Curses for Christmas

A passage in our readings stood out to me as rather bizarre, and somewhat different from most of our studies: The Burru people in Jamaica go from house to house at the end of each year, singing about the sins that the residents (or the business, or whatever it may be) have done. I'll comment on this practice itself in a moment, but first, I would like to draw attention to something else: It parallels a practice that is still continued in West Africa today, according to our textbook (Edmonds, p. 101).
It is quite remarkable that such a tradition would last so long. Most of the Rastafari culture, it seemed, was "recreated" to be as African as possible, but this practice never ceased - showing impressive cultural perseverance.

The practice itself is disturbing, in my view. It is said, at least in Africa, to be a way of "purifying" the town for the next year, but it seems to me more like a broadcast of gossip - especially because (at least in Africa), the residents are forbidden to retaliate. (It would be an ugly sight indeed if someone were wrongly accused).