Mahogany CoConut Blog

One Caribbean Nation. ‘Abolish 11-Plus’: VETERAN EDUCATOR ADAMS SLAMS ‘EXAM INEQUALITY’ By Sheria Brathwaite Former senator and retired principal Alwyn Adams on Friday reignited calls to scrap the Barbados Secondary School Entrance Examination, commonly known as the 11-Plus, describing it as an outdated relic of educational segregation that stifles the potential of the working class. While delivering the keynote address at Speech Day of St Leonard's Boys' Secondary School where he was once principal, Adams criticised the island's education system, declaring that it was failing the people and urgently needed reform. Repeating a call made two years ago, he argued that the common entrance examination is an antiquated mechanism designed to limit the academic advancement of Barbados' working class and perpetuate educational segregation. He said then that with Barbados having transitioned to a republic, the country ought to get rid of the current educational system which he...

One Caribbean Nation. It is extremely difficult to believe that we are incapable of solving current challenges relating to crime and other acts of social deviancy. Our culture remains the foundation of our development. It has undergone tremendous change, both for the better and the worst, during the last four decades. However, we remain a society that still demonstrates some virtues of basic decency toward each other but we   have failed to recognize that culture must be maintained, instilled and explained to our citizens. We cannot continue to ignore the depth of cultural penetration , as we sought socio economic development during the post-independence period. To address this , we must seriously examine our education system . The present raging debate regarding the transformation of the system clearly shows we want change but also expect to cling to the status quo ; this creates a perfect   recipe for confusion. The current method of transferring children from the pr...

One Caribbean Nation. Crime undermines the entire society Today’s Editorial As Barbados struggles with its citizen safety and security due to a spate of gun murders, one of the most extreme examples of a breakdown in law and order is playing out in the northern Caribbean. Haiti, a Caribbean Community (CARICOM) member state, is battling one of its worst episodes of crime and violence in recent times. The fact that the state apparatus has essentially broken down has created the circumstance for hoodlums and bandits to roam the streets in a literal free-for-all. At the centre of Haiti's crisis is gun violence and the free flow of high-powered firearms into the desperately poor nation. Marauding gangs of gun-toting young men have worsened an already dire situation that has spiralled out of control. As some regional leaders offer limited military and financial support to the CARICOM member nation, the situation there has become exceedingly challenging and beyond the scope of these sma...

One Caribbean Nation. We have never argued against or implied that exogenous issues don’t affect us. However, it is most interesting , that on several occasions, discussions about our national/ regional problems , have been ignored and we jump right into what is happening in Ukraine, Russia, Gaza , as if we don’t have televisions and other media. Our transition to true transformation is being inhibited because we want to pretend that some new global dispensation will be to our immediate benefit. That is a geopolitical illusion. For those , who read deeply , into current CARICOM thinking, there is a renewed call for such things as a common currency and speaking with one voice in international fora and trying to combat globalization with one common strategy. We need to do better in order to avoid another period of protracted poverty and political malaise. At this time we need more Caribbean thinkers; we need those who want to complete the independence project and transform our region. ...

One Caribbean Nation. There is no doubt that we are still suffering from mental slavery . We have foolishly tried to bury our past and opted to ignore the psychological damage that we endured and that some have been able to overcome. A people cannot progressively exist unless they understand their past. This reasoning , sounds like pure gibberish because we have measured progress by materialism . Throughout the region there is self hatred because we don’t know ourselves ; we hate ourselves.  Until we address this collectively as a people , we are going to continue the social, political and economic malaise.  By understanding  our past, we would be better prepared to deal with the present and future. Where is the real foundation for our youth. We need to understand that earlier generations were denied true education ; receiving and obtaining education was in itself very difficult. Ironically, they might have been spared because those of us who apparently mastered the col...

One Caribbean Nation.                                                        Caribbean Global Influence ? Ever since the take over of the world by the almost unimaginable growth of technology, called the internet, we have heard about how the smaller the world is because we are better connected. Some have even branded it the prophecy expressed in George Orwell’s 1984. Not only Big Brother is watching us but our neighbours , friends and complete strangers, are apparently also playing the role of Big Brother. Nothing seems secret and privacy may be an anachronism. The Caribbean was caught sleeping and is still trying our utmost, to catch up and keep up with the pace that the new technologies have set. Our vulnerabiliti...

One Caribbean Nation. By William Skinner Traditionally, Caribbean people have been very conscious and aware of their environment. The growth of the international environment movement, has placed protection on : rainforests, water resources, and both land and ocean pollution. It is fashionable , to promote care for the environment , as a sophisticated science , understood only by the so-called experts.   The broader populace , is expected to be educated to and wait on directives from the experts , not realizing that the care of the environment commences with a diligence of our own and immediate private properties, living conditions and spaces. In the old Caribbean, we saw keeping our personal environments as our natural responsibility. The chattel houses were exquisitely painted , with immaculately kept gardens and every rock was meticulously used and even empty soda bottles, were placed to complete the creative landscaping of the gardens that flourished with popular tropical ...

One Caribbean Nation. By Sir Ronald Sanders Rising gun crimes in the Caribbean: Urgent action required by all There is an alarming surge in gun-related violence, particularly among younger people and gangs. This plague has now spread from other parts of the Caribbean into Antigua and Barbuda which has recently suffered a spike in gun crimes. Throughout my lived experience, Antigua has traditionally enjoyed a low rate of homicides. Sadly, this treasured tradition has been shattered by a surge in broad daylight robberies, particularly of small supermarkets, and even more tragically, by an increase in killings. Antigua's current wave of violence, while deeply troubling, mirrors a broader trend that has been prevalent in other Caribbean countries for much longer. Haiti, for instance, bears the notorious distinction of being the most affected, with armed gangs controlling large areas of the country despite the presence of a Kenyan military force, invited by the government and approved...

One Caribbean Nation.   Contrary to popular opinion , calypso is a very sophisticated artform. Some of the finest social commentary , has been written by and for calypsonians. It has also given us priceless enjoyment of music that almost immediately reduces stress and brings our unique Caribbean vitality and cultural vibrance to the fore. Perhaps we enjoy the finished product so much that we believe we are all natural calypsonians. So, we join a tent, get a microphone , create a name and we stamp ourselves : calypsonians. We can all copy Sir. Garry and turn up our collars but it is not easy to copy : Sparrow, Gabby, Stalin , Rose and Kitchener. We actually believe that we can sing Calypso without any appreciation for : chord, key, melody or well written lyrics. The truth is that on any given night, a calypso competition would produce a king or a queen but if that winning calypso is forgotten within a week , it really does not carry the ranking of  greatness. We reference : J...

One Caribbean Nation. by William Skinner I don’t think that it can be seriously argued that a Bajan(Barbados) Tuk Band performing in any other country, will automatically turn them into Bajans. That being said, the truth remains that it is ironic that we seldom see the promotion of authentic African culture on our island . We tend to restrict it to dancing and so on and this often degenerated into wukking up and almost pornographic vulgarity, that really may be our culture but has nothing to do with Africa. In other words while other cultures within our community tend to produce elements of their culture, we often display that we are not that knowledgeable about our African culture. This then, in my humble opinion, means that in order to counter this obvious ignorance of our authentic culture, we ought to teach our children from very early( primary schools) about their African heritage. Quite frankly, regardless of what is said, in a country with a population that is 95% African, we ...

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...

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...

One Caribbean Nation. We aware that our culture is being infiltrated and seriously penetrated by our exposure, both physically and mentally to foreign norms We will continue to remind regional leaders that our culture is our major strength and while we are appreciative of their efforts to support our cultural practitioners , we believe that a more concentrated effort is needed , in our schools and communities. As a region, we have the distinction of creating the only musical instrument of the twentieth century, in the form of the steel pan (drum) of Trinidad and Tobago. We have also brought the calypso and reggae music , to the globe.  Every day we blend our culture with economic activity in all areas. Our foods , are magical and each island has its share of culinary delights that incorporate all our cultures .  We have made the cardinal error of being embarrassingly slow in linking our culture with the tourism industry , which is the economic mainstay of many island economi...