Farewell Rex

No, he's not an islandista but every islandista worth her salt should know of Professor Rex Nettleford - since islandistas are after all, cultured Caribbean women and Rex was a cultural icon in this region.

And now he's gone.

Nettleford died yesterday in the U.S. at the age of 76 after having a massive heart attack  a week ago when he was up there for a UWI fund-raising gala.

There are so many worlds in which Rex will be missed - from dance to academia to the seemingly ever smaller world of committed Caribbean regionalists. He truly was a giant and it says a lot for the power of his personality that someone born with nearly every disadvantage you could have in Jamaican society - from being poor to being from the country to his sexuality to complexion - could still rise to iconic status.

We have nothing but admiration for him. Walk good Professor.