Oral history interview with Dr. Enid Bogle

Dr. Enid Bogle detailed her family history, including being raised by her grandparents, and the legacy of and her relationship to "national hero of Jamaica" Paul Bogle, as well as her educational experiences from early childhood through teacher training at Shortwood Teachers' College in Jamaica and graduate education at Howard University in the United States. She read a poem about her grandfather, written by Ivan Taylor. In regards to her life in Jamaica, Bogle talked about voting, Pantomime and Boxing Day, the importance of religion and religious holidays, how children were raised by the community, and her teaching experience. She described her experience with immigration from Jamaica into the United States, including her travel to the United States, and later sponsoring citizenship for her mother and two of her sisters, including immigration challenges during Reagan administration. As for her student days at Howard University, Bogle talked about her introduction to jazz, access to Jamaican food, barriers and challenges, her professors Ivan Taylor and Toni Morrison, her first winter in the United States, communicating with friends and family in Jamaica, and being financially poor, but not spiritually poor. She also talked about her experience as an English professor at Howard University, teaching and learning languages, when to use a specific language system or dialect, the importance of maintaining the tradition of Jamaican Creole, and working on a tutorial program for Caribbean students. As for culture and heritage, Bogle talked about oral tradition and stories her grandfather told; music and dance, specifically mento, quadrille, Reggae, Calypso, Bob Marley, and degradation of women and violence in current music; how holidays were celebrated in Jamaica versus how they were celebrated in the United States; the influence Jamaican and Rastafarian communities and culture had on other communities in Washington, DC; the legacy of notable Jamaicans and instilling Jamaican heritage into children born in the United States; and cricket. She explained the bedrock of Jamaican families and people in the Embassy community in Washington, DC as well as her thoughts on President Clinton's impact on Caribbean, specifically Haiti. Interview is in English and Jamaican Creole (minimal). Digital audio files include white noise and static, and very minimal background noise, including a phone ringing and minor talking; interviewee can be heard clearly for the most part.