How the Game of Chess Could Change a Nation

I had the pleasure of interviewing a Jamaican chess player whose dream for Jamaica is hinged on introducing the game to all and sundry. Ian Wilkinson, a Jamaican lawyer and president of the Jamaica Chess Federation, is the brains behind Magnificent Chess. Magnificent Chess is an endeavour which is seeking to get chess included on school curriculum across the length of Jamaica.

Through his company, Magnificent Chess, Wilkinson hopes to teach chess to all who want to learn. This he says will result in a more educated populace which will result in a transformation of Jamaican citizenry like nothing ever seen before. He has started this project in the schools with startling success so far. This brilliant son of Jamaica has had to be operating mostly out of pocket currently as the demand has been greater than he anticipated since sponsorship received so far is inadequate to cover the cost of the programme. However, he is willing to make this sacrifice because he believes in this vision and wants to help his fellow Jamaicans.

I am inclined to believe him; the benefit of chess has never been disputed. Not only does it develop reasoning ability, but it helps to calm the player who develops the ability to think things through before reacting. It is this lack of the ability to reason that is partially to blame for so much of the criminality that is currently occurring in the island.

However, for Wilkinson’s dream to become a reality it must be fully supported by both government and the private sector. What a wonderful sight it would be to see ordinary Jamaicans sitting on their verandas playing chess instead of sitting on the street corner with nothing to do. As they say, the devil finds work for idle hands, but with chess idle hands would be hard to come by.

I am not naïve enough to assume that everyone will gravitate towards the game or become a grandmaster, but I do know that it is an addictive game and as such many of our young people will fall in love with it. His starting the project in the schools is a stroke of genius, because there is no doubt that children who play chess tend to do well in school. This would therefore improve academic performance and lead to a more focused group of graduates from our academic institutions.

The benefits of this mammoth task may not be immediately obvious to the country as a whole, but should be seen in another five to ten years. It is worthwhile to support this project so as to help repair our badly damaged image as the most murderous place on earth. In its January 31, 2008 issue, The Economist stated that “Jamaica is the world's most murderous country, followed by El Salvador, Guatemala and Venezuela.”

Let us as Jamaicans begin to do what we can to bring back our country – and if chess is one way forward, I’m all for it.