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 chil...
One Caribbean Nation. Deryck Thomas By William Skinner Sweet Drinks: A High School Friendship and Memories Back in the sixties, while a student at the famous Modern High School located on Roebuck Street, Deryck Thomas and I developed a wonderful friendship that remains wonderfully intact. Deryck’s father, worked in a managerial/ supervisory capacity at what we called the Coke factory, which was situated extremely close to our school. Occasionally, the students were treated to free beverages, and we all believed, it was the magnanimity of our distinguished Headmaster and owner of the Modern, Louis Lynch, who remains a legend among educators, in our country. It is widely known that there have been calls to make him a national hero. There was also a rumor that th...
One Caribbean Nation. Dr.Carla Barnett National Flag of Belize The Mahogany Coconut Group welcomes Dr. Carla Natalie Barnett, the new Secretary General of CARICOM. Dr. Barnett, a graduate of the University of the West Indies, is the eighth Secretary General and the first female to hold the office. The MCG hopes that her appointment will strengthen ties with her homeland Belize, and its Caribbean neighbors, and act as a conduit for us to further explore its beauty and customs. Dr. Barnett is taking up office at a very challenging time for the region. Most of our economies, have suffered severe shock, caused by the devasting damage to the tourism industry by COVID-19 and the challenge of finding the financial resources to combat the pandemic. There remains an embarrassing level of pettiness among some regional leaders, as was recently evident during the LIAT controversy. We are also fighting the negative effects of climate change on our beautiful but often fragile environment. O...
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