Dear Editor,
The Jubilee celebration commemorating our 50th anniversary held in New York City (NYC) was marred by a lack of inclusiveness which ought to be highlighted and addressed if we are to move our country forward. Such a problem handicapped the nine-day celebratory event. Even a Mashramani style parade dubbed the ‘unity parade’ which marked the conclusion of the celebration two Sundays ago turned out to be schismatic. Indeed a mere lack of inclusiveness at symposiums held as part of the celebration precludes answers to questions raised under the theme Guyana at 50: ‘Who are we? What has been our journey? And what can we further become?’ It is absolutely unrealistic to expect answers to such questions in the absence of our diverse people. Organizers must take responsibility. They have suppressed diversity by being narrow minded and by conflating politics with a historic celebration, spawning only an inhospitable atmosphere.
Undoubtedly, this is a throwback to the Burnham days which is sad and unfortunate for our country.
Members of the diaspora who were not backers of the APNU+AFC coalition were largely kept in the dark about this event. I became aware of it when I stumbled upon a Facebook post originating from a coalition supporter. To make a long story short, I browsed the internet to learn more and I eventually ran into a website showcasing the event. I immediately discovered a severe lack of inclusiveness among organizers. This was an instant turnoff, particularly since we are multiethnic. Afro-Guyanese were overly represented with just a sprinkle of Indo-Guyanese. My discovery shed light on the troubling fact that the event was organized by a racially and a politically closed group of people. Organizers could have easily informed members of the diaspora about the celebration if they had wanted. There were plenty of options available, including Facebook as a potent and cost-free medium. However, organizers shut out a significant part of the population. This is inexcusable, destructive and should never be tolerated. Every Guyanese needs to be vociferous on such dysfunction. Even more appalling is the realization that organizers largely reside in the USA and are people who have benefited from American values which support and encourage diversity. Can the organizers be more hypocritical?
We must realize that discrimination induces a wide range of effects, but none of them good. It strips human dignity, it creates rancour and it divides people. In short, discrimination is destructive. We need to understand this and move away from such unconstructive practices and vest our energy in diversity. Diversity is our strength. We must take advantage of it to rise above poverty as a nation. This means that we must engage all. And last but not least, we must etch into our brains that “no man is an island”.
Yours faithfully,
Annie Baliram
