‘Attaining Independence was more than being given the freedom to govern ourselves, it was about creating our own identity…’
By Alicia Chamely
NO matter the situation, sure enough a Debbie Downer will come along and fog up the place with gloom.
The only thing worse than a Debbie Downer is a Petty Patsy, because a Petty Patsy manages to make everything a tit-for-tat, with a bad self-over service attitude.
This week we dealt with our own Petty Patsy. Speaking at the United National Congress Monday nights virtual meeting, Opposition Leader Kamla Persad Bissessar felt the need to remind us that the People’s National Movement did not fight for Independence and we need not revere them as saviours of any sort. She went on to say at the time the United Kingdom was gladly stamping Independence orders for its colonies and we were weighing their greatness down.
I felt extremely let down by this. You see when I think about our nation’s Independence and the people who fought for it, I don’t see party. Yes, during this time under the leadership of Dr Eric Williams the PNM was the representative Government, but their push for Independence could not have happened without the contributions and support of the Opposition, the Democratic Labour Party headed by Dr Rudranath Capildeo, the union leaders and social activists of the time.
Beyond politics, our Independence could not have been attained without the support of the citizens of Trinidad and Tobago. You think one morning Williams was like, “you what, today I’m going to tell the Queen, T&T is out!” and the entire population just shrugged their shoulders and replied, “yeah man, you do you.” Absolutely not! The citizenry of T&T stood behind the move for Independence. It wasn’t just a PNM fight, it was a national fight.
‘T&T is not perfect, our house is a mess, our children behave like a pack of wild dogs at times, but despite it all, there is still so much beauty and life in our nation…
And whether that fight included blood and guts or a politely written card explaining that we are revoking our membership to the Colony Club, it was still a fight.
Attaining Independence was more than being given the freedom to govern ourselves, it was about creating our own identity, it was about claiming our culture and contributions as our own. It made Carnival ours, the steelpan ours, our athletes, our artists, our multicultural and multireligious traditions and celebrations ours. Not the United Kingdom’s, but ours, T&T’s.
‘While we can govern ourselves, we are still shackled to the manipulations used on us by our former rulers’
Our independence gave us the opportunity to carve our name into the global cultural landscape, to make an impact that was completely our own, not just another credit under our imperial overlord’s name.
It seems many of us, especially those in charge have forgotten this.
Have things gone smoothly over the last 60 years? Nope. Are we where we should be? Nope. But we have still made massive strides on our own and this is what needs to be celebrated.
T&T is not perfect, our house is a mess, our children behave like a pack of wild dogs at times, but despite it all, there is still so much beauty and life in our nation, and it’s hurtful that our politicians continue to downplay this in order to attack and undermine their opponents.
This is where we have failed as an independent nation. While we can govern ourselves, we are still shackled to the manipulations used on us by our former rulers.
Ethnic and cultural division, feeding off the fat of the land while others starve, self over service, yours versus mine, all tools used to keep us subservient, ignorant and behind. This is what we are not yet free of, and this is what holds us back.
Unless we can break free of this trauma, we will never be truly independent. The statements regarding our Independence made by Mrs Persad Bissessar are a reminder of this.
Not everything is about politics, not everything has to be about my party over yours, and it’s a tactic that has been used by ALL our governments to distract us from their flaws and wrongdoings.
Until we shed the selfishness, greed and trauma of division that has scarred us as a society we will never move forward, and all the beauty of our twin island nation will continue to be damped by Debbie Downers and Petty Patsy’s.
What Independence Means to T&T
‘Attaining Independence was more than being given the freedom to govern ourselves, it was about creating our own identity…’
NO matter the situation, sure enough a Debbie Downer will come along and fog up the place with gloom.
The only thing worse than a Debbie Downer is a Petty Patsy, because a Petty Patsy manages to make everything a tit-for-tat, with a bad self-over service attitude.
This week we dealt with our own Petty Patsy. Speaking at the United National Congress Monday nights virtual meeting, Opposition Leader Kamla Persad Bissessar felt the need to remind us that the People’s National Movement did not fight for Independence and we need not revere them as saviours of any sort. She went on to say at the time the United Kingdom was gladly stamping Independence orders for its colonies and we were weighing their greatness down.
I felt extremely let down by this. You see when I think about our nation’s Independence and the people who fought for it, I don’t see party. Yes, during this time under the leadership of Dr Eric Williams the PNM was the representative Government, but their push for Independence could not have happened without the contributions and support of the Opposition, the Democratic Labour Party headed by Dr Rudranath Capildeo, the union leaders and social activists of the time.
Beyond politics, our Independence could not have been attained without the support of the citizens of Trinidad and Tobago. You think one morning Williams was like, “you what, today I’m going to tell the Queen, T&T is out!” and the entire population just shrugged their shoulders and replied, “yeah man, you do you.” Absolutely not! The citizenry of T&T stood behind the move for Independence. It wasn’t just a PNM fight, it was a national fight.
‘T&T is not perfect, our house is a mess, our children behave like a pack of wild dogs at times, but despite it all, there is still so much beauty and life in our nation…
And whether that fight included blood and guts or a politely written card explaining that we are revoking our membership to the Colony Club, it was still a fight.
Attaining Independence was more than being given the freedom to govern ourselves, it was about creating our own identity, it was about claiming our culture and contributions as our own. It made Carnival ours, the steelpan ours, our athletes, our artists, our multicultural and multireligious traditions and celebrations ours. Not the United Kingdom’s, but ours, T&T’s.
‘While we can govern ourselves, we are still shackled to the manipulations used on us by our former rulers’
Our independence gave us the opportunity to carve our name into the global cultural landscape, to make an impact that was completely our own, not just another credit under our imperial overlord’s name.
It seems many of us, especially those in charge have forgotten this.
Have things gone smoothly over the last 60 years? Nope. Are we where we should be? Nope. But we have still made massive strides on our own and this is what needs to be celebrated.
T&T is not perfect, our house is a mess, our children behave like a pack of wild dogs at times, but despite it all, there is still so much beauty and life in our nation, and it’s hurtful that our politicians continue to downplay this in order to attack and undermine their opponents.
This is where we have failed as an independent nation. While we can govern ourselves, we are still shackled to the manipulations used on us by our former rulers.
Ethnic and cultural division, feeding off the fat of the land while others starve, self over service, yours versus mine, all tools used to keep us subservient, ignorant and behind. This is what we are not yet free of, and this is what holds us back.
Unless we can break free of this trauma, we will never be truly independent. The statements regarding our Independence made by Mrs Persad Bissessar are a reminder of this.
Not everything is about politics, not everything has to be about my party over yours, and it’s a tactic that has been used by ALL our governments to distract us from their flaws and wrongdoings.
Until we shed the selfishness, greed and trauma of division that has scarred us as a society we will never move forward, and all the beauty of our twin island nation will continue to be damped by Debbie Downers and Petty Patsy’s.