Barbados is facing a serious identity crisis, one social activist and community organizer has charged, while calling for party politics to be placed aside so that people who have done genuine work could be honoured.
Former Cabinet Minister Hamilton Lashley made the comments on Friday, as he introduced the inaugural Hamilton Lashley Human Development Foundation Trade Unions Hall of Fame inductees.
Receiving the accolades are former president of the Barbados Union of Teachers (BUT) and former community worker and former Minister of Education Ronald Jones, and former Democratic Labour Party candidate and former president of the BUT Undene Whittaker.
Sister of Ronald Jones, Joycelyn Jones, collected his plaque on his behalf.
Besides receiving a plaque, pictures of the two individuals are now displayed on a section of the walls at the Bayville, Evelyn Avenue, St Michael constituency office of Democratic Labour Party (DLP) candidate for The City Henderson Williams.
Lashley, who is the founder of the Hamilton Lashley Human Development Foundation, gave the assurance that the hall of fame induction was nothing political, but said it was designed to recognize people who have done tremendous work in the trade union movement and other aspects of development.
“It is traditional in Barbados to honour people when they die. When they pass we say glorious things about them but when they are alive we just pass them by, and to me that is hypocritical,” he said.
Describing the new hall of fame as the opening of a very significant chapter in the “history, independence and development” of Barbados, Lashley said: “A lack of identity in Barbados is probably one of the main causes why we have so many social indifference in our country.”
“When we look around Barbados and the Caribbean we see a lot of mistaken identity,” he said, adding that many people refused to, or did not want to learn about their historical roots.
Hamilton Lashley presents former BUT president Undene Whittaker with her plaque.
“That brings me to the point, we are in serious identity crisis that has now transcended into the minds of our young people. There are but very few Barbadians who if you tell them that they are Africans or their forefathers or ancestors are from Africa they would want to tell you ‘no, I am a Bajan’,” said Lashley.
He argued that over the years the island had produced a number of stalwarts in the labour movement “but somehow along this journey we tend to forget the persons in the trade union movement who have built this country”.
The ex-parliament said until Barbadians took politics “beyond the realm of borders of partisanship and put it in the realms of decency and understanding and really give every person in this country his due, then Barbados is placed on the precipice of what I would call serious political moral decay”.
Insisting that the country should honour its “true heroes”, Lashley said the Trade Union Hall of Fame would be an annual event, identifying union members each year based on their work and worth”.
Meanwhile, reacting to the new hall of fame on behalf of the Democratic Labour Party (DLP) James Paul who contested the St Michael West Central constituency in the last general election, called on Barbadians to get involved in activities that would help to bring about “social balance”, and not do it for a reward.
Paul said he believed Barbadians had the capacity to solve a lot of the social issues facing the country.
“Today, we are faced with a very materialistic world . . . I want to say to our young people you do not have to be associated with a cause for a reward,” he said.
During the brief ceremony, which attracted a handful of people at the constituency office of DLP representative in the last general election Henderson Williams, Jones was hailed as a man of the people for the people and a former teacher who helped to fight for teachers’ rights, while Whittaker was termed a fighter for women rights, promoter of women entrepreneurs, advocate for agriculture and a supporter of poverty reduction.
While Whittaker was present to collect her plaque, Jones’ sister Joycelyn Jones collected his on his behalf.
