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THE 4 TH R PROJECT IS YOUR TICKET HOME Most Jamaicans that I have spoken with have a burning desire to go back home. Nostalgia overtakes them sometimes to tears. Even the hostile economic environment is no deterrent; but there is ahesitation, and a fear caused by the rising violence in the country. Those who migrated more than twenty years ago can't understand the ravaging effects of criminal activities, whether they are drug related, politically orchestrated or power driven. These times bewilder them. These Jamaicans have stood fiercely proud of their country. They have remained Jamaicans with culture intact, amid new peoples, climates, cultures and borne hardships the likes of which you could never imagine. These give from the heart, sending approximately US $2 billion in 2007 through the remittance pipeline to families in need down a yard. To these stalwarts who desire a new Jamaica, I say, "We have your ticket" in the 4th R Project. To those down a yard, I say, "Wi have yu back!" The 4th R is the re-introduction of Reverence into the skill-set of Reading, 'Riting and 'Rithmetic. Those of us older than forty remember a time in Jamaica when people were respectful to each other; when any adult could correct a child on the street; when you shared a breadfruit with your neighbor and got a dish of ackees in return and you both had dinner as a result of the mutual exchange. That silent 4th R was a part of school, church and home. Children learned to be respectful of each other and especially of their elders because they were taught respect by their teachers, community members and parents. Continue on page 2
T RIVIA Question:
Answer:
Name a herb that grows naturally in
Canasol is based in eye drops, which is used for glaucoma.
Jamaica.
Aka: Ganja
THE 4th R PROJECT IS YOUR TICKET HOME page 1
Trivia page 1
Be you own ringmaster page 3
No to More Prisons, and Yes to More Education & Job Creation page 5
J AMAICAN A MERICAN C LUB N EWSLETTER
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C ONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 They acted out exactly what they were taught. Now we ask, who taught these new offenders to act with such uncaring violence? And the answer is that we did, if even by default. We have not paid attention to the things that really matter; the things that create successful nations. What went wrong? Many things! The splintering of the family; the political divide; the brain drain from the country; gangs became fami-
T HE 4 TH R - SET IS
SKILL
DEVELOPED THROUGH PLAYFUL EXERCISES AIMED AT DEVELOPING CONSCIOUS , PRODUCTIVE AND CARING PEOPLE .
. If children grow up with criticism, they learn to hate themselves and others.
ly to many and aggressive video games their mentors; violent movies took away any shred of remorse theywould have had and modeled the way for destructive behavior. Many of our popular musicians continue to cement false values into the minds of our youths through their lyrics and the wheels of this fierce culture keep turning. You don't need to be a PhD to figure it out. What is important however is that we
also have the solution in our hands. It is the 4th R model. This model offers a new paradigm shift in education, which places the highest value on our children and our people. The 4th R skill-set is developed through playful exercises aimed at developing conscious, productive and caring people. If children are nurtured they will flourish and become functional adults. If children are abused, they become cruel and violent adults.
the Rockfort community.
These behaviors are learned in the early years and become the brick and mortar, which build or breakdown character later on in life. Phase 1 of the 4th R project will begin on August 25th, 2008. Two schools in the Rockfort com-
munity of Kingston have been identified as pilot projects to plant the seeds of the 4th R; Rennock Lodge All Age and Windward Road Primary and Junior High School. Approximately eighty teachers from these schools will be trained and certified in the 4th R methodology to begin the new September term. Additionally community parenting sessions will be conducted for
they had interest. Teams included for example – the Suns of God Gospel Choir, The Transformational Unit, God Messengers, Righteous Reggae Vibrations, Students Expressing Truth (SET), and the Council of Elders. Their activities were directed at giving back to their community, and as such they practiced within the closed community
of the Center, and most critical to their rehabilitation, returned to the outside community to entertain, to mentor and to minister.By the third year more than 89% of teammates at South Camp were voluntarily participating in group programs. In addition, a formal request to the Commissioner of Corrections was made by over three thou-
sand inmates of the other two maximum security correctional centers, for the program to be implemented in their respective facilities. As a follow up, the Reverence For Life (RFL) program, as it was then called, began an extension of the program at both Tower Street and Spanish Town maximum security institutions.
The model we speak of was introduced into the South Camp Rehabilitation Center in 1995. The tangible result of that project was a furlough and mentoring program, which was the final step in the rehabilitation process. Teammates worked as highly focused groups in the pursuit of specific activities in which
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The Outcome - While the RFL program formed the dominant culture in these institutions, violence in the prisons was almost nonexistent. For most teammates on the program, sentences were shortened and parole granted at a faster rate than for prisoners not on the program. During the period 1995 to 2000 when this program was active, the rate of recidivism dropped from 90% to 30 %. We are convinced
that if such dramatic changes could be made in that space of time within a community of men, many of whom were repeat offenders, then the model can also be used to create a new Jamaica; one that we can return to, to build our retirement homes and live in peace or vacation with family without having to look over your shoulders. It is possible. It can happen if we all stand behind this project. Like everything else it
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takes money to care. We will be initiating a number of fund raising activities, membership drives and sponsorship opportunities which we know will be of interest to you. One hundred percent of the funds raised for this project will be ploughed back into resource materials for teachers, 4th R books for children, promotional 4th R materials, to compensate workshop and project facilitators and to begin an island-wide market-
B E YOUR OWN RINGMASTER ! campaign. Yes we can create a new Jamaica if we all pitch in to support this project. Your support is vital! Our slogan…'Empowering Each Child To Move Jamaica Forward.' Let us join hands, hearts and Resources, 'because Jamaica matters.' Written by Hansen – www.Jamlink.com **
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“T O
CATCH THE READ ER ' S A TTEN TION ,
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Docusign: www.Docusign.com; have the ability to sign documents on line via emails Uberconference www.Uberconference.com; when you have conferences, the profiles, picture and social media becomes interactive during the conference. Dropbox: www.Dropbox.com; When files are too large to attach in the email, this is an options Google Drive: People can work on a project online. i.e spreadsheets Google task List: type what and when something needs to be done. Reminder icons will keep appearing until task is complete
No to More Prisons, and Yes to More Education & Job Creation
By Karl A. Mitchell, B.A., M.A., M.A. www.karl-mitchell.com Recently, the Jamaica Observer published an article: “Build new prisons to fight crime, says Wayne Chen” (see http:// www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/Build-new-prisons-to-fight -crime--says-Wayne-Chen_7840152). Immediately, I was compelled to respond to said article. I don't think the US model is the best model for fighting/ reducing crimes. Is Mr. Chen going to promote private (for profit) penitentiaries, too, for Jamaica? Yes, he's pushing for privatization of prisons. I recommend that Mr. Chen do further research - researching other countries' models (including those with a homogeneous culture/society); unless, of course, his findings are solely motivated by profits/personal gain versus the public good (Jamaica’s). Mr. Chen’s ideas could easily lead to abuses such as the “jailing kids for cash” scandal that took place in Pennsylvania years ago (see http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/02/23/pennsylvania.corrupt.judges/). We need to tackle the problem at its root, in part, the politics (or politricks). If not, Jamaica will end up becoming an island prison due to profitable prison expansions buoyed by foreign investments, of course. We have to find a way to pay (starting with the usurious interest rate) for the loans borrowed from IMF and the World Bank, don't we?
And, of course, Mr. Chen could research on how to create more jobs for the educated jobless youth of Jamaica. Jamaica needs more Penn States (plus job creation) than state pens. The US model is a fiscal failure since it takes more money to finance a prisoner than it would take to educate said prisoner at Harvard (see http://www.prisonpolicy.org/scans/jpi/EducationandIncarceration1.pdf). Jamaica – my Jamaica – the land of my birth deserves better than Mr. Chen’s half-baked ideas; ideas floating around in New York and California by the growing private corrections business interest group http://www.newsweek.com/2010/06/28/classrooms-or-prison-cells.html and http://www.newsweek.com/2010/06/30/how-the-recession-hurts-private-prisons.html). If I’m not mistaken, last February, Mr. Chen was invited to one of these conferences held in Los Angeles, California. Moreover, according to the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, "poverty is the mother of crime." Therefore, let's tackle the mother before tackling the child. If not, the mother will only produce another child and another child and another child. In other words, you tackle the mother with education and job creation, instead of tackling the child with incarceration (only). Remember, a for profit prison system needs a steady stream of prisoners (year after year) to be successful and profitable for its shareholders. For the public good (Jamaica's good), we don't need a successful for profit corrections system with a very bright future - not in my Jamaica the land of my birth.
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This would be a good place to insert a short paragraph about your organization. It might include the purpose of the organization, its mission, founding date, and a brief history. You could also include a brief list of the types of products, services, or programs your organization offers, the geographic area covered (for example, western U.S. or European markets), and a profile of the types of customers or members served. It would also be useful to include a contact name for readers who want more information about the organization.
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