From very young, Kamecia Blake had a plan.
It was one that would wrench her from poor beginnings and pitch her on a path of success and achievements. She knew education would be her passport and hence mapped out an academic route.
Kamecia was determined to “be somebody”.
Today, that hard work and drive have paid off for the 25-year-old. Kamecia is assistant superintendent of police in the St Vincent Police Force. It is a badge she wears with pride, recognizing the “awesome responsibility”, but she is never daunted by the challenges that come along.
Kamecia couldn’t have written a better script. She didn’t bank on ending up in the police force where she has spent the last two years of her life; but she acknowledges that all her academic achievements put her smack dab on that track.
Rewind to 2010: that’s when this young woman, fresh from pursuing a Master’s (MSc) in forensic psychology at the University of Portsmouth in England, and a six-month internship at the Wiltshire Probation Services, took up her new position in the Vincentian force.The youngest gazetted female officer in the Caribbean, she is second in charge in the criminal investigations department (CID).
Kamecia sat with the SUNDAY?SUN at the Blue Horizon Hotel in Christ Church last Thursday, chatting about her past, present and future, and her short life as a crime fighter. She told of the map in her head with which she would chart and navigate her course.
“After secondary school I went to college for two years in St Vincent. In my final year I applied to Cave Hill and was accepted. I had mapped out an academic plan. Success for me was about getting my degree,” she said.
She spent three years at the Cave Hill Campus of the University of the West Indies studying psychology, graduating with first class honours.“I came up poor, but we never suffered. My mother provided the basic amenities for us to survive. As a little girl I wanted to become somebody. I would use education to take me to that destination,” Kamecia stressed.
The last of three siblings had seen her mother work from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at one job and then head off to another right after – that of selling gasoline and ice – just to make ends meet.
“We had to transport water in the mornings too. My mother couldn’t afford to pay the water bill; so we had to minimize. We did that to cut down on the bill.”
Burning the midnight oil is no cliché for this young woman either – it was very real.
“I know what it is like . . . . We had to substitute and subsidize; that’s what it was all about.”
This made her even more determined.
“I knew that success had to be my final destination,” she said, quickly adding that she was still not ashamed of her background. She even believes she succeeded because of it.
Struggling with emotion, Kamecia philosophized: “It is not where you come from, but where you want to go.”Throughout her life, she says, she has had one simple motto by which she has lived daily: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
Said she: “When I feel discouraged, I refer to that verse. I rely on it to give me the strength to press on.”
Well, no sooner had she entered her top position in the St Vincent constabulary than she had to do exactly that. Kamecia’s appointment had caused a national stir, she recalled – both negatively and positively.
It was under the graduate entry policy that year that the fresh-faced woman was considered for the senior post. The policy, she explained, allows individuals specializing in a particular area to enter the police force at a rank.
Kamecia was a prime candidate, even though it wasn’t on her professional radar. Still, she was ready. She had been trained in criminal profiling and offender assessment; and that made her a catch for the St Vincent force.
“Here it was that a young female was promoted to such a rank. It caused a national stir. I had to rely on that quote. I used the negative criticism as a stepping stone. I tend to filter the negative and only let the good in,” she said.
She recalls that when she entered the 1 000-strong police force, which has 138 females serving, she had a “tailor-made” training manual that helped to get her ready for the job at hand. On-the-job training was also critical. Her burning passion allowed her to absorb and learn fast.
“On the first day I had a sense of accomplishment because I wanted to make my mark,” said Kamecia, who also lectures at the police training school on introduction to research methods and introduction to forensic psychology.
She was the guinea pig in the St Vincent Police Force’s graduate policy. Now, there are five applications from individuals with law degrees and other disciplines looking to complement the strength of the force. And another female has been enrolled at the rank of sergeant, specializing in linguistics.The St Vincent Police Force needs all the expertise it can get right now, with crime increasing over the last five years and becoming more sophisticated, Kamecia acknowledged.
There have been four murders for the year so far in St Vincent. Robberies, burglaries and drug-related offences are also a concern for this officer on an island with a population of about 110 000.
Kamecia is visible at every murder scene, doing some of the evaluations.
She has no security detail, readily acknowledging God as her very security.“No weapon formed against me shall prosper” is the daily guide of the assistant superintendent who admits being “a very spiritual person”.
She doesn’t only focus on crime in her country; she casts her eyes across the region. She says with the sophistication of crime these days, due to technology, it is important for police officers of the Caribbbean to talk more.
“We have to grapple with that issue. We have to be up to date with the criminals,” she said, noting that networking across islands could be improved.
“. . . In the region there is a lot of talking and not enough action.
As we move towards a stronger region, with CSME [CARICOM Single Market and Economy], there is a need for us to share information.”
Now that she is settled into her job, one of the greatest joys for her is knowing that she has made her mother Pamela Knights proud.“She is always concerned about my safety. Once I respond to a murder, she will not sleep until I return,” she said smiling.
Though she has witnessed an increase in respect from her friends, she has remained humble while “yearning for more”.
Kamecia, who easily describes herself as being very strategic in her thinking, has big plans of going on to pursue her doctorate in criminology.
“I am not complacent and I have a will to achieve.”Happy with her success, she has some advice for other young people. It’s simple: dream [email protected]
