The toxic distraction of racial rhetoric

“Those who can afford to send their children to private school seem to shake their heads at the parents who send their kids to Berkeley or CedarBridge. You can easily tell when a young lady attends a private school. Their accent differs greatly from their cousins who attend public school.” 

— Christopher Famous July 10

Stereotypes and sweeping generalizations can be very powerful tools in politics.

They are frequently used to hoodwink voters into judging a book by its cover instead of reading the proverbial fine print (which would be the actual character of an individual). As in the example above, they can also be used to breed animosity towards a particular group for political purposes. 

Last October, Christopher Famous stereotyped OBA supporters (read whites) claiming that, “their views of life will differ from ours”.  This time he’s tweaked the stereotype, but the tactic remains the same. Judgments about character/morals are being based upon where people work, where their children go to school, how their children speak, what kind of car they drive and what clubs they go to.

But wait a minute! That column wasn’t about race or politics, but about the, “much larger pressure pot of social destruction brewing.”   Well, wasn’t it?

If so, then why did one of the PLP’s most ardent supporters write so little about the pressure pot? Why didn’t he present any hard data on the expansion/contraction of the economic gap? Hmm... 

Instead of substance, we’re given an unsubstantiated claim that private schools are now populated with 50-60 per cent black children.  Famous then tries to enlighten us about the impact of “children who will date, marry and have children with someone not of the same pigmentation”.

“So to some extent, we should do cartwheels and know that Bermuda will be less divided along colour lines. Yet simultaneously, we should be very fearful for the dividing line will be less based on colour and yet more based on economic and social classism.”

Perhaps there’s something I’m missing in the logic, but no matter how many times I read it, I cannot comprehend why Famous believes that if Bermuda becomes less divided along colour lines it will somehow become more divided on economic and social class lines.  He doesn’t expand on this claim of an inverse relationship, yet thinks we should be “very fearful”. I’d call that an assumption.

“Those who work in international business feel that because of their six-figure income they are above the normal five-figure income Bermudians — many of whom are their blood relatives if not siblings.

“More blacks are attending functions at the yacht club. And yet fewer blacks are participating in any events at the workmans’ club built by their grandparents. You segregate yourself from your own, based on monetary milestones. So you are actually worst than a racist.”

Incompetent teachers

Worst than racists, eh? Why?  Aren’t the toxic generalizations above seeking to reintroduce the sell-out, house slave and surrogate?  Consider the Hopkins Report on public education, and ask yourself where is Famous’ wrath for the government that protected the union that protected the incompetent teachers who damaged the next generation’s income potential?

What about the drug dealers and gangbangers who draw students away from education and have turned safe neighbourhoods into war zones?

What about how workmans’ and sports clubs have changed over 30 years?

Last, but certainly not least, what about the politicians who were more concerned with consultancies, contracts and Queen’s Honours, than fixing public education and protecting jobs? Surely these factor into a discussion about economic and social classism? Apparently not.

But this shouldn’t be a surprise. The PLP lost the 2012 election in spite of all of the rhetoric about black surrogates, racist OBA bloggers and the harm that the white, UBP will do if they ever got back into power. It didn’t work.

And as Bermuda becomes more racially diverse, racial rhetoric will work less and less for the PLP. Until then, stereotypes and sweeping generalizations will be employed in an attempt to draw our attention away from the political wolves that are flipping burgers in our back yard, attending Sunday service, hanging out at our sports clubs and sending their kids to public schools (well, not all of them!)

We will not be encouraged to look at ourselves or consider the character of the individual. Succinctly, Famous’ focus on stereotypes is really about finding a way to get the PLP re-elected and not about genuine concern for those who are struggling.

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