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Dear Sir,
It is unfortunate, but not surprising, that Larry Burchall will blame the PLP (black) Government if Alexandrina Hall does in fact “fall victim to the wrecking ball”, although he has admitted that the PLP Government does not own Alexandrina Hall.  Mr. Burchall also neglected to admit that the PLP Government was not informed by the owners of the historic building that the Hamilton landmark was up for sale. He has also neglected to mention that upon hearing of the impending demise of the building, Minister Dale Butler (a member of the “black” government) has publicly stated that he will encourage his fellow cabinet members to intervene in the hopes of saving the building, either through purchase or other means.
    I would have thought that rather than compare the PLP Government to “those African chiefs who used to capture their fellow black Africans, shackle and chain them…”, Mr. Burchall would have made this comparison in reference to the people involved in the sale of the building.
It is obvious to me that the key players in this transaction are not interested in preserving this part of Bermuda’s (black) heritage and as I see it the blame should lay squarely at their feet. Mr. Burchall should now admit that the PLP Government does not have the power to approve or disapprove “the sale and destruction of an important part of Bermuda’s Black heritage”, unless of course the Government are the owners of a “part of Bermuda’s Black heritage”.
    What I find most interesting about Mr. Burchall’s comments is the fact that he has not admitted to doing anything himself to preserve a “part of Bermuda’s Black heritage”.  He is obviously not a member of the Lodge involved, if so he would have known of the impending sale. He has not offered to purchase the building himself.  I did not read in his column where he has encouraged more black Bermudians to become members of the several black lodges throughout Bermuda, as most, if not all, could face the same wrecking ball that may or may not be used on Alexandrina Lodge.
    If Mr. Burchall had conducted a little research before he wrote his column, he would have learned who the real culprits are in this instance.  He would have learned that during the reign of the United Bermuda Party (UBP) there were sixty-two (62) buildings in the City of Hamilton that were noted by the Planning Department to have  historic value, including Alexandrina Lodge.  However, for whatever reason, they were not included as listed buildings, meaning that owners of these buildings could basically do as they wish with these buildings, i.e. demolish them.  I guess the reason is quite evident now why the buildings were not listed.
    As a member of the Historic Buildings Advisory Committee (HBAC), once I heard of the impending demolition of Alexandrina Hall, I asked that the matter be put on the agenda at our next meeting.  It was the consensus of all of the members of HBAC, who by the way are all black, that everything should be done to prevent Alexandrina Hall from being demolished.  I can assure Mr. Burchall and the rest of Bermuda that that HBAC will do all in its power to prevent this sacrilege.
    I agree with Mr. Burchall that in 2008 it is hard being black.  And in my opinion being black is made even harder when I have to read the constant criticism of the “black PLP Government” by other blacks such as he and Stuart Hayward who would not even have been permitted to write columns in the Bermuda Sun or any other newspaper (unless of course they were black-owned), had it not been for the blood, sweat and tears shed by members of the PLP.  Neither have been members of the party (by their own admission), but both have benefited.  Amazingly their greatest fans are “men (and women) who have no colour”.
LaVerne Furbert[[In-content Ad]]

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