Jamaicans are celebrating the 52nd anniversary of the country's independence from British rule on the island and abroad on August 6, Yahoo reported.
The island was ruled by Britain for three centuries. For some, Jamaica's week-long independence day celebration is a time to spend a relaxing day at home, while others party it up. The Gala parade in Kingston is where hundreds participate, dressed in costumes representing various aspects of their culture and history. Filled with music, dance and energy, it is one of the most festive events on the island, according to Jamaican's Music.
If a relaxing day is what's in store, Jamaica has many beaches to lie out on. Hellshire Beach in St. Catherine is renowned for its fried fish dishes and the beach is almost always busy. Besides aquatic sports, activities at the beach include dancing contests and horseback riding.
Jamaica Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller said, "This is Jamaica, my Jamaica," which is a statement that unites citizens for a common purpose. Jamaicans are stakeholders in the country and residents must take responsibility for their actions.
"We must make the necessary sacrifices, the issues we face are national and broad-based," Simpson Miller said. "Because this is our Jamaica, each Jamaican must own and contribute to mitigating them."
The English seized Jamaica in 1655. Britain abolished the slave trade in 1807, but did not emancipate the roughly 290,000 people that were bonded to plantation owners. Slowly, slaves began to gain rights and were eventually emancipated in 1834, but the island's whites still controlled the island's affairs because everyone else was too poor to register to vote, Yahoo reported.
Equal suffrage wasn't introduced until 1944, and the following year, Britain's new labor government began an official decolonization policy. Jamaica gained its independence on Aug. 6, 1962.
Despite Jamaica celebrating its independence, a 2011 poll showed that 60 percent of islanders said they would like to return to British rule, citing years of social and monetary mismanagement, according to Yahoo.
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