Dear Fellow Jamaicans in the Diaspora and Friends of Jamaica,

“For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing.” - Luke 12:23 

The events of the past year have shone a bright light on the threats posed by global pandemics, climate change, and systemic injustice. Now is the time for transformative action to deal with these challenges. Let’s build back better towards a more sustainable and just future. Let’s start with Disney at Lighthouse Point.

My fellow Jamaicans and friends of the Diaspora as we celebrate the Christmas Season and welcome another year, let us look forward with hope and aspiration.  This year has been one of the most challenging years in history.  But after the long dark night, comes the bright morning. And we believe as our great Bob Marley sang “every little thing is gonna be alright.”.

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - While President Donald Trump continues to hog media attention with his dishonest “stolen election” claims, we should devote some attention to the good news that a diverse group of young progressive leaders were elected to office all across the country this year.

As many Americans get a chance to exhale, there are many who are angry, and believe the election was rigged. There is a major division in America, and many are preparing for a civil war.

“Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old, he will not depart from it.” - Proverbs 22:6

There are a large number of problems in America, and there are many troubled hearts, with the feeling of nowhere to turn to for relief. Black parents and grandparents in America always have an answer to monumental problems, and that is to pray.

Before the U.S. Supreme Court hears oral argument regarding President Trump’s unconstitutional memorandum that would exclude undocumented immigrants from population figures used for congressional apportionment, Vanita Gupta, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement:

2020 brought renewed global focus to issues of social justice in America.  From the racial disparities and inequities highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic to the killings of George Floyd and so many other Black and Brown Americans at the hands of police officers have all contributed to the evolving social justice “reckoning” across the nation.

Is it really best to confess, tell everything, spill the beans, purge yourself of what’s burdening you, bearing you down, sinking you into the quagmire of guilt? It is said that confession is good for the soul. What is true, is that certain religions take confession so seriously that it’s actually a ritual that they go through regularly, as they sit in a darkened booth across from a priest and confess their sins.

This year has been met with a whirlwind of emotion. For some, fear, loss, loneliness, isolation and anxiousness may define their year. For others, joy, appreciation, comfort and family. And for many, a mixture of both. But if 2020 taught us one thing, it’s that we always accomplish moreas a unified community.