Bob Marley

Bob Marley is a name most people know but his accomplishments and dedication to music is often overlooked. Bob was more than just a reggae artist, he was an inspiration to the country of Jamaica. He was a role model to the poverty stricken island and gave hope to many people. Bob was born on February 6, 1945 in his grandfather's house. He was the son of a poor farm girl and a British naval Captain. Soon after his birth Bob's father, Norval Marley, left his mother. He remained responsible and provided financial support and occasionally came back to see them. In the 50's a depression hit Jamaica and Bob followed his mother to West Kingston also known as Trenchtown. It was in Trenchtown were Bob's love for music began.

Bob Marley's music has given people everywhere hope for a better tomorrow. His life and involvement with the Rastafarian movement left an impact on the world that is still felt today. He sang of peace speaking out against slavery, poverty, and oppression. His philosophy was to send a message through his music that all people are equal and should unite together to make this world a much better place for our future generation.

"Every man gotta right to decide his own destiny"(Stephens 2). When Bob Marley said this he was referring to the battle with the Americans and the Indians of the west, where slaves from Africa were forced to fight. He wrote the song "Buffalo Soldier" as a tribute to the injustice of the war. They were brought to America and forced to fight against the Native American Indians. The Indians called them buffalo soldiers because their hair was tightly woven and to them, it resembled the curly and matted buffalo's coat. In the line "Stolen from Africa, brought to America

Fighting on arrival, figh...

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...y never gave up on his goal for world peace. The point of many of these songs were that you will never loose until you give up your fight. If everyone gave up on the things they were doing once they had failed then where would the world be today? If the U.S. had surrendered in our first world war when one soldier was shot down would we have our great country today? No, we wouldn't because no one gets anywhere when they give up. No one has anything when they give up just another failure to write in their book of history that will most likely not be remembered. All of our great leaders had to try more than once to get what they fought for. Like George Washington fought for freedom for years and when he got it he was known as a great leader to America and it's future generations. Maybe if the world were like Bob Marley we could be further into the future than we are now.