Shadows After Dark

HUMAN TRAFFICKING

In support of the song “Shadows After Dark,” released on November 27^th, 2020, VP Records, the International Reggae Poster Contest and the Jamaican Ministry of National Security have partnered to raise awareness of Human Trafficking through visual art.

The song encourages all of us to be careful about who we trust. Produced by Reggae star Alborosie, and featuring performances by Christopher Martin, Romain Virgo, Dean Fraser, Duane Stephenson, Kabaka Pyramid, Etana, Tarrus Riley, Kumar, Morgan Heritage, Raging Fyah and Sandy Smith, the song is designed to attract a global audience. About the Shadows After Dark – International Poster Competition Alborosie says, “Visual art and sonic art are powerful together. Working together means we can save one more child or one more person from harm and that is good.”

Maria Papaefstathiou, International Reggae Poster Contest co-founder, says, “There are steps that all of us can take towards ending human trafficking. We, the designers, begin by using art to educate and spread awareness of the issue. I believe in a future where no one falls victim to human trafficking.”

The International Reggae Poster Contest, VP Records and several Reggae artists are all collaborating, for the first time, on the global issue of human trafficking. The Jamaica National Task Force Against Trafficking In Persons (NATFATIP) has lent its support to this timely competition. The Task Force was established in 2005 as a multi-agency enterprise with a mandate to strengthen Jamaica’s legislative, institutional and operational capacity to combat Trafficking in Persons. We invite submissions of unpublished posters on this urgent issue. SUBMISSION DATES: December 1, 2020 to April 20, 2021. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this competition is to build awareness of human trafficking. ELIGIBILITY: The competition is open to all graphic designers and artists internationally. Artists/designers can submit an unlimited number of original and unpublished posters. RIGHTS GRANTED: Artists/designers will retain the rights to their original poster art. The International Reggae Poster Contest and VP Records shall have the right to reproduce, publish, exhibit, promote, disseminate in any medium, whether printed or electronic, the poster submissions for purely educational purposes. This includes the reproduction of copies in various formats to raise funds for this anti-human trafficking campaign.

THE ORGANISERS

International Reggae Poster Contest

Background & Objectives

Michael Thompson (Jamaica) and Maria Papaefstathiou (Greece) founded the International Reggae Poster Contest (IRPC) in 2011. This distinctive initiative was designed to celebrate the resounding impact of reggae across the world. The umbrella term, “reggae,” encompasses all the popular Jamaican musical genres: Ska, Rocksteady, Roots Reggae, Dub, Dancehall and the unique Jamaican Sound System.

The mission of the IRPC is to build an international platform to showcase a far-reaching vision: the erection of a world-class Reggae Hall of Fame museum and performance centre in Kingston, Jamaica that celebrates the voice, vision and vocabulary of Jamaican popular music. The ideal architect for this grand enterprise is Frank Gehry, a name synonymous with inspiring architectural design that stimulates urban transformation. The International Reggae Poster Contest is the start of a global campaign that takes advantage of the powerful tools of social media and creative expressions through the medium of the visual arts.

The other important objective of the IRPC is to help raise awareness of the Alpha Boys’ School, a vocational institution for underprivileged youths, located in the heart of Kingston and founded in 1880 by the Sisters of Mercy. This school is a great Jamaican success story, producing some of the most notable legends in the history of Reggae, including Don Drummond of the Skatalites, the singer Desmond Dekker and Yellowman, one of Dancehall’s first superstars. We think this remarkable institution should be celebrated and replicated. Without this fertile training ground, we might not have seen the flourishing of the global music we call Reggae.

VP Records

VP is the largest independent reggae label in the world. Founded in Kingston, Jamaica by Vincent ‘Randy’ Chin and Patricia ‘Miss Pat’ Chin in the 1960s, VP has evolved from a small business retailing used records at the famous “Randy’s Record Mart” to become a global player in the international music business.

NATIONAL TASK FORCE AGAINST TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS (NATFATIP)

Background & Objectives

The National Task Force Against Trafficking in Persons (NATFATIP) was established in 2005 as a multi-agency enterprise by the Government of Jamaica to strengthen Jamaica’s legislative, institutional and operational capacity to combat Trafficking in Persons (TIP).

NATFATIP’s core emphases are the prevention and suppression of trafficking in persons, the prosecution of offenders, and the protection and provision of assistance to victims of trafficking.

The NATFATIP is organised in three subcommittees Protection, Prevention/Public Education and Prosecution which drive the work of the Task Force through their implementation of its most recent National Plan of Action 2018-2021 for combating Trafficking in Persons in Jamaica.

The Protection Subcommittee focuses primarily on victim care management via the development of Protocols and Standard Operating Procedures to promote the identification, protection and reintegration of victims.

The Prevention Subcommittee is tasked with developing strategies and forging partnerships with key stakeholders to enhance the public’s awareness on human trafficking.

The Prosecution Subcommittee is mandated to develop appropriate mechanisms and review legislative measures with a view to enhancing investigations and prosecutions of Human Trafficking cases.

BRIEF

The recruiting, transporting, transferring, receiving and harbouring of a person by force, coercion or other means for the purpose of exploitation are all gross violations of human rights. Human trafficking is a reality in Jamaica and worldwide. The two main forms of human trafficking in Jamaica are for sexual exploitation and forced labour. NATFATIP’s core emphases are the prevention and suppression of trafficking in persons, the prosecution of offenders, and the protection and provision of assistance to victims of trafficking.

In this special edition of The International Reggae Poster Contest, we are highlighting the consequences of human trafficking and advocating for its prevention.

We invite submissions of unpublished posters on this urgent issue.

Behind the scenes

On November 27th, 2020, the Reggae medley, “Shadows After Dark”, was released to mark the launch of the campaign sponsored by The National Taskforce Against Trafficking in Persons (NATFATIP). According to Jamaican Minister of National Security, the Hon. Dr Horace Chang, trafficking in persons is a lucrative business: “It is growing, and as we get on top of dealing with the illegal drugs and firearms trades – it means the criminal organisations are losing money, and they will look to other areas, and clearly one of those areas is human trafficking.”

Richard Lue, Director of Business Affairs for VP Records, negotiated the partnership with NATFATIP. He says, “Music is one of the best ways to communicate. We felt it important to work with NATFATIP to make sure as many people as possible are aware of human trafficking and the perils it brings.”

GET INSPIRED

Shadows After Dark (Lyrics)

Reggae Artists United

You are a mountain
You are a river
Out there is a jungle
Have to be stronger

You can see a mans face but never his heart

Trust no shadows after dark (shadows after dark)

No shadows after dark

You can show you care
Keep that love in your heart

Trust no shadow after dark (no shadows after dark)

Shadow after dark

And whatever the circumstance
Pushing you to take a chance
You better follow your intuition telling you to take a stance

You can see the face
But not the heart

Those who want to do you wrong
So-so many gone without a trace
Gone without a sound
You gotta believe and never let go (never let go)

Because You can see a mans face
But you can’t see his heart

Trust no shadow after dark (shadows after dark)

No shadow after dark

You can show you care
Keep Jah love in your heart

But trust no shadow after dark (no shadows after dark)

No shadow after dark

You can see a mans face
But you can’t see his heart

Trust no shadows after dark (shadows after dark

No shadows after dark

Sweetest words, lyrics when them talk
But trust no shadow after dark
No shadow after dark

Be wise
Memba Mama advise
Beautiful eyes … lies (in these times)
Can’t trust the wolf in sheep’s clothing
Don’t take nothing from a man if you don’t know him
Soon as you blink
Another life ah get stolen
Dem heart colder than the lake dem weh frozen

It’s a crazy world we’re living in
Open your eyes

You can see a mans face but you can’t see his heart

Trust no shadows after dark (shadows after dark)

No shadows after dark

You can show you care
Keep the love in your heart

Trust no shadows after dark (no shadows after dark)

You can see a mans face but you can’t see his heart
Trust no shadow after dark

No shadow after dark

You can show you care keep that love in your heart
but trust no shadows after dark (shadows after dark)

No shadow after dark

There is pain in everything
But if hope is what you bring
There’s a time and a place
To ask for help don’t be ashamed
Even though it might seem hard
Hold on don’t let go
You are careful of the personal information you disclose

You can see a mans face but you can’t see his heart

Trust no shadows after dark (shadows after dark)

No shadows after dark

Oh no no no no
Protect the mothers
Protect the elders
And Protect our children
From the hurts and the thieves out there

You can see a mans face but can’t see his heart

You can show that you care

Keep that love in your heart

SPECIFICATIONS

SUBMISSION DATES:

December 1, 2020 to April 20, 2021

OBJECTIVE:

The objective of this competition is to build awareness of human trafficking.

ELIGIBILITY:

The competition is open to all graphic designers and artists internationally. Artists/designers can submit an unlimited number of original and unpublished posters.

RIGHTS GRANTED:

Artists/designers will retain the rights to their original poster art. The International Reggae Poster Contest and VP Records shall have the right to reproduce, publish, exhibit, promote, disseminate in any medium, whether printed or electronic, the poster submissions for purely educational purposes. This includes the reproduction of copies in various formats to raise funds for this anti-human trafficking campaign.

IMPORTANT NOTICE TO CONTESTANTS:

You are only allowed to submit original unpublished works to the Reggae poster contest. Only original, unpublished work should be submitted to the poster contest. Entries must not be posted on Facebook or other social media until after the winners are announced.

HOW TO PARTICIPATE

For your participation to be valid, you will need to follow the rules and full-fill and send, along with your poster, the submission form.

SUBMISSION FORM

DOWNLOAD

LOGOS

DOWNLOAD

1. Fill in the Submission Form.
A separate submission form must accompany each poster/s submitted, naming each submitted poster.
The submission form must be filled in and sent with entries.

Each entry must be an original, unpublished work that you have created that does not include material in which a third party has intellectual property rights.

Forms should be completed in English. A title and a brief description of the poster/s should be included, as well as a biography, maximum 200 words.

2. Logos.
Download the logo above (NOT the Reggae Hall of Fame) and place it at the right-down side of your poster.

Please place the logo without resizing it, at the poster’s actual size of 50x70cm at 300dpi. Resize the poster AFTER for submitting it at 700x980pixels, 72dpi. If you have any doubts, please contact us before you submit the poster.

3. File Specifications.
Poster file: size 50cm x 70 cm (5906×8268 pixels), 300dpi,
Color Space: (CMYK) Vertical (portrait) Only.

SUBMIT your posters:
Size: 700×980 pixels.
Resolution: 72 dpi,
Color Mode: RGB,
File Formats Accepted: JPEG.
The file should not exceed the 5mb.

4. Name your files.
IMPORTANT! Please label both submissions (poster and submission form) with your name and poster title.

5. Number of Posters.

Artists/Designers are allowed to submit any number of original poster entries. However, entries may not be submitted more than once. Please avoid sending similar posters. Entries should not be published until after the winners are announced. The organizers of the contest reserve the right, at their sole discretion, to restrict participation in the competition of any person, at any time, for any reason, and/or to disqualify any entry, at any time, for any reason.

7. Please, do not publish your submitted poster art until after the winners are announced.