What England Owes to Jamaica

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When Prince William and Kate Middleton launched into their 2022 Caribbean Tour, they went out in hopes of sustaining a constructive relationship between the Crown and the international locations within the British Commonwealth. As an alternative, they have been met with protests in Jamaica and calls for for reparations—one thing that’s lengthy overdue.

After the abolition of slavery in Jamaica in 1835, the British Parliament signed the Slave Compensation Act of 1837 into legislation. This law enabled the British authorities to pay former slave homeowners—not the enslaved folks of Jamaica—20 million kilos to compensate for his or her misplaced labor that got here with ending slavery. This marked the start of England utilizing and exploiting Jamaica and its folks.

In 2003, under Prime Minister Tony Blair, Jamaicans have been not allowed visa-free entry to the U.Ok. Maxine Roberts, the Jamaican excessive commissioner, stated “I’m very upset. It’s not one thing we’re going to combat, actually, as a result of we will not.” This was the sensation of many Jamaicans throughout the diaspora. The choice appears additionally insidious and focused when making an allowance for that Jamaicans are now the only citizens in the British Commonwealth that are required to have a visa when visiting the UK.

In 2015, when Jamaicans made demands for reparations, Prime Minister David Cameron shrugged off this concept as ludicrous. As an alternative, he introduced the development of a jail meant to carry 1,500 inmates. Cameron’s blatant refusal to apologize for slavery and contemplate the prospect of reparations was seen as extremely insulting. Jamaican lawmaker Mark Henry stated in an interview, “It’s an insult to the folks of Jamaica.” The selection to construct a jail as a substitute of paying lengthy overdue reparations was taken very personally, and rightfully so.

One of many worst offenses by far, nonetheless, was the Windrush scandal. By 1965, there were nearly 5,000 Jamaican nurses—lots of whom have been recruited in 1948 to fight post-war labor shortages—working in hospitals throughout England. They served because the spine of the Nationwide Well being Service within the U.Ok. throughout its formation. Then, in 2018, the Windrush scandal broke. These exact same nurses, amongst different staff, who got here to the U.Ok. providing labor in trade for guarantees of citizenship have been unjustly denied British citizenship and deported.

The ultimate blow in opposition to the folks of Jamaica, nonetheless, was the interview that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle had with Oprah. The couple made accusations of racism in opposition to an unnamed member of the Royal Household which struck a nerve with the folks of Jamaica. Jamaican lawyer Bert Samuels said, “Jamaicans have been very torn as much as hear about Harry and Meghan’s problem… William wants to talk to that when he comes and because it have been, he ought to come right here with an apology, not just for slavery however for the remedy of a Black girl who needed to run out of the palace together with her husband.” Seeing somebody that the folks of Jamaica may lastly determine with be racially abused and chased away was a deep minimize.

Through the 2022 Caribbean Tour, Prince William didn’t come to Jamaica with an apology for the Crown’s legacy of slavery and additional exploitation. As an alternative, he expressed his “profound sorrow” after which stopped there. This was an act of cowardice that’s deeply lazy and insulting to a nation that gave a lot to England.

On quite a few events, England has used the folks, wealth, and sources of Jamaica to their profit. The wealth and success of England—and London particularly—have come on the expense of Jamaica and its diaspora. England’s relationship to Jamaica is abusive at this level. It is smart why the folks of Jamaica have introduced plans to hunt independence and go away the British Commonwealth.

The folks of Jamaica, each home and throughout the diaspora, are owed the appropriate to self-determination. As a Jamaican-American pupil, I consider Jamaica is owed many apologies, not only for slavery, but additionally for the exploitation of our folks and sources for hundreds of years. We’re owed reparations from the British authorities. To see the U.Ok. abuse and reap the benefits of Jamaicans all whereas cowardly shying away from accountability is disheartening. England owes it to Jamaica to start out the therapeutic course of with urgency.

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