Dear Editor,
Whenever we think of appropriation in normal parlance, the tendency is to think of a physical taking away – theft of money or perhaps of an idea that was not patented. Nobody would normally think about appropriation of a special occasion – but that is exactly what a recent letter contributor would advocate. It is more than just good to be proud of one’s race. It is simply wonderful. For some people in the world, of the race that represents a numerical minority in world terms yet has dominated world affairs since the 17th Century, even its poor experience some of that feeling when they relate their circumstances to comparably poor of other races, and certainly in other parts of the world. Indians and persons of Indian heritage worldwide recently had occasion to feel rightly proud of India having achieved the safe landing on the moon of a spacecraft. This was hailed as an event celebrated by South African Indians, Fijians, in Mauritius and Trinidad & Tobago. I observe however that Pakistanis and Bangladeshis were not noted in the list of celebrants.
Indeed, the celebrants were enthusiastically and indeed truthfully described as belonging to Hinduism, the world’s oldest religion. Published on the day before publication of the said moon landing commentary, the same writer contributed his observations about the programme for the official opening of the University of Guyana’s ‘International Institute for Migration and Diaspora Studies’. The programme features a talk or dialogue to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the 1823 Slave Rebellion on the East Coast. Focusing on the fact that a number of Gladstone gentlemen (not the enslaved Gladstone father and son) had owned ships that transported indentured servants and continued doing plantation business right up until Emancipation, the writer complains that no Indian historian or activist speaker was invited. It is further lamented that there is no mention of a Hindu or Islamic prayer service, although “the victims of slavery and indentureship were Christians, Hindus and Muslims, and Hinduism and Islam were discriminated against by plantation owners”. Editor, I take the view that the usually scholarly writer has woefully missed the ball on this occasion – an “air shot” in golf – an embarrassing miss!
Why on earth should a dialogue or talk to commemorate the 200th anniversary of a major slave rebellion that took place long before the Whitby and Hesperus brought their first human cargo from India, involve Indian speakers? Because a living descendant of the slave-owning Gladstone family intends to offer an apology on behalf of his ancestors for the role they played in slavery does not strike me as a valid reason. The programme in fact commences with a rendition of our National Anthem by a singer backed by steel pan, followed by prayers led by the university’s Hindu, Islamic and Christian fellowship societies, and a representative of Rastafari. The sole musical rendition on the programme is by an Indian and African Fusion Group. The “air shot” complaint and lamentation is unfortunate in that it amounts to an attempt to appropriate the event rather than recognize it for its intrinsic historical and potentially economic importance to the descendants of formerly enslaved people. That approach is hugely problematic.
How far should such appropriation go? Would the Guyanese Muslims today, whose ancestors happened to be Indians by nationality when they arrived in BG, be welcome as Muslims to speak at any and every Hindu festival they choose? A significant number of Afro Guyanese are Muslims too! Many persons were brought to Guyana as slaves, including my ancestor, Yhaba Waboosia, who landed in the colony of Berbice aged 7 with her mother in the early 1800s. Mother and daughter were subsequently bought by an Essequibo Coast plantation owner, after which the mother was sold again and little more known about her. Yhaba Waboosia did not retain her Fulani name. She received an English name and became a Christian – so just that short recap emphasizes some of the many distinctions between slavery and indentureship. The 25 August 2023 event at UG was never conceptualised as a celebration of the Church of England in Guyana!
The indentured kept their names and religions, even though “discriminated against”. They were either enticed or duped into opting to leave India and so “arrived” in British Guyana. Africans were captured, bought and “brought” to British Guiana always against their will, stripped of their names and Christianized when it was eventually considered that Christian slaves would be better managed than “heathens” who loved to beat drums and dance. The indentured endured punishing living and working conditions – however they were paid a wage, and after the costs of post-indenture repatriation fares to India proved burdensome, were offered land in lieu which they happily accepted. Africans laid the foundations – the infrastructural work – but had become alienated from the land they had worked unpaid for more than 150 years before field whippings were prohibited, and were actively discouraged as free men from self-employed farming endeavours by agents of the plantocracy facilitated by the policies of the Colonial Government. We seriously do need to unite as Guyanese. ‘One Guyana’ is the way we must think lest we be overwhelmed by foreigners and foreign interests.
We put ourselves at risk of being manipulated and even ruled if we are divided. We will need to rely quite heavily on foreign labour to develop our country on the rapid development path we have embarked upon. Many will eventually become naturalised Guyanese – and their offspring will be Guyana born nationals. ‘One Guyana’ will be frustrated rather than attained by misappropriating others’ significant occasions. It would not be okay for any Amerindian or African historian or activist speakers to assume they would be entitled to receive an invitation to speak at any commemoration UG is likely to hold in 15 years’ time to mark the 200th anniversary of the commencement of indentureship – but of course they might well be invited so to do.
Sincerely,
Ronald Bostwick
