Jamaica’s Broadcasting Commission recently banned ALL television broadcasts and radio stations that promote or glorifying excessive violence. The Commission hopes this will protect impressionable youth.
But many Jamaican artists are heated and using their platforms to expose what’s really going on.
In 2021 Jamaica had one of the highest murder rates in Latin America and the Caribbean. Grammy award-winning, Jamaican artist Stephen ‘Di Genius’ McGregor believes the ban’s performative and silences Jamaicans.
McGregor stated, “The music is coming from what is happening in Jamaica for real, but because it doesn’t fit the moral [mold] of what they would like it to look like, they try to hamper it.”
“Moral mold” as in “politeness politics,” which historically white supremacy used to keep us in line.
Banning media about violence doesn’t end violence, it just erases proof that global anti-Black violence exists.
Promoting violence is different than acknowledging it. We must be critical of the news media and police feed us.
The real issue governments should tackle is providing equitable resources. Crime rates decrease when accessible resources are available.
If the trillions of dollars invested in upholding all law enforcement were redistributed amongst communities, global crime rates would go down.