I overheard some talk about an Accompong Conference coming to Accompong Town and was pleasantly surprised and honoured to be, I make invited to attend. On Saturday morning October 27th, I made my way across the small village to the community center where it would be held.

When I registered to get the printed materials, a lady at the desk who lived somewhere other than this town asked for my name and after that she asked, “Where do you live?”. I thought for a second and said, “Here in Accompong Town.” She looked at me with a quizzical look before asking, “Are you a Maroon?” to which I answered “I live here so does that make me a Maroon?”. Now, really confused, she shrugged her shoulders and wrote “Town Citizen” which definition I am proud to wear.

I took a seat on the far side of the center near a bathroom just in case and found myself seated with 3 college professor/lecturers, 2 former Accompong Town Colonels and a member of parliament from St. Elizabeth. I learned so much that day about Maroon history and a lot about the problems facing the community while at the same time the bright future that looms ahead.

When it was time to break for lunch, the leadership decided to just push forward and soon I learned why when the center became engulfed with the sounds of a helicopter passing close overhead. The Most Honorable Portia Simpson Miller and her staff had arrived. It is important to explain here that the Accompong Maroons see themselves as separate and apart living as a “state within a state” by the authority of the Peace Treaty they signed with the English in 1738. They were seeing the Prime Minister as a visiting head of state and not necessarily their leader as that is Colonel Ferron Williams. In the past, Prime Ministers have avoided coming here electing instead to send junior government officials.
Her speech was carefully worded as not to antagonize but instead to build a bridge with the community. When she said “she was a Maroon” by virtue of being a strong woman leader in the vein of Queen Nanny of the Maroons, the gathering erupted in cheers of support. Some long festering wounds began to heal that day.
To my shock and surprise, before leaving “Sista P” as she is called came across the hall and shook my hand. Although, at this point, I am not a Jamaican Citizen or a Maroon, I felt a deeper connection to this country and this community.

Peace and Guidance