Outside of politics and what gender holds power, comes the household. In the past Jamaica’s household was no different from the way America’s household was once ran. The man was the head of the household. He was the one to provide for his family. In the church the man was also the head. He was looked at as superior then the woman. The women’s role was to cook, clean, and be a stay at home mom. She made sure the kids were taken care of. She would make sure that the house was in order by time the man would get home. “Often when you find a man and a woman living together. The woman make sure that he has his dinner when he comes home from work...and the man is expecting to see it ready.” (Role of Man) This was the way my grandmother was raised, and she tried to instill those same values in me. Unlike America these same customs are still practiced in Jamaican homes. This is assuming that both the man and woman stay together.
All this discuss about roles of the women and men have only changed due to the situation a lot of the woman are in when having a child. There are a lot of woman in Jamaica who are raising their children alone. “In recent years, almost 85% of births in Jamaica are to single mothers”. (Landy) This causes them to play both roles of the man and the woman. She does not have a head in her household so she has to do it. These women are working, and making sure the household duties are completed as well. This causes the roles of women in Jamaica to start making some changes. In order to survive and provide women are forced to do things that they wouldn’t have normally had to do in the past.
The role of women and men before now where simple enough, get married, start a family, and stay in line with tradition. Now in Jamaica things have changed. Not only are woman slowly becoming more involved in the work force, and are becoming heads of their household but marriages are no longer the same. People in Jamaica aren’t so quick to marry, but are quick to divorce. “Jamaican culture can be highly sexualized, and unmarried households are the norm. The marriage rate in the last decade has declined, while the divorce rate increased.” (Landy) I’ve come to understand that like any evolving culture there comes change. Whether it’s a phase or not. Jamaica’s social roles have changed. Women are head of their households, and are increasing in numbers involved in the work force. When a man stays with a woman he is still considered the head. Marriages seem to be decreasing, and having children out of marriage seems to be increasing. Change is expected to happen in my eyes, and through a little searching it’s easy to recognize.
Sources
WOMEN'S LEVEL OF PARTICIPATION IN JAMAICAN PUBLIC LIFE
QUESTIONED BY ANTI-DISCRIMINATION COMMITTEE | Meetings
Coverage and Press Releases. (2001, January 26). Retrieved October 7, 2015.
Landy, T. (2014, January 8). Family, Marriage & Gender Roles. Retrieved
October 7, 2015.
Role of man and woman in Jamaican society. (n.d.). Retrieved October 7,
2015.