Dear Editor,
“The people of African descent have been dealt with unjustly, have not been duly recognized, or allowed equal opportunities for development. That is to say, that we have been the victims of disrespect, unfair treatment and not acknowledged for our current contributions nor that of our ancestors to human development” (See his letter in SN Jan. 14th). “The situation in Guyana today is even starker and begs for redress. While historical wrongs have to be righted, the uneven competition that was fostered . . . created a basket case of the African Guyanese. The presence of race politics and ethnic dominance and a lack of empathy for the state of Guyanese of African descent have exacerbated their plight and calls for special attention. Much of what confronts Guyanese of African descent is as a consequent of deliberate acts of the state, both pre- and post-independence”.
This is quite a disturbing essay from Mr. Alexander. And, it is hard to make sense of it. He is aggrieved about the condition of the African-Guyanese people. Why do you separate the socio-economic condition of the two major race groups that live in Guyana? There is no proof one is better off than the other. One is dominant in gov’t jobs (army, police, civil, public, teaching services); the other dominant in fishing, sugar and rice, taxi trades). It is hard to back up that claim, namely, Africans are worse off than Indians. African’s employment comes with pensions and unemployment benefits. Indians dominating in rice and fishing (excepting sugar) lack those benefits. Why special treatment for Afro-Guyanese?
Sincerely,
Mike Persaud
