When Janelle “Penny” Commissiong became Miss Universe in 1977, the world sat up and took notice.
Commissiong, from the tiny island of Trinidad, was the first ever black Miss Universe — a hopeful sign and something to be celebrated far beyond pageant circles.
Toronto resident (and former Much/City entertainment reporter) Nadine Ramkisson — a fellow Trinidadian — put us in touch with Commissiong to hear her thoughts on the current racial divide in America.
Reached by phone on Friday, Commissiong said she’s surprised by what’s happening in the United States.
“The George Floyd incident was a perfect storm — for the world to see and understand that these changes have to be made,” she said.
“Without George Floyd we wouldn’t have seen all the rest that’s happened over the past few months, or understood what’s at the root of parts of America.
“It’s an issue that’s touched the whole world, with protests everywhere, wherever there are people of colour.”
The elegant Commissiong did not experience overt racism herself until she entered the beauty pageant circuit. That all began as a way to publicize the fashion business she was going to open in Trinidad, where she’d just returned after living in the U.S. and studying at Manhattan’s Fashion Institute of Technology.
“I had just moved back to Trinidad, so I did it for promotion. I hadn’t been there for some years and wanted people to know who I was. I went into a local pageant without any expectations.”
And she won. From there her journey to the Miss Universe contest, held that year in the Dominican Republic, was underway.
“Only when we got there did I realize that I was really in a competition,” she said, laughing. “I’d never even been on a stage before. Seeing the competitive spirit around beauty was very interesting.”
International media attended, and every day the newspapers had a front page featuring one contestant or another.
“Except we never saw a black contestant on the cover,” remembers Commissiong. “We weren’t seeing ourselves in the papers at all. We figured we were there just to make up the numbers.
“I had never before in my life felt second place or second class, so that was all new to me.”
The whole notion of a beauty “industry” was new to her, too. There were plenty of hurdles in her year as Miss Universe.
“A person of colour was not a typical beauty,” she said. The main chaperone for the pageant winners was very unhappy that a black woman had won over a white Miss USA.
“One day she said to me, ‘Janelle, don’t think you’re the most beautiful girl in the world.’ I was quick on my feet, and responded, ‘The organization you work for told me I was!’”
Ironically, Commissiong’s reign ended when she passed the crown to Miss South Africa — at the height of apartheid.
She eventually did open her clothing business, but after her husband died, Commissiong took over his boat-building business. That was a huge hurdle, as the business was 100% male — all the craftsmen and all the customers — and nobody thought a “beauty queen” could handle it.
She did, though.
“It was a hostile industry, but over the years I think I earned their respect.”
Being the beauty queen has been a bit of a double-edged sword, says Commissiong, but she has always been proud of representing Trinidad.
She is an icon in her country. Her pageant win put Trinidad and Tobago on the map, and she’s been honoured by having her image on the nation’s postage stamps.
Recently, a main street in Port of Spain was renamed for her; Trinidad and Tobago won independence from Britain in the 1960s, so naming a street after someone local, says the modest Commissiong, “may help young people coming up have a sense of our history.”
She never had political aspirations?
“Not at all!” She laughs again. “Thank God I was too smart for that.”
​Source: Toronto Sun, July 2020

SOCA songstress Nailah Blackman is now eligible to win a Grammy. The 22-year-old performer announced on her Instagram on Saturday she was invited to join the Recording Academy.
The Recording Academy is responsible for the Grammys Awards. A person cannot win or vote for the Grammys unless they are a part of the academy. This year, more than 2,300 music professionals were invited into the coveted membership.
“This is the next step, the whole process I set off on three years ago. It has always been our goal to win a Grammy. This is just one step towards that goal…. I am now eligible to be nominated for a Grammy and I am now eligible to vote to get someone nominated for a Grammy,” Blackman told Newsday on Monday.
In 2018 she was flown out by record executives from Def Jam Recording to meet with them.
She was nominated by label reps from Universal Republic Records for membership in the Recording Academy.
“I’ve been working on music for the sole purpose to make music for life, make music for Trinidad, make music for Carnival, make music for the entire world. Where we see our music going is the international realm.”
This membership, Blackman said, was the third phase of her three-year plan to get international recognition. She’s been working on music not just for Carnival, but for the people who’ve never heard of Carnival, never heard of TT and never heard of soca music.
“We’ve been creating this music to get into those new markets.”
She’s been playing around with her sounds and apart from her soca songs she’s been creating a hybrid of soca with Afrobeats, reggaeton and pop music.


“We have been sparing on when and how we release things. When I start back to release music, we are not going to stop. It is just going to be song after song. To keep the momentum going into 2021. When and how everything will be released is still in motion, but we are well prepared in terms of music.”
She and her team are not sure if they are going to release a new album or singles.
She’s also been quietly working on collaborations with international artists. She was hesitant to name drop many people except for Adekunle Gold, a prominent Nigerian singer.
“We did a video together during this whole lockdown, in separate locations, so that video should be coming out this month. That’s the next big international project you all can look forward to.”
She had another collab with a US artist she is keeping under wraps.
“They are also quite popular as well, and they would bring a whole new market to me. We are throwing in everything I’m doing in an international direction, but still staying true to soca music.
With the borders closed and physical distancing ensuring interactive performances for musicians being placed on hold, Blackman got a chance to rest, recuperate and also used the time to work on her music.
In the past three years, Blackman has been super busy pumping out music and performing across the globe. She’s flown to more than 46 places including Jamaica, Guyana, St Lucia, New York City, Miami, Boston, Vancouver, Canada, Suriname, Belize, Paris, London and Australia.
“I felt like I needed time to recuperate. I’ve been going like a machine for the last three years. I’ve spent more time on a plane than anywhere else. It was important to regroup, find myself and have a direction because I know the next time I connect with my fans, it would not be at the same level that I did before.”
Though she’s had to physically distance herself from her fans, she’s kept in close communication with
them through Instagram. She posts frequently to the platform for her 368,000 followers.
“People feel as if they always want to see an artist perform, but they only get to know the artists as artists but not when they are home, what are they doing and their family.
“Over lockdown, I’ve connected a lot more with my fans on the internet a lot more than when I was just performing all the time. I think they are seeing a different side of me. It has brought us a lot closer.” Source: Newsday, July 14, 2020

The history of Jews in Trinidad is a fascinating one.
Many Jewish refugees fleeing Nazi Europe found a home here and were determined to build a strong Jewish community in Trinidad.
Here’s some of the people who were looking to do just that.  For more information about the Jewish Association of T&T, visit their Facebook page here 
or copy and paste this URL into your browser: ​https://www.facebook.com/jewishtnt/

Samira Nasr has been named editor-in-chief of Harper’s Bazaar U.S., according to a Wednesday announcement, making Nasr the first black editor-in-chief at a Hearst-owned publication.
Nasr, a former Vanity Fair fashion director, will begin her Harper's Bazaar tenure on
July 6.
"As the proud daughter of a Lebanese father and Trinidadian mother, my worldview is expansive and is anchored in the belief that representation matters," Nasr said in an introductory video released by Hearst on Instagram. "My lens by nature is colorful, and so it is important to me to begin a new chapter in Bazaar's history by shining a light on all individuals who I believe are the inspiring voices of our time."
Hearst Magazine Chief Content Officer Kate Lewis said Nasr will create "something magical" at Harper's Bazaar, which launched in 1867 out of New York City.
Source: The Hill, June 10, 2020

There will be a major addition to the education landscape in South Trinidad with the opening of a new international school. This will be the first international school in the Southland.
The Oxbridge International School (OXIS) will be coming to Irving Street in San Fernando.  Its home is a modern multi-storey building with breath-taking views of the city and the Gulf of Paria.
OXIS is a multi-level school, which takes children from Grade 1 (standard 1) all the way to 6th form.  The school, therefore, takes in children at about age 6 and graduates them between 18 and 20.
OXIS is divided into three schools – Lower, Middle and Upper.
The Lower School runs from Grades 1-6 and ages 6-11.  The Middle and Upper Schools run from Grades 7- 12 and ages 12 and up.
Students are exposed to British and American curricula.  As they progress, parents can choose which stream is better suited to their kids at Grade 10.  Gifted students can pursue both streams.
The American stream leads to SAT examinations for US university admission.  The British stream moves students to iGCSE (Cambridge examinations) at Ordinary and Advanced levels.  These are internationally accepted, and students wishing to attend university in Canada, England or the USA will be particularly well-served.
Children attending Lower School in OXIS will not have to write the SEA examinations in order to move to Middle and Upper Schools.

OXIS is a holistic education school so as could be expected, there are a lot of co-curricular and extra-curricular activities on the menu.  Parent engagement is critical, and so children will be assessed on entry and receive customised education geared towards the development of a global mindset. Parents will receive regular feedback from the school on the performance of their child.
Schoolwork is for SchoolOXIS told The 99% that it takes responsibility for a child’s education, relieving parents of the strain of doing further work when the child gets home  The stress of excessive homework and projects for children is relieved by having dedicated tutors on hand to do the work with students after formal teaching is complete.
After a full, fun and meaningful day, the kids can then play freely when they get home.
The OXIS website is https://oxis.edu.tt
Source: the 99%, June 2020