Another distant relative in NE USA Jamaican Diaspora Community

NE USA Jamaican Diaspora Community Conversation, November 8, 2008, New Jersey

Published Nov 7, 2008


The NE USA Jamaican Diaspora invites Jamaicans in the Mid-Atlantic and New England states to meet on Saturday, November 8 at Essex County College, New Jersey to discuss the vision and progress of the executive elected in June of this year. The meeting starts at 9 AM. For directions and other information, see http://www.essex.edu/aboutecc/nwk_dir.html.

Patrick Beckford, a long-time resident of New Jersey and a principal with the Friends of Trelawny Association, was invited to a two-year term of service as NE USA representative to the Jamaica Diaspora Advisory Board.

Jamaican-American leaders and individuals are invited to participate in this public conversation. Beckford will discuss the broad template for diasporic work going forward. Community leaders are invited to share highlights of their work and successes. Attendees will be encouraged to think of how their own efforts might be further strengthened via collaborative planning and execution of projects.

"Since June, we have been working hard to create an infrastructure and to address the goals for each sector," Beckford said. "It is imperative that the Jamaican community in the NE USA has an opportunity to learn about this work and that we promote cooperation between all of the dynamic groups that have been actively doing work on the ground over the years."

Beckford and other advisory board members have also called for Jamaicans in the United States to organize around pressing issues in their communities of settlement. "As members of a transnational community, we are invested in what happens on-island in Jamaica," Beckford said. "But we have to be similarly invested in finding resolutions to the issues that shape our lives here in the United States."

The Trade and Investment Council of the NE USA Jamaican Diaspora, in collaboration with the NJ Chamber of Commerce, will host a discussion forum on the current economic crisis. The sessions will focus on smart business strategies for the investor as well as smart and practical strategies for individuals.

Registration is required. To register, go to http://whoscoming.com/nediasporageneralmeeting66.

For general information, see ne-usa-diaspora-movement@googlegroups.com.

Source: Jamaicans.com, Jamaican News