This term was used by the French and English to describe the Carnival celebrations of the African population during the period 1860 to 1896. It comes from the French word “diametre” meaning beneath the diameter of respectability, or the underworld . It was used at that time to describe a certain class in the community.
The “Jamettes” occupied the barrack yards of East Port of Spain. They were the stickfighters, prostitutes, chantuelles, matadors and dustmen. They lived in appalling conditions in areas which were rife with all the conditions for social instability: crime, vagrancy, disease, prostitution, unemployment, sexual permissiveness and dysfunctional families. It is no wonder, therefore, that Carnival was embraced with such fervour. For the Jamettes, it was a necessary release from the struggle that was their daily lives.
The view of the whites was that the Carnival activities were immoral, obscene and violent. The kalenda, the drumming, the dances and the sexually explicit masquerades were thought to be totally objectionable. They were fully supported in this view by the contemporary press. Throughout this period there was a sustained attack on Carnival in most newspaper editorials. This ranged from outright condemnation to calls for a total ban. This was also the era of repressive legislation. The British Colonial Government passed several laws banning many of the activities associated with the Carnival including dancing to drums, carrying lighted torches and “obscene songs and dances”.
However, it took more than legislation and police batons to stop the Carnival. The more repressive the legislation, the more aggressive were the responses. Finally, in 1881 masqueraders carried out a planned resistance against the police who attempted to stop the revelry. In the aftermath of the riot of 1881 Governor Freeling addressed the people and declared “There shall be no interference with your masquerade.” (qtd. in Liverpool 310). By acknowledging the importance of the Carnival to the people he proved that it was much more than just music, masquerade and dance but rather a necessary form of cultural expression.
Unfortunately, this reprieve was short-lived. The following years saw an increase in governmental control over Carnival and pressure from the media to suppress the more “objectionable” aspects of the Carnival. The people's Canboulay Festival was abolished in 1884 and replaced with a restricted festival which took place at dawn on the Monday preceding Ash Wednesday. J’Ouvert (breaking of the day) became well established, with the tamboo bamboo replacing the African drums.
The Canboulay and the stickfighters were eventually driven underground. Stickfighting, however, continued to flourish in rural areas from Tunapuna to Sangre Grande in the east and Freeport to Moruga in central and south Trinidad.
https://www.nalis.gov.tt/Resources/Subject-Guide/Carnival
Comments