Mahogany CoConut Blog

One Caribbean Nation.

One Caribbean Nation. Jamaica National Flag Jamaican Children The news out of Jamaica that 1,147 crimes were reported against children  last year, must be horrific news  for all regional citizens, who continue to advocate for the safety of our children. The break down is frightening, to say the very least. Some of the statistics should alarm us all: 56 children between the ages of 1 and 10 295 between the ages of 11 to 17 387   18 year olds 36 murdered We note that these are just the acts that have been reported . We know that there must hundreds or dozens more, who have not reported these acts for several reasons and this makes the picture even more frightening. We can only let the figures speak for themselves and continue to urge Jamaica and all regional governments to place the protection of our children as a number one priority.

One Caribbean Nation. Gone are the days when the region’s girl children were expected to be nurses and teachers, and relishing their great advancement beyond what was expected of their grandmothers and mothers, who were expected to be home makers, domestics and other low -paying wage earners. Since independence, our girls have made great strides, and are now the majority pursuing education at the tertiary level and according to some statistics, they are “out-doing” our boys, in the examinations that highlight the transfer from primary to secondary schools. No longer, when they reach womanhood, are they dependent on “don0carish” men, who traditionally were the breadwinners and in many cases, were known to have more than one family to look after. The days of the village ram are disappearing as our women continue to assert themselves in every area of national life, including corporate and political leadership. Thins development has been so widespread that men have rushed to form ...

One Caribbean Nation. National Flag of Barbados The Mahogany Coconut Group welcomes the recent legislation, by the  Barbados Government, in the form of the Employment Sexual Harassment Prevention Bill, that will seek to curb sexual harassment at the work place. MCG is not surprised at the opposition to the Bill because we have maintained that certain cultural habits, do not disappear overnight. What we find particularly disappointing, is the reaction of some females, which suggests that they are seriously unaware of their rights. And  have perhaps accepted, that the disrespectful behavior of some men in the work place toward them, is just a part of our culture. Obviously, the current political atmosphere, with general elections in sight, guarantees that some political objection would emerged but at least the official Opposition has thrown its weight behind the bill.  We have seen the same diatribe in relation to legislation dealing with domestic violence and ch...

Grenada National Flag Maurice Bishop and  Bernard Coard                                                         To Maurice and Bernard                                                     I heard the soldiers marching                                                     I saw the guns...

One Caribbean Nation. Virgin Islands Barbuda Dominica We have often noted that we are not in the: “We told you so business”. The reason being that we take no delight, when we predict that some negative features of the region, will eventual lead to serious socio-economic retardation. The enormous damage done to some islands   by the deadly hurricanes that now dominate regional news and discussion, has brought us to a sense of reality, that only the most obstinate among us, would seek to ignore. We are hoping, some would say against hope itself, that the loud shouts for regional cooperation in the areas of disaster preparedness, are not silenced as the tumult  we now endure, fades. We have warned that crime and a deteriorating environment, if allowed to continue, would be the ultimate undoing of the region. These positions were taken long before the destruction, that the hurricane season has dumped upon us. It is believed that many of the gains made in t...

One Caribbean Nation.                                                                                                                                                                    Black Bird                                                                              Thy see you in flight                       ...

One Caribbean Nation. ·        Ottis Gibson Mahogany Coconut Comment We all recall when West Indies cricketers were banned for accepting lucrative contracts to play in South Africa in 1983. Now, almost thirty five years later, a Black West Indies cricketer, is appointed coach of the South Africa cricket team. The question would probably be now asked: Were these "rebel cricketers" villains or trailblazers who helped to bring down the walls of apartheid ?    ·          Facebook ·          Twitter ·          Facebook Messenger ·          Pinterest ·          Email ·          print ·          comme b     ·     ...

One Caribbean Nation. East Coast Road Animal Flower Cave First Published 9/29/12......almost 5 years ago. Bridgetown Promenade Unless we move swiftly to protect the environment, Barbados will face an environmental crisis from which escape would be virtually impossible. Since the early seventies, alert Barbadians, have been warning the bankrupt BLP and DLP governments, but they collectively ignored the warning and concerns, and casually dismissed the then budding environmental crusaders as alarmists. Who amongst us can forget then call-in radio host Reverend Father Hatch warning about the disappearance of our windows to the sea? We are all to blame: we dispose litter any and every where and dump the dead remains of animals in our gullies. For nearly a quarter century, both the BLP and DLP have failed to protect the health of the residents of the Ivy in St. Michael, from indiscriminate dumping in the surrounding areas and the assault on our water supply. Inde...

One Caribbean Nation. Barbuda after Hurricane Irma The Mahogany Coconut Group joins with all those expressing deep sadness, at the destruction of life and property, caused by the vicious and relentless hurricane season. The region has suffered tremendous and devastating loss and many Caribbean citizens in the Diaspora have been also affected; since these acts of nature also devastated states such as Florida and Texas, where many Caribbean nationals call home. We urge all Caribbean nationals regardless of place of domicile and degree of suffering, to reach out and support all efforts designed to bring relief and comfort for those who have been affected. Unfortunately, the destruction caused by these natural disasters have exposed, in many ways, the frailties of our regional infrastructure. Chattel houses (board) built often with poor or no foundations, are no match for hurricane strength winds. Our clogged drainage systems along with the inconsiderate dumping of garbage-everyt...

One Caribbean Nation. By William Skinner John Cumberbatch, the late president of the Barbados Union of Teachers, often described the Common Examination as elitist. He was convinced that once it remained the gold standard of excellence, the system would eventually be the main cause for several societal problems. It was a position he took before the mid-seventies, when he was leader of the BUT. Forty years later, his predictions have come to pass and we are still refusing to accept that he and others who supported this view were correct. What is most unfortunate is that many of those teachers who were exposed to John’s views, embraced them but we now find them four decades later, in powerful positions, denouncing his positions and shamelessly defending the status quo. These former “Comrades” have sold their souls on the altar of political expediency and one often wonders, if they have collectively agreed to hold fast to the mantra: “if you can’t beat them join them”. They are t...

One Caribbean Nation. West Indies Cricket Emblem Usain Bolt Darian King Sloane Stevens Basdeo Panday Brian Lara We Are Back After our normal summer break, we are back. During the summer we are involved in several Caribbean projects: cricket competitions, trips to the Caribbean, supporting the summer fundraisers and activities of Caribbean organisations and also experiencing the culture of our adopted homes (the USA Canada Europe)) the bar b ques, Labour Day week-end and enjoying some travelling by visiting friends and relatives throughout the Diaspora. However, we never took our eyes off the ball and have compiled a list of stories . Here we offer brief comment: Big story Usain Bolt decided that he no longer wanted to dominate the field and bowed out of competition in London. It was a bitter sweet moment because we all wanted him to retire in grand style by breaking another record or at least winning. This was not to be but it showed that he i...