Dear Editor,
On Sunday October 27th I attended the ‘Feast of the Year’ celebration presented by ACDA under the patronage of the Registrar of the University of Guyana Mr Vincent Alexander. The occasion was pretty ok, though I thought attendance could have been much better. I was told that the gathering, judging from the setting of tables and seating arrangements did not correspond to and reflect the number of tickets that were sold.
But I have to say that the decorations/arrangements and the entire ambience were most congenial, and the effort was good ‒ all the more reason why those who bought tickets and were catered for should have been there. At functions like these we Africans need to see more of us, we need that kind of support to feel secure and assured since it does generate a kind of vibe, and while it may not on any account be done to impress others, what is done does convey an impression. As the late dynamic ‘Soledad Prison’ inmate George Jackson put it: “We ought to gather in such numbers that the rumbling of our feet should make the earth tremble.” All efforts should be made to get on board for our own sake. No doubt in attending these kinds of functions you expect to see prominent individuals ‒ an appendage to the movement; the people who are relentlessly representative of Africans and their welfare, and it sure disappoints when for no valid reason they are absent.
However, let me say that the evening was pleasing, though there was room enough for more cultural items ‒ the performing arts. The renditions by the two young women, Ruth English and Theona Adams added spice to the evening and so did equally the performance of Pastor Jean Roberts with her powerful vocals. But the featured address by Coretta McDonald, President of the Guyana Teachers’ Union was cause for concern. She focused on the sad state of affairs in our society; its falling apart and with our young people being misdirected and lost in a warped materialistic world of nebulous values. Thus she posited that in an effort to correct and pull ourselves back from the brink we should revert to instilling old precious values in our children, spend quality time with them, know what they are into and their interests, and have steady dialogue. How can parents see their children sporting expensive blackberry phones, gadgets, wearing clothes and jewellery that they (parents) didn’t buy and can’t afford to buy and not question them, but instead are proud, elated and even boastful about it? she asked. She bemoaned the fact that parents are treating children like adults ‒ nursery school babies are being dressed up, girls have their hair relaxed, and are outfitted with expensive garments and jewellery when attending graduation; the same is the case with the boys. She spoke of teachers wittingly or unwittingly fostering the disreputable things that go on in schools by their very conduct. Instead of being the students’ ‘parents’ and guardians giving guidance, they are behaving no differently from the loose young men/women in the streets, and want to be the students’ boyfriend and girlfriend ‒ a perfect recipe for lawlessness.
Then there are young men and women carrying on casual conversations laced with expletives and vulgar expressions which have become the norm. McDonald also admonished the gathering to stop looking down on and disliking those who look like themselves while elevating those they long to be like and who often despise them. But there was a striking observation that no one could have missed, and that was the absence of young men; in fact there were not many young people and those in attendance were female. Since it is of serious concern the question must be asked, why at such a function held by ACDA was there such a scant presence of young Africans and a total absence of young males. And here is where 1 take the latitude to say a few things in good faith.
I hark back to a statement by Malcolm X: “You are not to be so blinded with patriotism that you can’t face reality, wrong is wrong no matter who done it or says it.” And so like the question that is often asked in relation to the child that didn’t grasp anything at school: is it he/she was that dumb or was it that the teacher didn’t teach?
Similarly is it that young blacks don’t care, are insensitive and have no interest, or is it that ACDA just isn’t on the ball, and is not getting it right? Oh dear, what can the matter be? I’m fully aware that the coming together of blacks ‒ black unity ‒ is no piece o’ cake, but indeed a tall order, and in pursuing this course tough decisions will have to be made. Also some will squirm and become upset at the idea of washing our own linen in public, which all things being equal ought not to be. But sadly some not so nice things will have to be addressed in the open since we are not always fortunate to have an appropriate and propitious situation for close encounters behind closed doors. And of course, always there will be those culprits who will forever like it to be so since it will cover their guilt and somewhat soothe their consciences. Truth be told there are too many folks who have been taken for a ride so many times; too many bad things done to each other that are a hindrance to cooperation and unity. This is a monumental hurdle, and as the Soledad brother said there are some of us who must definitely get out of the way since their only purpose seems to be obstructing the path of the sun’s rays.
While this fine effort didn’t receive the response it deserved, you have got to give it to the few who believe desperately in the cause of their own action and work assiduously to accomplish it. I do commend the effort by Mr Vincent Alexander, Stanley Cook and team for whatever work they are doing for the enlightenment of Africans.
Yours faithfully,
Frank Fyffe
