Holy Faith Convent wins RBTT’s Young Leaders Debate

THE FIRST all girls team to make it into the finals of the RBTT Young Leaders Debate, made sure their presence was felt when they convincingly presented arguments in support of the motion that “Globalisation will not destroy our Caribbean culture.” The team came up against Queen’s Royal College in the finals of the RBTT 2005 Young Leaders debate, at the Ballroom, Crowne Plaza Hotel, Port-of-Spain yesterday. Jewel Joseph and Shraddha Kamath of Holy Faith Convent, Couva,  both debated in proposition of the motion, while QRC’s Liam Rezende and Rhion Romany opposed the motion. Speaking to reporters after the judges decision, both Joseph and Kamath described the experience as a fulfilling one, which allowed them the opportunity to research the impact of globalisation on our local culture and allowed them to see both the positive and negative impact of globalisation and ways to deal with the negatives.

Joseph explained that the secret to their success was “hard work, lots of studying and in-depth research on the issue at hand, to ensure that you are able to respond to any statement or point of information put forward by the other team.” In their bid to support the motion, Joseph and Kamath said that globalisation was a means of sustaining our culture through fusions with other cultures and music from around the world, to create a unique global blend. She pointed out that a number of Caribbean and International countries were now coming together to explore and enhance Caribbean culture. QRC’s Rhion Romany noted that two foreigners had taken out a patent on the steelpan. Responding to this point, Joseph said this was a direct result of globalisation, where a foreigner knowing the importance of the steel pan, has decided to protect it for Caribbean people, since “we are not doing it for ourselves.”

Kamath pointed out that among the positives from embracing globalisation was the opportunity that was created for local designer Peter Minshall to produce the opening presentations for Barcelona and Atlanta games and the Winter Olympics. Touching on the issues of crime, violent video games, movies, or suggestive music and music videos, Kamath said “since the Government has not implemented any of the laws and regulations established to protect us from many of these negatives, then it is safe to assume that our culture is not under threat.” Opposing the motion, QRC’s Liam Rezende said globalisation was responsible for the increase in violent video games, crimes, influx of foreign brands, movies and TV shows that did not promote good values and increases in taxes, to name a few. He said that globalisation was currently producing “stress-a-holics” within the working class, with words such as “cutbacks, VSEP, downsizing and retrenchment leaving members of the working class wondering on a daily basis if  today would be their day.”

He said globalisation has impacted on our culture and way of life so much that the term sou sou is no longer heard, noting that the “boom days of the 70s have made us slaves to the US dollar.” QRC’s Romany said we have lost the unity and community spirit which was once vital and necessary to the development of our young people. He said that in today’s globalised world the “media was the one educating and raising our children, while their parents are caught up in the rat race trying to earn the almighty dollar.” Romany noted that we are losing our cultural identity explaining that while the majority of the youths knew who Jennifer Lopez, Britney Spears, Lil Jon, Lil Kim and 50 Cent are, to name a few, not many of them can identify Mighty Sparrow, Bomber, Lord Blakie and some of the other icon who have made local music and Caribbean culture into what it is today.