The ‘One Guyana’ myth

Contrary to popular belief, Black people don’t like to constantly talk about race. Most of us just want to exist in a fair society where we aren’t treated with scorn, and access to opportunity isn’t curtailed. We want to thrive like any other human being and we want to do so with dignity, and without having to constantly negotiate our value and what we bring to the table.

Every time we have to negotiate and point out how we have been insulted, it is a painful and dehumanizing process, mainly because it serves as a reminder of how we are viewed in society by some. And depending on who is airing those views, they can act as a launch pad for further ridicule and marginalization.

Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport Charles Ramson Jnr’s comments earlier this week on HJ radio station were classist and insinuated ethnic superiority and it matters not that they were made at a Black-owned radio station and the two hosts just sat there with nothing better to say. I have come to realise that most Indians and some privileged Black people only want or try to understand race and race relations when they find themselves in the North and West; when their noses have been cut and they have been lumped together with all other marginalized people. Sometimes it is only when you have been ‘othered’ that you realise how uncomfortable and difficult things actually are.

My Daddy, My Daddy

Ramson spoke lovingly of his father and used him as an ideal role model, like any child would. He then went on to express how he built and shaped his career and life after seeing his dad all dressed up in suits going out every day to provide for his family. Great for Ramson Jnr, but many other fathers and mothers do that exact same thing every day. He sought to paint a picture of an ideal family and professional life, insinuating that it just couldn’t be found elsewhere.

Whether they are wearing the thick and rugged overalls of those who manage our city’s waste disposal, a crisp white coat and checking the vitals of a patient, the three-quarter pants and famous net vest of the hustlers in the market loading and off-loading vegetable trucks in the late hours of the night so we could eat organic, or soaked clothing of the domestic help hanging hand-washed sheets in the blistering heat, men and women have all done what Ramson’s father has done to provide. They have worked hard and tirelessly. They have all done critical jobs to ensure our society continues to function. Any man or woman who does any job to keep our society running and to provide for their family is a role model. To completely ignore the contributions of working people and how they go about making ends meet was callous.

It was just the other day that supermarket clerks were literally risking their lives to ensure shelves were stocked so privileged people (myself included) could bake banana bread while bored at home during the lockdown. Perhaps we have forgotten how much we all need each other. Every job is important and so are the people who do them. Not wearing a suit doesn’t mean they don’t work tirelessly.

Generalization

The Black community has a plethora of role models. To highlight that the Indian community is somewhat better in this area insinuates that people of African descent inherently can’t lead in any form or are somehow genetically not fit to do so. This was the most demonizing thing I have heard recently.

Furthermore, hasn’t the government been on steroids when pushing its One Guyana campaign? Shouldn’t we just be saying we need more Guyanese role models if we truly believe there aren’t enough? Should it matter what our role models look like in our beloved One Guyana. Those things I guess are just used for convenience to score political points.

Picking up the pieces after being torn down has always been difficult for me because usually the so-called apology or explanation that follows often shows little to no accountability. This, however, is also a sad and bitter reminder of how torn the social fabric is in our plural society. The stark reality that a minister with responsibility for culture is not cognizant of how his words further divide people along so many lines is also regretful. But that’s One Guyana, I guess*