When independence feels distant: A conversation across generations

Every year as November rolls in, Barbados enters its familiar rhythm of blue and yellow. School children rehearse for Independence programmes, communities clean up their surroundings and the island gears up for long established activities like the parade and fair. Our Independence season has its recognisable markers and its sense of ceremony. Yet beneath that familiar flow, there is a quieter conversation that many people tiptoe around. It surfaces in murmurs on WhatsApp chats, comments on social media and small talk at workplaces. It is the observation that the younger generation does not seem to feel Independence in the way their parents and grandparents once did.

 

It is not that young people dislike Barbados or lack national pride, nor is it that they are unaware of the history that shaped us — as many of them still take part in school celebrations, wear their colours and post their photos. However, there is a growing sense that for many young people, Independence does not carry the emotional weight it once did. The country is decorated, the parade marches on, the music plays on the radio, but the feeling does not always seem to land in the same way. The morning feels festive, yet by midday the Christmas trees appear online and the switch flips to a different season. The reality is that for many young people Independence functions as a day off, rather than the deep moment of reflection it once was.

 

Older adults often respond with frustration. They speak lovingly about the years when the season felt electric. They talk about the pride and anticipation. They talk about how the celebrations made them feel rooted. That emotion is real. That sense of loss is real. But instead of slipping into blame, it may help us to ask a harder question about the disconnect. If we can see the shift happening, it might be worth pausing to explore why.

 

One reason may be that young people experience Barbados in a very different way to their elders. The Independence story that stirred earlier generations was tied to struggle, sacrifice and the triumph of self-determination. Many young people today were born into an independent Barbados. For them, the idea of self-rule is not a lived memory but a school topic. The emotional charge attached to the original moment is not something they have felt in their bodies. It is something they learned about for a test.

 

There is also the fact that today’s young people are part of a generation that is constantly navigating multiple worlds at once. They consume media, culture and entertainment from all over the globe. Their friendships, interests and opportunities stretch far beyond our physical shorelines. They know Barbados, but they also know the world. As a result, national moments may compete with global content that feels more exciting or more relevant to their daily lives. It does not mean they love Barbados less, it simply means they are growing up in a different context.

 

Then there is a third angle that is harder to acknowledge. Young people often experience the gaps in our systems more sharply than we do. They feel the weight of social issues and economic pressures. They navigate schooling systems that sometimes feel outdated and rigid. They see adults debating national improvement but not always modelling it in practical ways. For them, pride is sometimes tangled with frustration. So when Independence comes around, the message of national celebration does not always match their lived reality. If the country still feels difficult to navigate, the holiday may feel symbolic rather than transformative.

 

Young people are not rejecting Independence. They simply have no point of entry into it. They do not hear stories that move them. They do not see traditions that excite them. They do not feel the season in any meaningful way because the season has no presence. A celebration that does not evolve will always lose to one that does. Christmas grows larger every year. Independence remains still. Yet this does not have to be the end of the story. The disconnect is not permanent. It is simply a sign that the form of Independence has outgrown its function.

 

If Barbados wants a living relationship with Independence, it must start by understanding the emotional economy of young people. They commit to what feels authentic. They invest in what feels relevant. They support what feels creative. They respond to what carries energy. They engage when something feels like it belongs to them.

 

This is not a criticism of young people. It is not an accusation. It is simply an invitation to consider what Independence means to a generation that did not inherit the same emotional memories. It is also a chance to think critically about how we expect national pride to show up. If we want the younger generation to value Independence with the same depth as their elders, we cannot rely only on tradition. We may need to adapt how we help them make meaning.

 

This is where education becomes vital. Not education as in chalk and talk or exam preparation, but education that helps children understand Barbados through lived experiences. Education that connects history to identity in ways that feel personal. Education that creates room for civic engagement, island stewardship and creative expression. Education that invites young people to not just learn about Barbados but to shape it.

 

Imagine schools where students adopt heritage sites, collect oral histories from elders, build projects rooted in national issues or redesign solutions for community challenges. Imagine if students felt they were contributors to Barbados, rather than spectators of it. When young people feel they have a stake in their country, Independence becomes more than a holiday. It becomes a moment to take stock of their own growing contribution.

 

This is not to say that there are no activities happening now. Barbados does have traditions that hold the season together and institutions that continue to sustain them. The parade, the ceremonial events, the cultural programmes and the performances all matter. They are valuable. They are part of our story. But alongside these traditions, there is space to explore the quieter question that many people whisper but hesitate to raise openly. Why does Independence feel different to younger people and what, if anything, do we want to do about that?

 

We may not all agree on the answer, but we can agree that the conversation is worth having. Independence is a celebration, but it is also a mirror. It reflects who we are and who we hope to be. If the next generation is experiencing it differently, then now may be the moment to listen, to reflect and to collaborate. Not with judgement, but with empathy and curiosity.

 

As we approach another Independence Day, perhaps the most patriotic thing we can do is to open the conversation gently. Not to assign blame, but to understand. Not to defend tradition, but to strengthen meaning. Not to force pride, but to cultivate connection. Barbados has always been about becoming. If we want Independence to resonate for generations to come, then this season may be our chance to explore how that sense of becoming (and belonging) can continue.

 

Dr Zhane Bridgeman-Maxwell is a science educator, researcher, writer and disruptor of outdated education systems in Barbados. Focused on redesigning learning through policy shifts, change management and pedagogical innovation, she amplifies the voices of students, teachers, and parents, while reimagining what school can and should be.