Reading Time: 7 minutes

It is all over TikTok and other preferred social media platforms of Gen Z and ‘keyboard warriors’.

African-Americans complaining that they got poor service on their vacation to Jamaica during the passage of Hurricane Melissa, which ravaged the country with winds of up to 185 miles/hour.

This was one of the most devastating hurricanes seen in the Caribbean, and it has displaced many people. Electricity, water and internet services remain down in large parts of the west of the country.

Yet there were some hotel guests who had no empathy, showed no understanding of the situation, and chose to berate staff for not going above and beyond to see to their comfort. Some said the food was unacceptable, and they were unable to get top-shelf liquor.

This has now ignited a firestorm, and many Jamaicans are taking issue with visiting African-Americans who show disrespect and make demands in the most trying of circumstances.

Some Jamaicans are calling for them to get on the first flight back home and never return because they don’t have an appreciation for Jamaican hospitality.

@ebonytates1 I ready to go home!!!! Surviving Hurricane Melissa was not in my itinerary. Y’all, please keep us in your prayers! #hurricanemelissa #jamaica ♬ original sound – Ebony Tates

I know the Minister of Tourism Ed Bartlett, and many of the team at both the Ministry of Tourism and the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB). I  also know many of the hotel managers. Their priority during this severe hurricane would be the safety of the guests. As far as I know, no foreign visiting guest has been found dead.

The second priority would be the buildings that house the resorts. They would have been impacted by the battering wind and rain, and no doubt there would be a deluge of water in the rooms and other facilities.

Then there is the safety of the staff to contend with. Yes, you want to provide a memorable service, but one must be in a position to do so first. Many hotel workers would be concerned about the safety of their family and possessions as Hurricane Melissa’s fury destroyed what was in its path.

But there were African-American guests who didn’t care about that. They insisted they wanted their lobster and White Hennessy. They paid their money and should get value.

@candynw10

Yesterday Disgusting Outbreak At Rui Jamaica in Ochi Traumating Children Young As 5 Yrs Old

♬ original sound – Candy 🍬 🍭 🍬

Now, if you are in a burning building and your life and those around you are in danger, your first thought shouldn’t be ‘I want a Porterhouse steak with sautéed mushrooms’. You would have thought your priority would be to see another day and do what you can to ensure the safety of others and make it out of the hazardous situation.

These obnoxious guests are an indictment of where American culture is now—the level of entitlement and selfishness. I have yet to hear any of these complaining guests thank the hotel and its staff for their efforts in keeping them safe. I saw what in Jamaica is called a “Mampy” woman complaining about the scarce food offering she was given.

At this time and with a rising death toll, that’s all you can think about and go and post on social media? Really?

Jamaicans are hospitable people, very kind and helpful, but don’t disrespect them, or else you will feel their wrath. Their stance is, we got decimated, and you are bitching and moaning about what you didn’t get during this vicious, deadly hurricane?

Some African-American commentators and YouTubers have taken umbrage with Jamaicans’ position on this. Many of them say, Jamaica needs their tourism dollars to survive and that the country is third world, and so conflate the issue. Some talk about whether Jamaica is so great, why do so many of you want to make a life in America and benefit from the greatest country on earth?

That bears no correlation to the issue at hand. All that does is incense Jamaicans more and widen the schism between Caribbean folk and black Americans.

“Those hotels in Jamaica need to refund people their money. A hurricane came, and the hotels were unable to offer services but still pocketed the money. That’s wrong, and people are right to call this out. That could never happen in America; this is very much a third-world mentality. They should at least offer a voucher for a stay at a resort at another time or make guests know there will be a discount. Those Jamaicans making a fuss need to chill out and get with the program,” said YouTuber Samantha Abrahams.

Oshay Duke Jackson is normally on point, but was off the mark big time.

He said: “When you are a customer, you don’t want to hear about Act of God, so I can’t get what I want because when you advertised your resort as a vacation, expectations come with that.

Jamaican resorts are notorious for not doing what they say they are going to do. I asked ChatGPT about the service and consistency of hotels in Jamaica, and this is what came up: 

• Service inconsistency 
• High cost and low value
• Broken promises/marketing vs reality gap
• Facilities and maintenance issues.

These are the issues they have without there being a hurricane. If your country provides a better opportunity than this country, why are you in America? Why don’t you go back to Jamaica? These black Americans are doing something you aren’t doing, which is going to visit Jamaica and invest in the economy.

“I’m sorry, if you’re paying top dollar and a hurricane happens, it is the resort’s fault, and it should refund the money. People spend their money to come to a resort, and their expectations should be met. Black Americans spend their money and want to relax and have a good time.”

Yes, they do, but a devastating category five hurricane is not the resort’s fault. It can never be business as usual with an endless supply of  Hennessy, chicken wings and rap music blaring out all day—no. The resort’s staff did the best they could, given the circumstances and that went unappreciated. Jamaicans noticed that and made their feelings known.

Now you hear black Americans having a pop at Jamaica for being third world and unable to offer quality service. At a time of crisis, words matter.

Oshay Duke Jackson continues: “Black Americans are injecting money into your economy when you can’t even do that. The government can’t do things to protect your island, and that’s an issue.

The way these black Americans in Jamaican resorts see it is ‘I paid my money and didn’t expect this, so what are you going to do about it?’. The customer is always right, but in the third world, they have a seller’s market mentality. In Jamaica, if you have a complaint, you’re the problem. It’s OK to take people’s money and not deliver on the service, even if it is an act of God.

“If it is an act of God, refund them their money, but you don’t want to refund them their money. Don’t go back to Jamaica if that is their attitude and they don’t want to be accountable. Don’t go to any country that tells you, ‘Go back to the airport and get out‘.”

I get it, black Americans now feel under attack by Jamaicans and are hitting back. All this will do is make Jamaicans wary of them when they come to vacation on the island. They will be looking for the attitude and entitlement.

With systems going down and the country in a mess, perhaps the hotels were in no position to promise refunds at the time. Maybe this kind of situation is addressed in the fine print. 

Better understanding is needed. One cannot conflate the hotel situation with all Jamaicans and the government. Each of the hotels which are headquartered outside of Jamaica has a policy in the situation of a major hurricane, and that is what needs greater scrutiny, not having a go at Jamaica.

Over the last five years or so, there have been more African Americans vacationing in the Caribbean, which is wonderful. It is no longer the preserve of wealthy African American entertainers and athletes. With room rates coming down, more operators going into the all-inclusive business and Airbnb growing in popularity, Jamaica is a favoured destination—the party island.

I have friends who have villas who are now reluctant to take in African-American guests. Why? They make unreasonable demands, are rude to the staff, damage the place, and cause all sorts of problems.

Earlier this year, Carnival Cruises had to be very discreet in how it handled a situation for fear of being labelled racist. Now, with the cost of cruises coming way down, more African-Americans are taking to the high seas for fun and frivolity. But on Carnival, they were complaining that they only want to hear rap and R&B, they don’t want to comply with dress codes, they shouldn’t be prevented from bringing weed and their own liquor on board – ghetto culture should take over the entire ship!

In other words, ‘it’s all about what I want; why should I care about others? ‘.

It’s a bad attitude to have.