Dear Editor,
From the outset, I need to disclose two factors: the first is that I am an African-American Guyanese businessman who owns and operates medium-sized businesses in both Guyana and North America; secondly I have an ongoing concern about the apparent unwillingness of African-American persons to seek involvement in the private sector within Guyana and other countries around the world.
My research and discourses tend to primarily blame the African-American involvement with slavery for the avoidance of the risks, sacrifices and responsibilities that go along with the ownership and management of private businesses, lead us instead to occupational stints within various branches of the public sector.
As stated above, I am a self-employed individual and I believe that (Black) economic independence and degrees of (Black) self-sufficiency could only be achieved by African- Americans shuffling and re-ordering their occupational preferences and priorities ‒ we have to reduce our reliance on seeking jobs.
Editor, I cannot be satisfied with just outlining the problem(s). I feel obligated to go a step further and suggest a solution which has to revolve around re-orientation, with support from new emphasis in the educational curricula of Guyana and other countries.
In the case of Guyana, I want to suggest that the re-orientation programme has to take on a two-pronged approach which will change the occupational focus of our adults and schoolchildren.
I am willing to work along with organizations which work among African-American communities in order to address this deficit.
Yours faithfully,
Morris Wilson
