Una Marson

De: Lisa Tomlinson

Narrado por: Janet Kennedy

Una Marson’s work embodied anti-colonialism, anti-racism, feminism, class politics, and pan-Africanism in the first half of the 20th century. Her poetry and dramatic work symbolically ushered in a new era in Jamaica’s literary landscape, and her efforts in championing early Jamaican literature, as well as her avid support for Caribbean writers in Britain and the region, made her a key proponent of the development of a national and West Indian literary canon.

She challenged racial inequality, affirmed standards of black beauty and black identity, and explored the complexities of gender, religious discrimination, and class/economic exploitation. She did not frame her work around a single cause, but, instead, she was mindful of the multiple intersections of oppression. Britain’s hold on Jamaica’s cultural imagination would finally be challenged by artists like Marson who were eager to free their nation of colonial authority and cultural dominance. In the end, through her advocacy and pioneering work, Marson achieved a voice for the oppressed.

©2019 Lisa Tomlinson (P)2020 The University of the West Indies Press