SOMETIMES
YOU WIN …
Brand
Jamaica is a worldwide cultural phenomenon. All Caribbean people are the life
of the party, but there’s something about Jamaicans that is synonymous with
cool.
That
cool factor springs in part from the ubiquitous presence of reggae music around
the world. Dreadlocks, Rastafari and
ganja smoking. These started off as symbols of revolution and then became cool.
The fastest men and women in the world consistently sprouted their wings
running on Jamaican soil. When the rest of the world thinks of the Caribbean,
Jamaica is likely the first island that comes to mind. Jerk seasoning is
available everywhere. I’d say, we have quite a few accolades to claim.
Now, I
can brag fairly articulately on all these because I’ve had an entire week to
write a column, but with a few thousand people in a room staring at me and just
a few seconds to communicate all of that, maybe I would have frozen too. Kaci
Fennell, the Jamaican beauty queen who also seemed to have a beautiful spirit,
buckled under the question that many touted as a gift from God for someone
representing a country like ours. Before the question and answer section of the
recent Miss Universe pageant, she was presumed the winner of the competition by
the crowd who booed loudly at the announcement of her 5th placement, and even
by the other contestants who hoisted her on their shoulders after the ceremony
was concluded.
She
showed poise and spirit throughout the competition. She stood out for her short
hair and ‘vibesy’ personality. But after the judges’ decision that someone else
deserved the crown, it was remarkable the way the media paid even more
attention to Kaci’s loss than to Ms. Colombia’s win. Kaci herself has been very
gracious about the whole thing.
We
didn’t take the crown, but we still won the crowd. Our girl is who the media
decided to dwell on, at least in the immediate aftermath. And in a not so
humble brag, I’ll declare Kaci Fennel one of people who have made Jamaica proud
in representing us to the world.
Calibe Thompson is a personality, author and
the producer of The Caribbean Diaspora Weekly. For your free preview of her
2015 collection of writings, Things I Probably Shouldn’t Say, visit
www.calibe.net.
