My answer to those who try to define ‘Real Bermudians’

CD: Is Fahy a Bermudian in your mind?

Chris Famous: No, he is a son of persons who had a long work permit.  Now he is attempting to do the same for others to enable them to gain status and dictate to my children.  July 27th, 2013

Long overdue is my primary response to Toni Daniels’ opinion published in last Saturday’s Royal Gazette.  Politics aside, I support her statements 100 per cent.

As can be seen above, and via countless other examples, PLP executive officers like Chris Famous most certainly do try to define “Real Bermudians” in an effort to malign the OBA. 

Daniels’ anger at this tactic is understandable, and she’s not alone in her analysis.

I know far too many Bermudians who will say one thing about the PLP in private, but will stay silent or say the opposite thing in public. 

This behaviour is because there is a rule in our society: if you speak out against the PLP you must be, as Laverne Furbert once put it, “a confused negro”, or a white supremacist.

Distortions predictable

Some of the blatant distortions of Daniels’ comments were entirely predictable. For example, we have the counterclaim that she believes that college-educated Bermudians don’t support the PLP.  

Once again, we can turn to one of Famous’ columns to understand what Daniels was trying to explain:

“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” [July 10, 2013].

Heck, Famous will even use the industry you work in as the means by which to malign your character:

“Those who work in international business feel that because of their six-figure income they are above the normal five-figure income Bermudians.”

In my view, the current PLP propaganda about defending the rights of “Real Bermudians” is just “Standing Strong” Version 2.0. 

You’re supposed to know who to trust by asking questions like: is he foreign, foreign-born, white, interracial or dating interracially? 

Did she attend private school, and/or a “white” university? Does she work in international business?  Does he live in a condo development? If so, be wary of their diabolical nature until they’ve openly declared support for the PLP.

The history of this test runs deep, and I think that the various distinctions actually can be material to understanding one another.

Manipulation

But there’s a huge difference between someone who is trying to embrace diversity and bridge divides versus someone who is simply trying to manipulate the public’s racial baggage for political gain. 

If you asked me, I’d advise that you shall not truly know a person by the colour of their skin, their nationality, the skin colour of the person they’re with, where they educate their children, the industry they work in, or the political party they support.  

Instead, you will know their true nature by their actions. And on that note, here’s a test for the “Real Bermudians” party:

If the White’s Island lease was about “Standing Strong” for Bermudians, why didn’t the PLP promote it when it was executed in 2010? 

What was the justification for such a long lease? 

Why set it for 21 years less one day? 

Who drafted the final lease?  

How did the automatic renewal clause end up in the lease?  

Who reviewed the final lease before signing?  

What social programmes has Cartel run on the island since 2010?

And most importantly, why isn’t the PLP protesting Cartel’s loss of White’s Island now that it has been overturned by the courts?

Such questions must be asked, because charlatans and thieves come in all colours, income groups and nationalities.

Giving unconditional support to any organization is like walking into a jail cell and handing your captors the keys. Freedom requires that you must question everything, but first start with yourself.

It’s this key point that brings me to a statement made to my father in 2012, which was similar to one made recently by Laverne Furbert: “Robert Trew Sr must turn in his grave every time he reads something from his grandson. Shame on him!!”

Last year I shared this ignorance with my Uncle W, who knew my grandfather a lot better than I did. He stopped me and declared, “Your Grandfather would be extremely proud, Bryant, because you think, act and speak, for yourself.”

So herein lies my answer to those “Real Bermudians”. 

I’m Robert Trew’s grandson, 

I’m black and I’m Bermudian. 

I’m not an “OBA supporter”, but I’ll support a person or organization who/that I believe currently serves the best interests of this country.  

No amount of bigoted, ignorant, manipulative politicking is about to change that. 

Thank you, Toni Daniels. 

Bryant Trew many be contacted at [email protected].