Sister Cindy Simeon, Psalmist, Queen, Rastafari Daughter of Jah!

From The Rastafari Expression,
A regular column by Kaya I IsesaJah, Jan 23, 2006         

This is the ILa story, of Sis Cindy Simeon!

My name is Gladys Cynthia Pettigrew-Rhodes-Senior, affectionately dubbed "Cindy" from my life experience in Paris when I danced with Claude Francois, "Clo Clo" a renouned singer in France. The sista was added a few years ago by the staff at WKCR where I volunteered every Saturday - Sabbath - and read the Psalms, then I became the "Psalms Queen" as the selections that were selected on the spot of the moment, helped so many of the listeners in radioland. I was born in Bonny Gate, St, Mary, Jamaica West Indies the first child for my mother and father, I was also the first grandchild for both their parents. My mother was quite young, she was in Kingston as a helper to Miss Issy and German her husband. My aunt had just lost the only child she would ever have. The baby was in the tube and she had to undergo an operation which rendered her unable to have any children. At the same time my mother Ms. Gwenie had conveived by George my father and when she had the baby (I), she took me to her bacause she was felt unable and incapable of caring for me properly.(All this was hidden from me until I was 22 years old and living in London, when I began communicating with my born mother.)

From town I went to country to live with Ms. Addy my grandmother, from my fathers side. Ms. Issy, my aunt, god mother and now Mother, went to England during that time 1945 and soon afterwards I was sent for, I traveled on a ship with an adopted Aunt to London, where I lived and went to a Catholic School, St. Angus Primary School in Bow, the east end on London. Of course I had a fight the very first day to defend my race but the girl became my best firend and we went to the Zoon with her parents and when she discovered that there were white as well as black monkies, we became bonded.

Some years later we returned to Jamaica, where my Mom bought a house in Richmond Park and I attended Holy Childhood High School, a Private School. My Cockney accent caused a little stir but my English was good, including my spelling etc. After failing my examination my mother decided that rather than making me take it over there she had me transfered to Kington Technical High School where I learnt Typing, shorthand, accounting. I also learned spanish as well and Domestic Science.

I returned to London after I graduated, I worked for a Mr. Kisberg, a Jewish man, who had employed my mother for years, as a seamstress. I then worked for James Scott, Electrical Engineers, and as I had been taught the piano, danced with "Betty Babes All Star" as a child, modeled at school in Jamaica, so it was natural that I wanted to pursue show business. One day I looked back stage and saw where dancers were needed for a TV show in Bristol Wales. I went for the audition and was successful. A few weeks later I was asked by the producer, Chris Mercer if I would like to compere the show along with Dino and Michael Palin and I accepted.

I was very successful and I then made world history as "the first colored girl to MC a major TV show." I worked with all the greats The Stones, The Beatles, Eric Burdon and The Animals, met Patti Labelle and the Blue Bells, Diana Ross and the Supremes, Tom Jones and all the stars! When the show was terminated, I went to London and worked on "Ready Steady Go", another Pop show, where Cathy MeGowan was the MC, I was spotted and got word from Paris that a French singer wanted me to work with him. That is when I met Cassandra, Pat and Junior Marvin (Bob Marleys guitar Player.) Junior and George Harrison were my first guitar teachers, and I still play a little sometimes. While working in France with Clo Clo, I became a celebrity, one of the original dancers for Claude and I then danced for groups in Belgium, Switzerland, Germany and Spain.

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After leaving the Claudettes I went to Rome. I met a friend from London and got a gig with Fedrico Fellini, and worked in his movie Satyricon for several months. I returned to London and gpt an assignment to go to Nowray to dance topless, it was fun as I was well endowed and the pay was great. I soon tired of that and made my way to Copenhagen where I began modeling with Lotte Holm Agency and I became an every day feature in the newspaper Extra Bladt. The work in Denmark was so overpowering, I was running here and there, and finally one day on a movie set, What's New Pussy Cat, my pearls broke and I started crying and could not stop. Soon thereafter I left for New York. I had been sun bathing for weeks on the beaches of Denmark, so when I arrived in New York, my mother did not recognize me. She exclaimed "A wa mi data de?". Needless to say, I was under house arrest, no California for me. I got a 9-5 after trodding the streets of Manhattan, going to different agencies with my outstanding portfolio, when The Ford Agency declared that I was too short.

Show business had to take a back burner. I met a man man named Roy Roberts, who noticed me reading my Book of Psalms every day. He invited me to his Temple and there I converted to the Bebrew faith. Fasting, paying tithes, destroying all my glamarious clothes, (which my Mom salvaged, being a seamstress she converted everything, longer. and more modest) and then after tarrying for when seemed months, I received the gift of the Holy Spirit, speaking in different tongues, with the gifts of healing, even over the phone when I prayed for people.

A few years later I met my husband Alvin, we were married and from that union I brought forth two wonderful children Natashia, and Yahri. Unfortunately the marriage only lasted a few years, because of the violence in the relationship. I was working at Bankers Trust on Park Avenue at the time and I had to run and hide with baby Yahri in my womb. All during this time my faith and work in the Temple continued, moving from Manhattan where I was converted, to Queens which was closer to home. In the process of time my Mom also converted, it seems I had shone some light into her life, now I had to go undercover for fear my husband would find me, so I went to Brooklyn to live with cousins from yard.

I sent Natashia to Jamaica with my Mom and her husband Roy Senior, whom she had divorced and remarried. When Yahri was about to be born she returned to New York with Natashia for the joyous occasion. I remained in Brooklyn with my family for sometime. My father came to live with us and we returned to Queens to live as the Headquarters for the Twelve Tribes where I had visited and become a member was moving from B'klyn to Queens.

I became involved with Twelve, as a friend of mine Johnny Golding from Jamaica whom I gave an interview (for his paper), was impressed by my conversion to being a Hebrew and encouraged me to learn of Rasta. Actually I was quite a rebel as my hair was always braided and my Mom feared I would one day dread my locks, so this was like destiny to me.

We went to Baltimore in the 80s, as I felt betrayed when a prominent church member encouraged Natashia to befriend a young man who was selling drugs. Well we jumped out of the frying pan into the fires as the people in B'more hated us like a plague. However I worked for Carrier Communications Group and met some outstanding people of color Jean & Tyrone Tabourne the young balck owners, (the wife was from yard) were all college graduates and I met Tracy Brown now named Ashanti Mandasi who had a great influence on my life.

A few years later we returned to New York, and I decided to resume my education at Queens College which had to be put on hold, which commenced when Tashia was two years old. I was always seeking God, in Oslo in the virgin snow, in Rome at the Vatican, everywhere. I saw the Red, Gold and Green the universal stop lights and in the banner of Ethiopia I found the light in the Rastafarian faith. I knew our God had to be of our color, coming from North Africa as the Messiah and now as the King of Kings from Soloman and Sheba in the heart of Africa, and I knew he was the Lord of all as I knew we all were black once, and although the melatonia had been removed from our whiter skinned brothers and sisters he was the incarnated Christ of us all.

I connected and as Marcus Garvey said I looked to Africa and saw His Imperial Majesty as Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah.