‘Is it possible to vote and/or encourage others to vote racially and not be a racist?’ The incident involving Ms. Lloyda Nicholas-Garrett, President David Granger’s public information and press officer, was being considered when the above question was raised. Briefly, in a private group on Facebook, she has allegedly made ‘racial slurs’ by referring to some of her work colleagues by the derogatory term ‘coolie’. Accusations of racism in public office and calls for her to be disciplined abound. Notwithstanding her right to freedom of speech and privacy, given her employment location and our understanding of its relation to race/ethnicity, a form of discipline is required. Yet it appears to me that the opening question of this paragraph arose to suggest that we are still dealing at the periphery and have not come to grips with the gravamen of our situation.
