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Dear Sir,

'A man convinced against his will is of the same opinion still' - Author unknown.

This pretty much sums up the big race debate.  Those who are uncomfortable with the recent figures showing wide disparities in income by race will continue to feign racial ignorance while those that see them as a reality will endorse them, in many cases from their own personal experiences.

I can understand how easy it would be for those who may not have suffered, but likely benefited, from racial discrimination to claim that it is 'relatively minor' in Bermuda. But what is ironic, or disingenuous, is to claim that the comments made so far are 'based on unsupported perceptions' - like the comments that racial discrimination is relatively minor, and that earnings are rapidly moving toward parity. Show me the data!

Further, such comments cannot be taken seriously. There is the perception that the Statistics Department is not doing its job because, it is claimed, that it does not compare like-to-like. Nothing could be further from the truth.  

First of all, the Statistics Department has to conform to international standards in producing data. Data on race has been dissected, analyzed, scrutinized, verified and the like. There have been numerous reports, the Newman Report being just one of them, that has compared like-with-like.

Moreover, the Stats Department is willing to run any tables from the census if requested. So if any one doesn't have the information that they claim they should have, it is simply because they do not want it and, by extension, they don't want the truth.

How can 350 years or more of unearned privilege be turned around in 50 years? Why spend so much energy in being defensive when you are in a position to make substantial steps to correct the problem? The Portuguese had their 400-year old

error corrected, but people of colour are told, like in the 60s, to wait, or worse are trying to be sold a lie - that racism only plays a minor role in Bermudian life today. We weren't fooled then, and we are not being fooled now.

Employer-related associations will now collect 'their own' race data. I'm certain that they possess more experience, more qualifications more credence and thus can do a far better job than the Stats Department. And they have already claimed that the lie will be proven true, something that statistics is incapable of doing anyway.

But beyond that, I know of no study where a sample of the population is given more credence than a census of that same population, but perhaps more illogical feats have been attempted.

So don't waste any money.  All such organizations have to do is release salary data by race from their members and let the public draw their own conclusions. But one word of advice, don't wait to exhale!

Cordell W. Riley

Pembroke[[In-content Ad]]

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