Veteran journalist Joseph laid to rest

Lissa Joseph was remembered as one of the island’s most fearless journalists during her funeral service on Thursday.

Joseph, a former employee of the Daher Broadcasting Service (DBS), passed away on January 6.

Scores of mourners gathered at the Our Lady of the Rosary of Fatima Church in La Clery, to pay their last respects. In attendance were several government officials including Prime Minister Philip J Pierre and Opposition Leader Allen Chastanet. 

Several media practitioners were also in attendance, some of whom Joseph would have worked with or trained. 

It was truly a somber moment as the tributes drew upon Joseph’s professionalism, her engagement with people and her affability.  

The packed church received a poignant message from Fr. Albert Aaron Smith – with some of his words directed at the local media. 

“The death of Lissa shakes us not only because she was young, but because her life was unfinished, her voice still strong, her contribution still needed. Some death wounds us quietly, others confronts us loudly. This one confronts us,” he said.   

“Today, we are grieving potential unrealized, conversations unfinished, stories untold and beneath all of this is a haunting question many are afraid to say out loud – why is it that those who stand for truth so often pay such a price?”

“Lissa stood in spaces where truth was not always welcomed. She worked in an environment where pressure, compromise and silence can be very tempting. Yet, she chose integrity over convenience, honesty over popularity, courage over comfort, like Jesus,” he added.

Smith said Joseph’s death was a reminder of how fragile life can be.

“Tomorrow is not  guaranteed, voices can be silenced, opportunities can be lost. That is why integrity cannot be postponed. That is why courage must be practiced now, not someday or sometime in the future,” he said.

“Your work is not neutral. It cannot be neutral. Your words shape minds. Many people follow many radio and television stations. Be careful what you put out there, your words influence values.

“Your work can either calm tensions or it can inflame tensions…as media practitioners, be careful what you do, be careful what you put out there. What you choose to report, how you choose to report it and what you choose to ignore all carry moral weight,” he advised.