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Breaking News- New magazine insulting, offensive & demeaning to local residents
The magazine, which is published by the public relations firm ‘a Lookingglass’ is described by many local Virgin Islanders to be insulting, demeaning, offensive and cynical, to local residents especially, the indigenous Virgin Islanders.
The magazine, according to its critics, portray locals as not being able to speak ‘proper English’ and as having a ‘broken dialect’ and visitors needing the translations of what locals may mean when they speak.
The magazine provides these translations. For example, the magazine highlights on page 3 the phase, “Wah gwin ahn?” and claims that this is Tolian for “whats going on?.” In other words, new comers to the Virgin Islands will not always understand the residents and may at times need an interpreter.
Another phase among many others that the critics claim is demeaning and to be a misrepresentation of locals is found on page 7 “Yuh aint’t bahn hare, mehson”. The ‘NEWBIE’ claims that this means, “You’r not from here”.
Shorn Jabbs, a local landscaping businessman, has told VINO that; he “found portions of the publication to be an insult to the intelligence of locals and that the way in which locals were represented was wrong and undermined our education system.”
Another businessman who requested to remain anonymous said he was upset that one of his affiliated companies had done an advertisement with the magazine since it was indeed “an insult to locals, to portray us as if we could not speak Standard English….these people need to go from here with their bias nonsense” the businessman told VINO.
Ms. Jeanette Lewis, a Virgin Islander, who lectures at the H Lavity Stoutt Community College, and also works at the Government’s International Finance Centre told VINO that she too found the ‘broken English’ in the magazine-NEWBIE to be “offensive to the residents and it showed a lack of respect for the indigenous Virgin Islanders who do not speak in that manner….my mother is from here and she does not speak like that.”
Lewis told VINO that the magazine content was brought to her attention by her students at the college, who also found it to be very offensive. Her Department, the International Finance Centre, has a full page advertisement in the magazine.
However, Traci O’Dea, a migrant Caucasian worker on a work permit with the firm ‘aLookingglass’, and the editor of the controversial magazine, told VINO that she was sorry if anyone was offended and said it was not the intent to offend anyone.
O’Dea, who is from Baltimore, Maryland USA, and has been in the Virgin Islands for just two and a half years claimed that the ‘broken English’ “was only a playful portrayal” and that she had gotten much positive feedback from locals and visitors alike, on the magazine. O’Dea also told VINO that she viewed it as a celebration of local culture “I love the BVI” she claimed, in an invited comment.
Other ‘broken dialect’ as alleged on how Virgin Islanders speak can be found in the magazine on pages, 21, 29, 45, 57 and 75 all full page as separators to new topics. The controversial magazine also provides translation as to what local residents mean.
The controversial new magazine has attracted some advertisement from corporate VI companies such as Telecommunications giant CCT Global Communications, Ogier Trust company, Golden Pavillion and International Motors, among others.
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176 Responses to “Breaking News- New magazine insulting, offensive & demeaning to local residents ”
Take you noise down a little, I am pretty sure you know what Zoe Bear means by the statement. But let me translate for you...the gal ah wak rund like she shit don't stink, like she gold. Done @really+++
Furthermore, most American's are taught to believe they are better than every one else. if this woman is living in the VI and has lived in the VI for as long as she as lived, I would hope by now she would have realize that we traverse the english language as we please. Yes with some grammatical errors and all, but plenti American have trouble with this crazy language.
I had a white lady Tell me that tolian a difficult and that them white people there are every tight, actually felt like a threat to me but me control myself and decided not to go into any long talk with the woman. Cause for the life of me i couldn't see how she became the victim!!!
Any way me going reserve some patience with O'Dea til me find de article and read it fo me self.
regards,
Alex Schill