Early Life
She was born in this Jamaican city in 1919.
What is Kingston?
She studied at this famous dramatic arts school in London.
What is the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA)?
Miss Lou promoted this Jamaican dialect in her poems.
What is Patois (Patwa)?
This poem, with a title that means "dirty tough," describes the resilience of Jamaicans during difficult times and was famously recited by Ms. Lou.
What is "Dutty Tough"?
Miss Lou received this national Jamaican honor in 2001.
What is Order of Merit?
Louise was affectionately known by this nickname.
Who is Miss Lou?
She hosted this popular Jamaican children’s TV program.
What is Ring Ding?
She helped preserve and popularize these types of traditional Jamaican stories.
What are Anansi stories?
Miss Lou's poem that begins with "Dis is fi mi lil bwoy, Michal. An me just a bring him a school!" is known by this name.
What is "New Scholar"?.
In 2006, she passed away in this country.
What is Canada?
Miss Lou was raised by this family member after her father died.
Who is her mother?
Louise worked for this British radio program promoting Caribbean culture.
What is BBC's Caribbean Voices?
Ms. Lou's use of Creole in her poetry subverted colonial dominance by reclaiming the maternal language and challenging the authority of this language.
What is Standard English?
In this poem, a man who has just returned from America is ridiculed for having spent six months abroad but still speaking without this.
What is "Noh Likkle Twang"?
Following her death in Canada in 2006, Ms. Lou was buried in this national park in Kingston, Jamaica.
What is the National Heroes Park?
She began writing poems in this Jamaican dialect at a young age.
What is Jamaican Patois (or Jamaican Creole)?
Miss Lou was the first Black student to attend this institution.
What is RADA (Royal Academy of Dramatic Art)?
This popular form of Jamaican music, developed later, shares roots with her cultural promotion.
What is Reggae?
This poem, one of her most famous, humorously explains Jamaicans’ refusal to speak English “properly.”
What is "Colonization in Reverse"?
In Toronto, this cultural venue honors Ms. Lou with a designated space named "Miss Lou's Room".
What is the Harbourfront Centre?
Louise’s love for language came from listening to these storytellers.
Who are Jamaican folk storytellers (or her family/elders)?
After returning to Jamaica, she became a key figure at this government-run cultural agency.
What is the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC)?
In her work, Ms. Lou often drew on this aspect of Jamaican heritage, incorporating traditional songs, proverbs, and tales, like those about Anansi the spider.
What is Jamaican Folklore?
Miss Lou often performed her poetry accompanied by this traditional style.
What is storytelling or oral performance?
She was also awarded this British honor for her contributions.
What is Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE)?