Crafting identity from nostalgia or recalibrating it for the future? 

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the author(s) do not represent the official position of Barbados TODAY.

Dr. Denise J Charles JP

For as long as I can remember myself, I have always loved the end of year for the celebration of independence followed by the much-loved Yuletide season. As a child it held an almost magical fascination as we sang at my primary school, “I say B, I say B A, B A R, B A R B, BARBADOS- BARBADOS!” As I grew older and became happily “indoctrinated” with mottos like ‘Pride and Industry’, the national pledge, the national anthem and all the images, icons, memorabilia, and nostalgia surrounding independence, I, like many Barbadians, was understandably hooked. These feelings of excitement and patriotism became deeply ingrained in my psyche and continue to play a very powerful part in my own self definition and identity. When I think and say “Barbados” especially during the season of independence, what follows is not only a tremendous sense of pride but the blue, yellow and black, the cultural expressions, the foods, the donkey cart memories, the fireworks of the 1970’s when I was a child and the “God bless Bim on Independence Day”, “I Vow to Thee My Country” and other songs of patriotism.

A part of this cycle of nostalgia which I value is also borne out in my treasured collection of old Barbados stamps and old coins passed down to me by my now deceased Grandfather, Ernest Toppin (1887-1987). Since I often use this time of national emphasis to reflect on the growth and development of this land that I love, several years ago, when November swung around, I questioned the overpowering role which nostalgia plays annually in our Independence celebrations. And for those who will “come for me” at this statement, let me assure that I am a bonafide student and lover of history who understands the role the past plays in identity formation. I am also as sentimental as they come and love ruminating on the past. From our past we should hopefully appreciate our struggle and where we want to go. But are we using the past as a vehicle for change every November, or are we just basking in the emotional comfort of the familiar and resting there on our national laurels?

I also questioned then as I do now, the value of being overtly nostalgic at the expense of progress or change. I agree that we need to teach the younger generations about coal pots, jukking boards, chattel house origins and the making of conkies. Added to these tangibles is our Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) which includes our beliefs and practices, oral expressions, traditions, rituals, and festivals which shape our everyday living and define who we are, especially in an ever changing digital, postmodern age. These things are admittedly of great value and must be maintained. During our season of nationhood, how much emphasis, however, are we placing on imagining and reimagining a future Barbados even as we cling for dear life and identity to the past? Where are the competitions which should challenge our youth at this time to use innovative ideas to reimagine a Barbados of the future, including its role in the coming metaverse?

Where is the energy to craft new identities which are not only grounded in the distant past, but which are positively influenced by new and present discourses and understandings of our place as a small island developing state in a dynamic 21st Century world? This is no call to do away with our time worn values but a call for greater national empowerment which can be accomplished by seeing ourselves outside the lens and limits of disenfranchisement, which in some respects overpower much of our nostalgic leanings.

With each independence season, it is as if Barbadians desire that Barbados parks itself at the altar of 1966 indefinitely. Yes, that year was significant, and we will forever be indebted to our Father of Independence the Rt Hon. Errol Walton Barrow, National Hero of Barbados. His role can never be minimized. When we lift him up that does not minimize the struggle of Sir Grantley Adams, also a Barbados National Hero, nor does it eclipse the sacrifices of the enslaved and then the working-classes, who also sacrificed to influence the shaping of the nation we have today.

Our future and who we will continue to evolve to become as a nation, is not a competition between notions of Independence and now Republicanism. These are different parts of one process or continuum, towards social and economic enfranchisement. This discourse cannot be drawn along party lines as this great nation belongs to us all and is loved by us all.

Let us, therefore, use this time and season of remembrance of our nation’s birth as a time to not only gather strength and emotional comfort from the past, but let us use it to galvanize us to march powerfully with purpose and without fear into a new future. As my primary school song referenced here ended with much gusto, let us all chant in unison “I love you, love you, BARBADOS”.

Dr. Denise J Charles JP is a cultural practitioner.