We Have A Long Way to Go

WE all know that feeling of watching some ungrateful person whom you’ve done so much for just disregard you like you never existed to them and completely place you on the back burner…right?

Well, I do and I can tell you one thing about that feeling: it hurts and although I’m not the kind to reproach and make a fuss, when this happens to me, I usually want to scream until something pops.

I’m sure that those who know, know.

So with that said, I can only imagine that our slave ancestors are rolling around in their unmarked graves at the fact that after enduring years of torment, torture, grief, sickness, fear and death as well as the added strife of fighting literally tooth and nail to secure OUR freedom today, that we would almost totally disregard them and let such an important day like Emancipation Day which was Saturday to those who don’t know, pass with not so much as a whisper.

I’ve been told in the past that I’m too sensitive, but I would rather see myself as passionate and this subject matter is something that I’m overly passionate about.

I was seriously crushed and hurt with the helplessness of watching this day, which is supposed to be one of the most important days if not THE most important day in the lives of all persons of African descent be so…blah.

People were actually upset with the day that it fell on Saturday saying that it should have been on a weekday or on a Sunday so that they could have gotten the Monday off rather than a Saturday…as if that’s all that mattered…you know what? Scrap the “as if”, that IS all that mattered.

I am bitterly disappointed in the way this day was ignored by event organisers and planning committees so much so that the five little gatherings planned with the exception of the show held on the day, pulled in less attendees collectively than ONE planned carnival event.

And even the show held on the day was a huge joke because instead of headlining with an artiste who could truly invoke the essence of the day, organisers opted to go the money route and bring in a commercial young blood who would pull in the crowds with his music which mostly has nothing to do with the uplifting of black people.

Why is it that Jazz, Carnival, heck even Valentine’s Day received more hype and promotion than our Emancipation Day? Have greed and the craving for money, and attention taken over our self worth, our identity and all that is being African descendants?

Who are we? What do we stand for if all that matters is fete and good times and we cannot take a moment to reflect on, honour and pay respect to our ancestry?

We need to let it go already, I hear some of you say…Let it go? What do you think this is…a Disney Movie? No way, I will not let it go! What future can one possibly have if one pays no attention to one’s history?

We are doomed to make the same mistakes that our forefathers made if we do not study, analyse and learn from those mistakes.

We are strong, proud people but it is with that same ignorance and “let it go” attitude that over a century after our ancestors fought so hard for our freedom, we are still bound and shackled and so our pride and strength is hidden. Instead we exude confusion, self hatred, submission and plain old stupidity.

Had we taken the time to appreciate ourselves as strong and proud African descendants, the millions poured into the carnival seasons where the majority of revellers take the opportunity to parade publicly like drunken, vulgar and half naked buffoons on the streets for the world to see and shake their heads over, some of that money could have been used to fund bigger scale events around the island to highlight all that should be highlighted on this big day.

I know many will and already have shrugged it all off and said, hey, that’s just how it has always been so why make a fuss…it is those same people who annoy me most because you are fine with just rolling over and allowing all nonsense to transpire.

Well I am not one to just take this without raising a right old stink about it. I know who I am, where I come from and what I stand for and this is not me being arrogant and pretending to be better than anyone else. This is me calling on my fellow St. Lucians, my people, my African people to open your eyes and learn about who you REALLY are and to learn to love, honour and respect that.

Black people have over the years earned a reputation for fighting each other down and being our own worst enemy…if we delve into our history, I’m sure that there are a few pages that we could take out of our ancestors’ books to learn a thing or two about unity, pride and love that could propel us to the great status that we rightfully should have and the true recognition of Emancipation Day in the future could just be the beginning of our journey towards achieving this.