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Thread: Is anyone here Jamaican?

  1. #1
    Featured Member kaninchen's Avatar
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    Default Is anyone here Jamaican?

    Never thought I'd be consulting SW for my homework!

    Okay, so, I'm taking a class about the colonization of the Caribbean. One of my final assignments is to do a presentation on Jamaica. For my topic, I chose food, but not just in the sense of, "What do Jamaican people eat?" It's more along the lines of how food and eating habits are racialized, gendered, and divided by class in Jamaica. Basically, the intersectionality of food.

    I was wondering if anyone here is familiar with Jamaican or Caribbean culture and would be so awesome as to share their insights with me. For example, are there any foods that are considered overtly feminine? What does that say about ideal female bodies in Jamaica? I'm doing my own research, but some things are hard to discover if you're not a part of a given culture.

    This post will most likely get zero replies but I wanted to ask around just in case. Or feel free to PM me. Thanks y'all!

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    Default Re: Is anyone here Jamaican?

    I'm half Jamaican, born and bred in the UK.

    I'm not sure I can help much, but here are a few things.

    Have you heard of Mannish Water? It's an aphrodisiac soup made from the meat and offal(including testicles) of a male goat, and is legendary for boosting virility and stamina.

    When I was in Jamaica for a family event, I remember watching people preparing the food on the morning of the party. The men and women were working separately, the women preparing chicken and the men red meat(goat). They said the chicken was 'women's work' when my mum commented on it. I have seen women cooking goat plenty of times though so not sure exactly why that was the case.

    I know there are various herbal and plant concoctions reputed to have aphrodisiac effects too. They are often made into teas or drinks, Irish Moss is one example.

    Jamaican culture is very sexual overall, as well as being extremely macho. Any foods or drinks seen to boost sexual prowess or give extra energy and strength are popular.

    As a woman visiting Jamaica, you will be admired for eating 'well', that's for sure.
    Eating a lot of 'hard food', which is the term for filling starchy foods like yams, green bananas, dumplings etc. is seen as a good thing...the more carbs, then hopefully the rounder and curvier the woman!

    One other thing I recall is a friend of mine dating a Rasta guy who wouldn't let her cook while she was menstruating. It is apparently believed to be unclean for women to be in the kitchen at that time!

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    Default Re: Is anyone here Jamaican?

    I went to Jamaica a few years back with the family. It's a beautiful country, beautiful clear blue water, lots of European tourist, but the people are very poor. Many remember places sell "Jerk" chicken" and Jamaican coffee for the Blue Mountains. This is no help at all. Sorry.

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    Senior Member LegoMoney's Avatar
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    Default Re: Is anyone here Jamaican?

    I'm Jamaican!!

    (Born in the States to immigrant parents...)

    JessaJade has definitely provided a lot of great information. I'm just going to throw out some random facts in an effort to help guide your research.

    1) Ackee and saltfish is the county's national dish. Basically, its salted cod paired with a savory fruit (ackee) that looks like scrambled eggs. Absolutely delicious. Would be my last meal if I were on death row.... Lol

    2) Speaking economically, the poorer people of the country tend to eat foods that are very starchy. Think green bananas, plantains, cassava, rice, etc. Cheaper meats that could be paired with this include mackerel and cow kidneys. More expensive meats include goat and cows. These tend to be used sparingly and for special occasions as they tend to be very expensive. Chicken and all types of fish=middle and lower class.

    3) Women's body type: Like most cultures with a strong African influence, Jamaicans tend to like their women THICK!! Lol. And Jamaican women are able to achieve this with the carb heavy diet like Jessa said. Grab a takeout meal from any Jamaican restaurant, and you will see that half to 3/4s of the plate is rice plus another starch. It took me FOREVER to realize that this was not a proper portion size for carbs. Lol! The large carb portion sizes can be related back to economics... Rice=cheap, so here's a lot of it to fill you up.

    4) Gender roles: The other ladies have already touched on the macho culture. For the most part, women are in the kitchen. And during meal times, the eldest man in the room is served first, followed by the rest of the men, followed by the women and the children. Said eldest man is also to sit at the head of the table. NOBODY eats before he does. (I've seen this in other Caribbean cultures too, i.e. Puerto Rico)

    In regard to cooking during a woman's period, I have also heard that this has to do with Jamaicans' belief in voodoo. It is common knowledge in Jamaican culture that men should not eat RED foods (like spaghetti, etc.) from a woman he does not trust well. I've heard tales of some Jamaican women mixing their period blood in red-colored foods in an effort to entrap/make a man fall in love with her (gross.... I know). There is quite a link between voodoo/spiritual forces and Jamaican food. For example, at funerals a cow is often killed to honor the dead and help the deceased rest in peace. I believe this ritual can only be performed by men also (gender roles).

    5) Racial issues: Jamaica is a naturally mixed nation. Long story short, slaves taken from Africa, China, and India were all placed on the island and reproduced over several generations. Notice that dishes containing curry powder are popular in all of these regions. Jamaican food is strongly influenced by the mix of these cultures.

    These aren't rules followed by all Jamaicans, but many traditional Jamaicans follow many of these norms. I hope this helps. Your presentation topic sounds interesting and I'm glad it goes beyond the standard inquiry into Jamaican cuisine. Feel free to PM me any questions.

    Good luck!!
    "I'm trying to get Boston George and Diego money/And stack it all up like Lego money....."

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    Default Re: Is anyone here Jamaican?

    There is a strong British influence especially amongst middle/upper classes (lower class Jamaicans tend to be more fiercely proud of their own identity and independence, and scornful of people trying to be 'hoity-toity').

    The main area I visited family at is rural and a bit rough, and food was very basic; flavourful but nothing fancy. When visiting other parts with more middle-class people, food was more refined and we would be offered English tea and cake a lot, that sort of thing.

    LegoMoney, that's really interesting about the voodoo and spiritual forces, I've heard some similar things.

    Actually, the event I was at was a funeral and I remember there was quite a fuss over the slaughter of the goat. That must have been why the men were dealing with the goat meat, makes sense now.

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    Default Re: Is anyone here Jamaican?

    Thank you so much JessaJade & LegoMoney for the pointers on starchy "hard food" -> thick body type ideals, class divisions on meat, menstruation taboos, and everything else. These are great tips to help me narrow down my research! Hopefully JSTOR and the library will suffice from here. I'm actually really excited to do this project because there's so much you can learn about how people construct their identity by the way they eat & what they eat. Humans are fascinating!

    And thanks Elektra Luxx too -- A for effort.

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    Default Re: Is anyone here Jamaican?

    Update:

    Thank you again to those who posted here and PMed me. I did my presentation today and I cited you all by username for credit at the end. Yes, I was completely shameless about adding SW to my bibliography! My professor said she really enjoyed it. Doing this project was tons of fun and very interesting!

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    Senior Member LegoMoney's Avatar
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    Default Re: Is anyone here Jamaican?

    LMAO at citing us by user name from StripperWeb!!!! Glad this turned out well for you!
    "I'm trying to get Boston George and Diego money/And stack it all up like Lego money....."

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