The Caribbean Struggle Continues

-
Ever since we started in 2008, we have chosen to be frank and forthright. Four years later, we can claim to be the first Caribbean organ to identify the recession which finally arrived at the Caribbean ports of call in 2011. We were not taken seriously. After all Mahogany Coconut is not the dwelling place of opportunistic intellectuals, retired college professors, diplomats and bankers, who use their vast contacts  to end up writing columns for hefty sums. They write and then disappear into their gated communities protected by guard dogs, private security guards and expensive electronic security systems. It is not that they are bad people. Quite the contrary, they are good decent brothers and sisters, who are as trapped as the poor at the bottom of the socio- economic ladder. They also believe that we can change everything without interfering with the status quo but that is a mere pipe dream.
They bought into the dream of the sixties and seventies: get an education, move up the professional ladders, live a solid upper middle class life and look down on those who were not pursuing the same path. Their children were cleverly hidden from their roots, falsely believing that their lifestyles were earned through “education”. What a blatant diabolical and unnecessary lie.
They are the grand children of grandmothers and grandfathers, who in spite of their trials and tribulations, fought hard to give their offspring a chance at the Caribbean dream. Unfortunately, that dream has now been destroyed by ungrateful self-serving politicians and their gravy train friends. They, having ridden on the backs of the masses, are now contributing very little if anything to the regional good. Let us face it: a new elite black political managerial class has replaced the “massa” and they are politically vicious in how they manage our island states. Mahogany Coconut will be in the vanguard to resist any effort to remove free education, school meals and bus fares, from the poor children of the Caribbean. We will move heaven and earth to ensure that free education remains the centre piece of all Caribbean democracies.
We have seen party loyalists go straight from being politicians to the highest judiciary posts (Barbados); we are appalled that corporate thieves and scammers have been able to hijack peoples investments and life savings and  then hang out on yachts ,while poor policy holders are reduced to screaming at town hall meetings, to get back their monies (CLICO) Trinidad; in some instances drug peddlers  took over entire constituencies and  became so powerful that Prime Ministers tampered with the constitution in order to protect them (Jamaica)and  the spectacle of ponzi scheme con–men being given high national honors (Antigua) and we can go on and on.
However, we will not allow these renegades and corrupt citizens/politicians to go about their business without recording for posterity their nefarious activities. We salute the strength of the masses of the Caribbean, who in the face of widespread political betrayal , continue to keep our collective island states afloat ,by going to work every day and often being underpaid and unrecognized for their contributions to the regional good. We salute our artists and creative thinkers, who continue to forge regional alliances and are in the forefront of pushing a Caribbean identity and civilization. We salute small business persons, who push their wares and services daily without any assistance from the unprogressive banking sector. We pay special tribute to our credit unions, trade unions and other indigenous organizations that continue to protect and defend those who need their services.
We see a glorious Caribbean future with the help of visionary members of the Diaspora and those citizens/politicians who are truly committed to CARICOM and the independence of our region. Four years ago, we promised to be a new vibrant mouth peace. We will not fall asleep at the wheel!
The struggle continues. Long live the Caribbean nation. A prosperous 2012 to all.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Me and V: a personal introduction to gay tolerance

-
Image
One Caribbean Nation. By William Skinner Me and V: a personal introduction to gay tolerance I must have been around nine or ten years old. V was a well-known gay citizen, who lived in my beloved hometown of Britton’s Hill, in the parish of St. Michael, Barbados. My earliest recollection of V was his apparent penchant for dressing in white. I seldom saw him in a long pants, and he walked with an amazing rhythm. Even at that early age, I realized that he was very effeminate. He always seemed busy   out and about in the Brittons Hill area and it was obvious that everybody knew him, and his notoriety was island wide. I also noticed that he was always exceptionally clean. Later, I would learn that he was also known as a popular pudding and souse vendor, who carried on his trade in the vicinity of Nelson Street, in the city. He was well loved and respected in Britton’s Hill; along with that respect came good-natured heckling. One day, around midafternoon, about three of my childhoo
Read more

Task Force on Food Security Needed

-
Image
One Caribbean Nation. We need a task force on food security. Here's why. Dr. Chelston Brathwaite By Chelston Brathwaite In June 2022, I brought to the Senate a Private Member's Resolution to discuss the issue of food security in Barbados. The objective of my efforts was to bring to the attention of the Senate and indeed to the attention of Barbados society, the precarious situation of food security in this nation. The bill was grounded in the fact that we only produce about 20 per cent of our food and was presented in the context of the proposal by the CARICOM Heads of State to reduce the food import bill of the Caribbean by 25 per cent by 2025. With that date being months away from today, in my view, the goal is unlikely to be met. The economists of the world have predicted increases in the cost of food in 2024 due to global shipping challenges and volatile climatic conditions. They have indicated that due to the war in Gaza and climatic challenges in the Panama Canal, ships w
Read more

International Women's Day : Our Caribbean Women, Our Hope

-
Image
One Caribbean Nation As we celebrate International Womens’ Day, we are cognizant of the role our Caribbean women have played in the cultural social and economic growth of our region and evolving Caribbean civilization. They , like our men , have risen from the depths and decadence of slavery , to the highest political and corporate ladders in the region. They have given birth, to millions and have made and continue to make significant contributions to those in the Diaspora. In many cases, where they were not the biological mothers, they nurtured, cared and developed those , who were deprived of parenthood , and socio-economic hope. They are in our classrooms, directing young and fragile minds , how to navigate a world that we in the region , must forever avoid being dragged into conflicts of the so-called super powers. They are pursuing all the opportunities of our tertiary educational institutions, including the University of the West Undies, often in higher numbers than our men. I
Read more