Before being deployed to Iraq , I viewed a program on British T.V. back in Germany. It was a Trinidadian woman who was born in Trinidad but left at an early age. I believe she was 8 when she left. Well the family moved on to England. As she got older she became a news reporter. Since she was originally from Trinidad , she decided to return and find work in the media field. When she arrived in Trinidad she was in for a rude surprise. When she went on job iterviews they instantly noticed her British accent. (more British than Trini ) Everytime she would read a script , they would penalize her for sounding to British. She got fed up of looking for work and returned to England. I felt bad for lady she was in tears because of the way Trinidad treated her. I mean she was born in Trinidad. Now I'm confused because I thought they teach the British English in Trinidad and everywhere else in the West Indies ? Could someone give me some feedback on this topic.
Well, I cannot say what happened to her since I would need more facts such as what kind of British accent she had (there are many), which station she went to, the date, etc. Ironically on TV6 there is a negro guy with a very strong British accent giving the weather, so it is obvious it is not an issue.
I'm surprised of that story because people here love to hear british accents but again like JB pointed out what kind of accent she has?. There is another reporter on TV 6 who sounds like an American and you have to hear some radio shows, you may think you are in the US! ALL this Trinis putting an American accent!
LDS , is it true Trini's in Trinidad like hearing Americans talk ? I know in the United States , we go crazy when we hear an West Indian accent. I had a Jamaican friend that would get to me at times. ! We would be in the club. (when I was single ) And I would approach a female and just start a conversation. All of a sudden here comes my Jamaican friend. Ay gyal , yuh look'in sweet like mango ! Next thing I know , all the girls are surrounding him. ! And I'm just looking at him shaking my head and smiling. Then later on he's back with the boys speaking without the Jamaican accent. We all just start laughing , because he would do this all the time. It was a routine for him. I sometimes wonder what happened to him. He was in the Army with me. The last he heard he went back to Flatbush , Brooklyn.
Well, Trinis are very used to hear accents but everything have become so Americanized here that I think that's the reason of hearing Trinis DJ trying to make an American accent, I find it to be pretty primitive if you ask me, when a country wants to lose its own culture in order to want to look like another, then something is very wrong.
I'm British with a British accent, and I've had little problem since I've been here. No one really has made any off comments about it.
I do get some fateeg (I don't know how it's spelt) about it, but I guess it's all in jest .
I don't know much about the Trini, but the few East Indian friends I have don't much care for the British. They don't say much about it.
I figure there are still hard feelings over British occupation of India for so long. I know Americans that are not real big on the English. I don't care for their system or their bankers, but I don't take it out on the common Brit either. In fact I get along real good with the common Brits I have run across. I just don't care for their feeling about their Royal Families.
The country is called, "Trinidad & Tobago". International Discussion with regards to British Colonization can be found in the Thread: Evils of British Colonization. In my opinion Trinis know little about decorum. They smile at you for ole' talk, but productivity or timeliness will get you a mean face.