry High School because he accidentally “ran” down a group of pedestrian, the other involved the death and injury of an innocent man and his daughter because of the sexuality of his step son which were the groundings for his suspicion of being the one to have had molested and murdered two young boys in the community , another included the beating of a man in Clarendon for the death of a pregnant woman and finally the incident at UTECH. These incidents are the ones that have been reported by the media. Bear in mind that Jamaicans once they feel violated have no problem in retaliating especially when the wrong evokes a deep emotional response.

Rev. Ronny Thwaites

In the meantime, the powers that be politicians, religious leaders, media personnel and educators continue to pander to this dysfunctional psychology by “lording” a one-sided moral code that knows no sense of personal space or divergence in ideas. Here, in this land, man is punished for thought. The measuring stick for morality has been broken bended and reshaped so often that our vision as a nation of what is justice has long been skewed. Rev. Ronny Twaithes in his response to the act of violence at UTECH said sex should not have found its way on the University campus. The various loopholes and hypocritical undertones in this weak argument cannot be explored in this blog. However, even through this kaleidoscope we still shout Unity.

Jamaica has become known for Reggae and Dancehall across the world with ideals that are intrinsic to the Jamaican generic understanding of Truth. These songs that frown against violence yet propagate violence, with songs that spread the idea of love but also spread hate, songs that challenge the man but other songs that spew disgust on any one that deviates from the dominating thought. And all of this finds itself wrapped up in the idea of Righteousness. Within this box of paradoxes it is no wonder that the Jamaican man and woman simply follow the whim of the crowd.  How else does the confused, non thinking, restricted, violent and desperate to conform man confront difference? He simply moves with the tide. He gives no thought to the idea of morality as it relates to violence. He moves as his ego directs and along with the mob as the crowd with its uproar throws one value and judgment above the next.

2012 Beating of Gay Man at UTECH

No one stops to ask “How do you know this?” After all, “everybody say so so den if a nuh so den a near so”. And with the security of numbers and uncertainty of facts we march on. 

Years ago I was listening to a radio drama competition hosted by BBC and heard an African entry that dealt with the mob action in a market in Lagos, Nigeria. The mob chased one man who had stolen from a vender unsure of what was stolen but urged on by the chant of thief. His crime was that he stole a fruit. The man was described as wearing a red shirt and running through the market. The crowd caught a man in a red shirt and beat him to death. The man was later identified as a honest citizen capable of buying a fruit and simply doing his morning shopping, his crime was that he was wearing a red shirt and having grown fearful for his life at the sight of the angry mob ran out of harm’s way. Mob violence means that no one is safe.

I believe in due process and as such I am a firm believer in human rights. Therefore, if the nation’s law does not quickly separate itself from morality, conscience and religion and place basic inalienable rights at the forefront (which does not have to be done simply to receive economic support from the UN or IMF or other such organizations, but done simply because we this clique of Jamaicans are brothers and family and we cannot be happy if we are all unhappy) then we are providing a space where mob violence will soon be the only form of policing. Then, who will be safe?

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr 

There are many things that sit in the heart of the Jamaican psyche that needs to be addressed, from political corruption, our addiction to violence to our hypocrisy. Our issues with sexuality and the myths and judgments we cast because of it is one of the many.  As such, I wonder constantly how we would behave if people were being physically beaten for partaking in and being vocal about oral sex, one of our many abominable sins? We need to address the fact that many of our youths travel with sexual trauma and respond violently to its memories. That our boys are as susceptible to this as is our girls. And that starting at end of the debate and behaving as if the issues of sexuality do not exist is not the proper response. Feeding ideas that foster violence cannot be the proper response of our government. As Martin Luther King Jnr says, “A genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a molder of consensus”. Already there is consensus, one that fuels hate and violence. And based on the growing trend of violence relating to sexuality a new consensus is needed one that does not infringe on any idea but demands a space for all.  Violence, like power, begets more of its kind. And there is a worrying sensation that violent mobs are being formed each to the fight for an ideal and it is only in violence that decisions will be made.

It seems vital, though I am also conflicted by this idea, that policies be created for the police to enforce. It does demand that a different psychology be employed by the trainers of our police force (as is needed too in the educational system). But this entire island needs psychological help. Prayer cannot be the only therapy.

Here are a few therapeutic options:

1.      A truthful understanding of self the individual and self the community.

2.      Government institutions that are invested in its people not in the regeneration a damaged moral measuring stick.

3.      Educational institutions that fosters self development, understanding and thought.

4.      A police force that strays away from backra masta’s violent overseer traits but finds a way to deal with a people in trauma.

5. An understanding  of Ubuntu: "I am what I am because of who WE all are." 
6.  A space where art and artist (by extension all creative human beings) present options based not just on financial reward but seeks reward in the integrity of the work, the spiritual component which seeks for the humanity and the truth

Ubuntu: I am because of who we are

It is intrinsic to our nature as humans and as Jamaicans to band together, but to inflict violence on each other is the scissor that rips us apart. To allow our need to "be one" to diminish our responsibility to think and to make decisions or have varying opinions is the knife that cuts at our nation pride. It is imperative that we as individuals and community recognize difference. It is vital for the government and education institutions to support differences in action and in thought. "I am because of who we are". After all we are not a people devoid of sin. Yet we are filled with judgment, fire and retribution, so to borrow from Jesus when he was faced by a mob of such minded people, “Let he that is without sin cast the first stone”. Remember also, it was a mob that signed the deal that lead to a murderer being released and the innocent Christ’s death.