11/27/2009 11:46:00 AM Queen's visit made me think: when will we grow up? Visits from royalty, pleasant as they might be, will never cure our woes
* Royal Visit pool photo. Stirring ceremonies and cheering crowds for our royal guests underscored a powerful feeling of being alone. ‘Are we waiting for a little old lady in fuchsia to slam her handbag on the table and tell us what to do?’
Tom Vesey Sun columnist
The arrival this week of a little old lady in a fuchsia ensemble was bound to provoke strong emotions.
Inspirational sovereign? Absurd anachronism?
Take your pick.
The one feeling I hope has been stirred up by stirring ceremonies and cheering crowds is the powerful feeling of being alone.
This little old lady really is Elizabeth II, "by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Her other Realms and Territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith."
But she isn't going to solve any of our woes. Nor, for that matter, is the little man in the white cork helmet and bird feathers standing beside her.
We are responsible for ourselves.
Yet it is surprising how often we behave as though Britain - or somebody, somewhere else - is going to sort things out for us.
We often behave, quite frankly, as though we were a little tiny baby country, goofing around and not taking things seriously, waiting for some big grown-up country to come and tell us what to do.
There are reasons, of course, that we act the way we do.
Sometimes it seems that every ounce of our history was designed to convince us that decisions and solutions are the province of some outside group of people - somebody other than ourselves.
Colonialism, slavery, segregation and class division. Dependence on foreign expertise. A school system that for decades separated academic "achievers" from everybody else. A political system that gives absolute power to the "ins" and no power at all to the "outs". Our very existence as a tiny little island in a world run by superpowers.
We don't take responsibility
All these things and more have helped create a country that doesn't want to take responsibility.
Pick your favourite Bermuda problem, from crime to uncontrolled development, and the story is similar.
We complain about roadside carnage, but don't enforce driving laws, mumble about introducing speed cameras but do little to implement about them, and don't pass laws the police need to tackle drunk driving.
Or take the Freedom of Information Act. Everybody knows that modern democracies have these kinds of things. Yet like a willful child, we delay doing anything about it for years - and finally propose a law that doesn't include information that's already been collected.
Can't we just grow up?
We know that, sooner or later, we are going to have to include sexual orientation in the Human Rights Act. But we keep putting it off, as though waiting for some higher authority to tell us we have to do it.
It's clear that modern democracies function in the open, yet we cannot bring ourselves to open doors to most of Government deliberations.
We know that we can't run a Government properly unless we keep track of the money.
Yet we routinely don't operate government contracting fairly and openly, we don't bother to price major expenditures like health insurance for the elderly, and we routinely have extraordinary cost over-runs on government projects and act like it's normal.
This is our country, and it's our people who are hurt and held back when we fail to grow up.
Our links with the U.K. serve a practical purpose. But we shouldn't act like we're waiting for a little old lady in fuchsia to slam her handbag on the table and tell us what to do.
Posted: Thursday, December 17, 2009
Comment by:
Josseline Philip
You know what, Slavery certainly was the worst institution ever; but black on black feud and African leaders in those times who sold their own people for “riches” were not white and are also at the roots of today’s problems. Even nowadays, in Africa, some leaders sell their populations cheap for worldly riches. What would have happened if a whole continent had stuck together as one -the Native Americans tried to do so, although they started off as enemy clans initially, yes, what would have happened? I think we need to stop confusing people, ordinary people, black or white we all strive to get a better life. Unfortunately, leaders who only care to manipulate people into hating each other to serve their own personal mean little purpose, leaders make us all feel and believe differently. We have all been celebrating Nelson Mandela. Nelson Mandela was but a political opponent badly treated in a rogue State prison. As soon as he got out of prison, his former wife, who fought the only way she probably was left with to keep the fight going was not good enough for him and Nelson Mandela accepted her to be disowned and vilified as the worse person in South Africa to become President and be glorified as the savior of the Land, but I know, I am not politically correct of course but just think! How many other people black or white died in South African prisons for saying “no” then? We never as black people acknowledged the fate of those white South Africans who died during apartheid, rather than accept the unacceptable. We do not remember those white people, in Bermuda who stood up to say no, louder maybe than any black person because they exposed themselves more dangerously for their color was more visible then. They probably were not politicians but decent people who stood up- forgetting their own interests, to walk against the current. The hatred in your hearts today was incrusted layer after layer by those who serve their own interest. Even if the last white person had left Bermuda, unscrupulous politicians would spend their time blaming their former presence to excuse their own inability to serve people properly. Leading is not just politicizing, it asks for more. Maybe politicians who want to lead their country efficiently need to go to schools of leadership and management of a country instead of making people fight each other uselessly. We certainly do not need to and cannot love and appreciate each and everybody but the violent hatred that has been displayed will only lead to more chaos and you know what, you may, black or white ordinary citizens not have enough to move to other lands but those who provoked you to fight each other with rage will always find shelter somewhere. I always questioned the reason for your Premier to feel the need to buy himself a bullet proof car as soon as he started his mandate, on such a small island. Stop the hating, get together and you'll find out that people are people and care has only one color.
Posted: Saturday, December 12, 2009
Comment by:
Sara
Regardless of past injustices and who was the cause, I can tell you that nobody will ever fight for you harder than you, yourself. You can keep asking for whites to do this and that, but in the end without fighting for yourself, these things will not make headway.
Individual responsibility is the key to success along with teaching our children the value of education. This generally lies with the family unit along with the help of teachers and mentors(Mirrors).
Posted: Tuesday, December 08, 2009
Comment by:
Peter
Whites are not responsible for the meltdown of the black family anymore than blacks are responsible for the short comings of the current govt. As much as Dr. Ewart Brown and Co. would like to make it, this is a social/economic issue, not a racial one. And NO..this does not have its roots in racism. There are many solid black families who owe their success to themselves. To suggest that they kept their family together despite the efforts of the whites to undermine them is fantasy and pure stupidity. The "haves" in Bermuda are basically those (black & white) that took responsibility for themselves. The current "have-nots" are those that don't care about their kids education (their parents in turn did not care about their own education)...and this just perpetuates. I have seen some rich white families fall apart due to drugs...and I have seen first hand poor black families who have raised children who have achieved a great deal in their lives. So now, let me just say the obvious which too many people don't have the balls to say...here we go. To all you "have-nots" we ain't gonna do a damn thing for you unless we see you are willing to take responsibility for your own actions...that means STAY OFF DRUGS, TAKE TIME TO STUDY, LOVE YOUR CHILDREN.
Posted: Thursday, December 03, 2009
Comment by:
ONce was lost but now your found...IN FLATTS!
TO LOST IN FLATTS!
I already gave a list of things that whites can do... Please read the article again and identify if it is true or are you just angry because it is true!
Posted: Thursday, December 03, 2009
Comment by:
To Sara..I ENCOURAGE YOU TO KNOW THYSELF.
Are you willing to be engaged in destroying white supremacy. THat is the domination that white people have over people of color in all areas of human activity. Are you as upset about racism as you are about counteracism. I am a couteracist. are you...If so in what ways. If not why not? I mean why not pursue justice and help to eliminate black confused people who like a queen who does not love them. She has never done anything to stop racist...because she is direct descendat of those who put the system of slavery,colonialism etc. in place....so why are we lining the streets? because we are still confused black folk,,,My job is to wake us up! KNOW THYSELF!
Posted: Thursday, December 03, 2009
Comment by:
Sara are you lost in flatts too!
Guilt causes many white people to jump up and down and get lost in their Flats.
They are often home alone. The white community is so eloquent about the failure of the black government to turn around in 10 years what they broke up for 400 years. Typical. They are also angry when they are exposed and begin to turn the tables around. They need to accept that they know so much more about what they did to create the breakdown of black families while keeping theirs as a cohesive unit. They are beneficiaries of our disfunction, in commerce, healthcare, reatail, housing etc. I mean white people will always be rich off of black dysfunction. The PLP is a product of their orchestrated plan to kill our spirit and though the PLP is far from perfect...it is being perfected one step at a time. RACIST are always trying to highlight our weaknesses while they cant even mount an opposition. They are finished because we see through the smoke screen and we are not as afraid anymore. WHite people can stop strategizing to exploit us and or getting angry because we dont trust them. They are crazy to still think we want them to rule our purse and our future. What are you racist willing to do to fix what you broke...is still the question in case you are lost in your flats!
Posted: Tuesday, December 01, 2009
Comment by:
Sara
"That is compounded by the failure of white leaders in giving us a quality education over the past 50 years."
Hi know thy self,
what is your excuse for the fact that the PLP in for ten years, and this statement still holds true? Only government can fix what it owns and after 10 years its worse than ever. You seem to be so focused on the past, that you fail to see that in present these problems are still there and worse than ever. Do you blame the whites for how a black government is running the country in present?
Posted: Tuesday, December 01, 2009
Comment by:
LostinFlatts
@ Lesson 1: So you'd like whites to somehow fix...what exactly? Education is what you state, yet the problems with education are now in the hands of the black government, and it's hardly improving. And we all know that the schools can only do so much - it's the breakdown of the family unit that has truly destroyed education. And what should the whites do about that, exactly? What can they do?
It sounds to me like you've got your history lesson down, but have no idea what to do about the present or future. Which, sadly, is typical of the rhetoric of our government. Wax lyrical about past injustices being the cause of all of today's ills, yet not take any responsibility towards solving them. By the time Bermuda realises that it takes individual accountability and action, there'll be nothing left to save.
TOm,
This dependency is not a result of an accident. When you strip people of language, land, education, culture and self dignity. Deliberately with the expressed intention of controlling them for your imperial purposes and then reduce them to children fawning over the queen and britain with out even thinking of how a white woman is the queen of black people with no blood line connection or even cultural similarities you can see how good a job white supremacy has done . IT is the same job done on the heads of black people that leaves them deficient in self reliance and confident independence. THis is tragic. That is why the destruction of white supremacy is the only solution. IT will heal the wounds that it has inflicted. IT is a shame that these children will feel that the queen cares about them and is providing for them and has their best interest in mind. They should know the truth and begin to stand up and be self reliant. I dont think we need political independence our current status serves us well financially and internationally. we do need cultural independence and moral intellectual honesty about who we are and what childlike state racist have deliberately kept us in. That is compounded by the failure of white leaders in giving us a quality education over the past 50 years. Accept responsibilty yourself as white people to fix what you broke and are benefiting from being broken. You cant have it both ways. You want us to grow up and yet when we speak about the history and present legacy of white supremacy you get upset. The process forward begins by knowing your history. The strongest advocate for this should be white people who know the history and write articles such as you. then and only then can we grow up and see the little white lady for what she is....a symbol of colonial powers that raped us from our land and allowed us to be dominated by racist and she never said a mumbling word. SHe has watched and has not helped remove one brick in the wall of racism....and she above all knows the history!
Posted: Friday, November 27, 2009
Comment by:
Broseph
Agreed. We do not need to sever out ties with Britain to mature, we need to do that regardless and use our ties with the UK as pragmatically as we can. It is an advantage and offers opportunities to all our children. None of the problems we have are cause by our ties to the UK, they are cause by the people on the island. Time to stand up and set things right.
