I am a writer and media producer based in Trinidad and Tobago. Follow me on Twitter @JanineMFranco.
Latest posts by Janine Mendes-Franco from March, 2013
St. Vincent, Haiti: Easter Traditions & Changes
I find Easter has taken on a ‘carnivalish’ vibe. From St. Vincent, Abeni muses about “the changing face of Easter”, while Theater of Life looks at the Haitian tradition of kite-flying at Easter time.
Blackout has Trinidad & Tobago Bloggers Seeing Red
Good Friday in Trinidad and Tobago was suddenly dubbed “Black Friday” as the country descended into darkness, thanks to a nationwide blackout. Most people were communicating via Facebook and Twitter, but soon the conspiracy theories started to fly...
Caribbean: Technology Regulation
Has technology outpaced regulation in the Caribbean? ICT Puslse takes a closer look.
Trinidad & Tobago: Warner's Woes
The headlines in Trinidad and Tobago's mainstream media over the last couple of days have focused on a Reuters exclusive report that Daryan Warner, son of former FIFA Vice-President (and now the country's controversial Minister of National Security) Jack Warner, is allegedly assisting the FBI with its investigations into corruption allegations in the international football governing body. Social media users weigh in.
Guyana: Hole in the Wall
The Seawall in Georgetown is a unique social hub – a place to see and be seen – so naturally, Guyana-Gyal is concerned about a massive hole “on top of the wall where people walk or jog…long, from left to right…almost one foot wide at one end.”
Trinidad & Tobago: The Golden Globe
It’s another piece of our history that may disappear from our landscape because we lack the interest in preserving things of value. Tillah Willah thinks that the Globe cinema is worth preserving for another generation of Trinbagonians, adding: “I would pay good money to go and see that and make...
Barbados: Shutting People Out?
Has Barbadian society become more exclusionary? Code Red cites a report that suggests it might have.
Trinidad & Tobago: Falling Apart?
The Eternal Pantomime sees disturbing parallels between the late Chinua Achebe's famous novel ‘Things Fall Apart’ and the political and social climate in Trinidad and Tobago.
Is President Carmona Trinidad and Tobago's Hope?
Last week, Trinidad and Tobago swore in its fifth President, retired high court judge Anthony Carmona. The new president's inaugural address, in which he vowed to “[hold] fast to the fundamentals [of] integrity, Transparency, Inclusiveness and Reverence to God Almighty” captured the public's imagination – and that of a few bloggers – who have been talking about what effect, if any, the new presidency could have on the country's political landscape.
Jamaica: The Female Image in Dancehall
[It] can be seen…as a celebration of full-bodied female sexuality. Especially the substantial structure of the Black working-class woman whose body image is rarely validated… Jamaica Woman Tongue thinks International Women's Month is the perfect time to put forward a different perspective of dancehall culture.
Cuba: A Pope from the Americas
How do Cubans feel about the new pope? Iván's File Cabinet gives us an idea.
Trinidad & Tobago: Crime & Punishment
Right now the war is on for the soul of our country and if we’re not, every last one of us, actively engaged and prepared to battle, then what is the point? A must-read post by Tillah Willah about crime in Trinidad and Tobago.
Jamaica, Barbados: Vying for Tourists
Active Voice compares advertisements from the Barbados Tourism Authority and the Jamaica Tourist Board and wonders “why is the Barbadian ad…so perfect that it could be a global model on how to sell yourselves? And contrastingly how and why does the JTB ad sell the country short?”
Trinidad & Tobago: Soldiers as Police?
The soldier will have all of the powers of a police officer…but he doesn’t fall under the jurisdiction of the Commissioner of Police. The Eternal Pantomime thinks that “this precepting of soldiers…is about something deeper and far sinister. It is about controlling the State.”
Guyana, Cuba: Habemus Papam, But “Who Is He”?
It's been a full day since the white smoke billowing above the Sistine Chapel signalled the news that Catholics the world over were waiting for: Habemus Papam. As it turned out, the Conclave of Cardinals elected the first Latin American and the first ever Jesuit pope...but, as one blogger asked, "Who is he"?
Rapists Get Off Light in Cayman Islands
Code Red blogs about “two recent cases reported in regional media [which] demonstrate the extent of the injustice which girls who survive sexual assault face.”
Jamaica, Barbados: Class & Justice
When I said let’s focus on substance rather than style or appearance it hadn’t yet occurred to me that in this case style IS the substance or a substantial part of what’s at stake. Active Voice blogs about a landmark case involving a Jamaican who was subjected to a cavity...
Jamaica: Art & Blackness
Musings on blackness and contemporary Jamaican art, from the National Gallery of Jamaica Blog.
Chavez’ Legacy & How His Death Could Affect the Caribbean
The death of former Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez on Tuesday has elicited a wide range of reactions throughout the blogosphere – in Latin America, to be certain – but now across the Caribbean as well.
Guyana: Taming the Beast of Power
I start to call it the red-eye beast that can whisper in you’ head and tell you to do unspeakable things. Guyana-Gyal blogs about power, and how it affects all relationships.
Trinidad & Tobago: Anything But “Nothing”
Tillah Willah takes issue with Nicki Minaj's “going on American television and describing her country, my country as ‘nothing’.”
