A tale of two Portias
We continue to look back at some of the highlights capturing the political career of Portia Simpson Miller, Jamaica’s first female prime minister. The clock signalling her final minutes in the nation’s Parliament at Gordon House is ticking, ticking, ticking ... on its way to midnight.
BORN IN Marlie Hill, deep rural south Manchester, on November 11, 1972, Portia Ashman was named after Portia Simpson, the young People’s National Party (PNP) firebrand Comrade who had begun making waves in the then opposition party.
Portia Ashman’s late grandmother, Louise Morgan (Miss Lou), was a diehard Comrade who would travel to annual conference in Kingston as the representative of the PNP group that held meetings at her yard every Thursday night.
The significance of the Portias did not stop at the names, as while Portia Ashman was born in Marlie Hill district, Portia Simpson attended Marlie Hill Elementary School in what is now the constituency of St Catherine North Central.
Portia Ashman grew up in Marlie Hill and stayed there until adulthood, achieving primary and secondary education before moving away. As the young Portia Ashman grew, Portia Simpson also grew politically, and she would rise to the zenith of her party.
Miss Lou felt strongly that, “Jamaica is going to hear about that young Comrade name Portia Simpson, believe you me.” And it sure did.
Fast-forward to the decade of the 1990s that saw Simpson as minister of labour, welfare and sports in the Cabinet of Michael Manley, portfolios she held from 1989 when the PNP swept into power.
During the previous decade, while many of those decimated by the 1972-1980 political mauling at the hands of the Jamaica Labour Party retreated into personal and business development, other than Manley, Portia Simpson was the voice of the grassroots people of the party.
The portfolios she held put her in direct contact with the poor and suffering in the society, and her love and affinity for the poor blossomed and became her enduring feature.