Not Solo: A Cultural Awakening — Jacqueline Biollo

Not Solo A Cultural Awakening

Getting to Know Jacqueline Biollo, MBA, ICD.D

Jacqueline Biollo, MBA, ICD.D

nergized by various cultural encounters, I was awakened to my surroundings. I wanted first to better understand and appreciate who I am and where I came from before using this knowledge to motivate and inspire others.

A disc-jockey (DJ) dance floor mix of island music, albeit different islands, plays constantly in my head. I am the daughter of a boy from Manitoulin Island and a girl from the island of Jamaica. Ebony and ivory don’t always live in perfect harmony, at least by society’s standards. The unwritten rules of beliefs, attitudes, and behaviours are considered social norms.

The unexpected and unpredictability of cultural mixes in society has evolved. #BlackLivesMatter seeks to highlight racism, discrimination, and inequality experienced by Black people. Truth and Reconciliation seek to create goodwill and trust between groups in the aftermath of tragic events.

Although both these initiatives speak to my ancestry, they don’t define my present situation. To the naked eye, I am a successful, middle-aged, Caucasian woman. Some people are intrigued to learn my ancestry spans from an Ojibwe First Nation, M’Chigeeng, also known as West Bay, to the capital and largest city of Jamaica, Kingston, located on the southeastern coast of the island. Through time and travel and matters of the heart, my ancestry is representative of Irish, English, Scottish, Dutch, Scandinavian, Asian, Ghanaian, Jamaican, Serian, and African men and women.

As a food and fashion enthusiast, I have yet to explore the traditional diet and clothing of my Indigenous ances-

Etors. Made up of the animals and plants found on the land and in the sea around them, every part of the animal was traditionally consumed or used to make clothing or shelter. My foray into the world of Jamaican traditional main dishes was vast. This was likely due to the fact that it was my mom who prepared most of the family meals, and the likes of ackee and codfish, jerk chicken, oxtail, curry goat, and rice and peas that were comfort food to her. I don’t often wear a quadrilled dress, or bandana skirt, which is worn with a ruffled sleeve blouse and matching head tie, but this traditional folk costume is fun, colourful, and representative of the modest dresses used by dancers, musicians, and Jamaican tour guides. Many traditional First Nations and Jamaican people consider song and dance to be sacred. Drums and rattles are percussion instruments traditionally used by First Nations people, while the flute, large drums, trumpets, and tambourines provide the background for the music that inspires dance or movement in Jamaica. My cultural awakening to better understand who I am and where I came from, had a defining moment. We are not solo on our journey. Together, we can discover the significance of our identity, strengthen ties with scattered history and dispersed presence. We can empathize with people and support international recognition of cultural similarities and differences. Hope blossoms eternally. Be not solo. Live in the culture of inquisitiveness, together.