American multinational technology company Google is honoring late Jamaican poet and activist Louise Bennett-Coverley, affectionately known by Jamaicans as Miss Lou, with a Doodle on her 103rd birthday, September 7.
“The Jamaican poet, folklorist, activist and entertainer empowered the country to take pride in its language and culture. Bennett’s social commentary and sense of humor made her a popular personality in the country,” Google said as it provided background on who Ms. Lou was, her journey and her contributions.
The tech company thanked the Louise Simone Bennett Coverley Estate (LBC Estate) for its collaboration on this project.
The Doodle, which is the fun, surprising, and sometimes spontaneous changes that are made to the Google logo to celebrate holidays, anniversaries, and the lives of famous artists, pioneers, and scientists, was illustrated by Jamaican guest artist Robyn Smith.
In a Q&A posted by Google Doodle, the artist, Smith, shared her reaction when she was approached about working on the Doodle.
“I screamed. I was just so excited about getting to work with Google, but then on top of that to have it be about a Jamaican subject, and that subject being Miss Lou, I was washed with pride for Jamaica,” Smith said.
In Jamaica Minister of Culture Olivia ‘Babsy’ Grange hailed the cultural icon as a folk hero, at the floral tribute held to celebrate the 103rd anniversary of her birthday at the National Heroes Park in Kingston, Wednesday morning.
Grange said Miss Lou has made an indelible mark on Jamaica’s culture and her legacy will continue to be celebrated.
“We will continue to honor you, to remember you and to celebrate you. You made us proud of our language. You made us proud that we are creative people, feisty, braggadocious, and boonoonoonus at the same time. As we celebrate you, we celebrate your life and we thank God for giving you to the country and making you an inspiration to the young and the old,” she said.
Tributes were also delivered by Chairman of the Little Theatre Movement, Dr. Donald Keith Amiel, who fondly recalled meeting the cultural icon when she was 14 years old and extolled her contribution to the Little Theatre Movement.
Born September 7, 1919, in Kingston, Jamaica, Bennett-Coverley developed a passion for literature and Jamaican folklore in school.
Fascinated by her native language, she began writing poetry in the local dialect, Patois, at an early age. Her first public appearance was her recital of a poem in Jamaican Patois at a concert.
Soon, Bennett-Coverley was given a weekly column in The Gleaner, the island’s newspaper at the time, though it originally rejected Bennett’s Patois poems, as critics still regarded the dialect as an inferior and improper language, despite it being spoken widely.
Her column, which captured the experiences of Jamaicans in their own language, gained support across the country.
After graduating from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in Britain, Bennett worked with repertory companies in Coventry, Huddersfield, and Amersham, as well as in intimate revues across England. During her time in the country, she hosted two radio programs for the BBC – Caribbean Carnival (1945–1946) and West Indian Night (1950).
Bennett worked for the Jamaica Social Welfare Commission from 1955 to 1959, and taught folklore and drama at the University of the West Indies. From 1965 to 1982 she produced Miss Lou’s Views, a series of radio monologues, and in 1970 started hosting the children’s television program Ring Ding. Airing until 1982, the show was based on Bennett’s belief “that ‘de pickney-dem learn de sinting dat belong to dem’ (that the children learn about their heritage)”. As part of the program children from across the country were invited to share their artistic talents on-air. In addition to her television appearances, Bennett appeared in various motion pictures including Calypso (1958) and Club Paradise (1986).
Bennett authored several books and poetry in Jamaican Patois, helping to have it recognized as a “national language” in its own right. She also released numerous recordings of traditional Jamaican folk music and recordings from her radio and television shows including Jamaican Folk Songs, Children’s Jamaican Songs and Games, Miss Lou’s Views (1967), Listen to Louise (1968), Carifesta Ring Ding (1976).
In 1998, the Jamaican government appointed Bennett-Coverley as the country’s Cultural Ambassador at Large. In that year, she also received the Honorary Degree of Doctor of Letters from York University, Toronto, Canada.
On Jamaica’s independence day 2001, Bennett-Coverley was appointed as a Member of the Order of Merit for her distinguished contribution to the development of the arts and culture.
She spent the last years of her life living in Ontario, Canada, where she died in 2006. Her body was flown back to Jamaica to be buried in National Heroes Park.
Bennett was a champion of her country’s language and culture, inspiring Jamaicans to take pride in both.
