seen from India
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seen from Maldives
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haven’t journaled like this in a minute <3 ngl I be seeing other peoples pages on Pinterest and stuff and theirs are so aesthetically pleasing & I don’t feel the same way about mine. However, when I started this spread today I didn’t like where it was going, but I just did whatever I felt like doing… and yeah point is that I journal as a form as relaxing and having fun not anything else!
sixth letter to Diana !
fifth letter ….
For Chris <3
so I love dancehall and I did a whole paper on my why Jamaican dancehall is hypersexual but one thing that I left out and I just discovered for myself is that dancehall is an exploration and expression of sexuality. In my paper I critiqued the hyper sexuality through the lens of masculinity and social class, but I failed to acknowledge that beyond the why and history is the how and current.
I admit that dancehalls outlet for/through sexuality should’ve been the first thing I wrote about. But this clarity came to me later, after attending the Vybz Kartel Reggae Fest concert last night at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY. I was very exited to attend this show because I, and so many other people have grown up and into ourselves with his music and legacy, impacting the dancehall genre as a whole. While yes, many of dancehalls songs are about heteronormative expressions of sex and gender and it could have an influence on the youths’ behavior, the music is a mode an expression for such sexuality in an otherwise prude society.
Sex is a taboo topic, it’s something seemingly restricted to adults, with Rated R content warning , but even then it also is restricted as something private or personal, with “Not Safe for Work” warnings as well. However, as human beings, sex is pervasive. We are birth onto Earth through the act of sex. We have sexual feelings and desires. Human beings are sexual beings. Yet the order of society and other modes of thinking/authority attempt to control and discipline, maybe even discourage the sexuality within us. We see this in the policing of women’s clothing, nonbinary and fluid gender expressions, derogatory connotations with ideas of a slut, hoe, whore, etc.
For me, dancehall is an outlet for me to feel sexy. It channels and releases my body’s energy. Yes the dancing is sex oriented but I’m not having sex! I’m dancing! If anything, dancehall is a safe way for youth to learn about their bodies and get in tune with their sexuality. You don’t need to have sex to enjoy dancehall.
One thing I would advocate for is different sexualities being portrayed in dancehall. The script is awfully heteronormative and homophobic.
But other than that,
