A Short History of the PLP's Long Lie about Race

by Sir Arthur Foulkes

When the PLP came to power in 1967 many in the hierarchy of the party looked forward to exorcizing the demon of race from Bahamian politics once and for all.

The leader of the party, Sir Lynden Pindling, seemed at first to be more strongly in favour of that than some of his colleagues.

Miriam Makeba, the celebrated black South African singer, was among a number of prominent blacks in America who wanted to do business in the new Bahamas. But Sir Lynden stopped her when he heard she was romantically linked with black power firebrand Stokely Carmichael.

She left Sir Lynden’s office in tears and never came back. The new Bahamas was having nothing to do with that.

A more dramatic demonstration of this attitude occurred at Paradise Island in the presence of Lady Marguerite Pindling. Another famous singer, Nina Simone, was giving a concert and she did not think it was out of order to sing some black American protest songs; but she was wrong.

A young Bahamian journalist, Oswald Brown, was so moved by her powerful performance that he mounted the stage and kissed Ms. Simone’s feet, much to the delight of many in the crowd, but not Lady Marguerite nor, as it turned out later, Sir Lynden.

Mr. Brown was at the time being groomed to take over the party’s newspaper, Bahamian Times, which I had edited up to 1967. A Trinidadian named Jimmy Andrews had been recruited to run the paper until Mr. Brown was ready.

But the new establishment came down on Mr. Brown like the proverbial ton of bricks. Lady Marguerite made it known that we were finished with that sort of thing in The Bahamas. Mr. Brown was chastised by Sir Lynden personally and then berated on national radio.

Neither did the foreign editor of Bahamian Times escape the fury of the Pindlings. Mr. Andrews made the mistake of publishing Mr. Brown’s favourable report on the concert and he, too, was personally reprimanded.

Sir Lynden had the Immigration Department temporarily in his portfolio at the time because the substantive Minister, Arthur Hanna, was away. The Premier, in a fit of anger, issued a deportation order against his own editor! After some discussion, the order was rescinded.

Sir Lynden knew just as well as everybody else that the days of the Old Guard UBP and its racist policies were gone forever. The chief architect of that policy, Sir Stafford Sands, also knew it was over and so he packed up and left.

Not all of the UBP were racists, of course, and that had been dramatically demonstrated in 1956 when some of them resisted tremendous pressure to support Sir Etienne Dupuch’s resolution to abolish racial discrimination in public places in The Bahamas.

It was also demonstrated in 1971, when the new and enlightened leader of the UBP, Sir Geoffrey Johnstone decided that the time had come to disband that party, which he proceeded to do.

When the Free National Movement was founded in 1971 with Sir Cecil Wallace Whitfield as its leader and the Dissident Eight at its core, Sir Lynden knew that, he was facing a new and powerful challenge in the Bahamian political arena.

These were men committed to the principles of democracy and collegiality in government, men who were determined to resist at all costs the cult of personality and dictatorship that had brought so many other former colonial territories to grief.

The eight were joined by some former members of Paul Adderley’s NDP, including Sir Orville Turnquest, and some former members of the UBP. One of the most articulate proponents of the new liberal order was former UBP Norman Solomon.

A few weeks ago this same Mr. Solomon was at the centre of an emotional farewell with Ministers of today’s PLP Government; he was also a sobbing visitor at the bedside when Sir Lynden was dying from cancer.

Back in the 1970s Sir Lynden and his PLP knew perfectly well that Sir Cecil and his colleagues -- who had fought as hard and sacrificed as much, if not more, than he – could not possibly return to the racist policies of the Old Guard. He also knew that Sir Kendal Isaacs, who later became leader of the FNM, could not preside over such a thing.

But facing this new challenge from men whose measure and spirit he knew well, Sir Lynden revived the same race card over which he had rejected Miriam Makeba and chastised Oswald Brown.

He played the UBP race card against them and their colleagues at every step of the way, at every election throughout the 1970s and 1980s.

It was a lie then, but some people bought it. It is still a lie now. But Perry Christie and his PLP minions have decided to use it in a desperate attempt to save themselves from the follies and scandals in which they are drowning, from the cesspit they have dug for themselves.

They know full well that Hubert Ingraham, like Sir Cecil and Sir Kendal before him, is the puppet of no one. They know that he is the leader of a democratic party whose members are committed to the betterment of all Bahamians, and to the original bright promise of racial harmony and integration at all levels of our society, including politics.

The blinding truth is that 10 years of governance by the FNM has proven beyond the slightest shadow of a doubt that the FNM is not about what they dishonestly said, and still stupidly say. Those 10 years did not see a return to the racism of the Old Guard nor even to other outdated policies.

That 10-year period saw a deepening of the Bahamian democracy at every level, things the old PLP failed to accomplish in 25 years. It saw the strengthening of the rights of Bahamians, working Bahamians who now enjoy progressive labour legislation including the minimum wage and a shorter work week.

So this time, the number of people who will be taken in by the long lie are likely to be few in number. But that will not stop Mr. Christie and his pack of political assassins. He used to stand silently on the side as they did his dirty work, pretending to be above it all. Now he leads the pack.

The more desperate this lot becomes, the lower they are likely to sink. Not only are black politicians who associate with white ones subject to their lies and insults.

Last week one of the pack of hired assassins suggested that some Bahamians – black Bahamians -- whose parents happened to have been born abroad, are somehow to be considered lesser Bahamians, if Bahamians at all.

The Prime Minister, the relevant Minister and all those responsible for allowing this person further to pollute the Bahamian airwaves should be ashamed of themselves.

They all know her and they must have known what claptrap, prejudice and jingoism she is capable of spewing from the dark recesses of her demented mind. They will all be held accountable for the fallout.

Comments

[shawn]

Oh well I'm home to see for my self and the PLP is REALLY FULL OF IT, FNM ALL THE way! sattle up hubert.
hubert all the way!
The hell with the PLP!

[David]

An article such as this does the voter no good. Both PLP and FNM parties offer nothing of substance to the Bahamian people but the same brand of degenrative behavior and comments like this article. Both are guilty of the same disrepectful behavior. When will we move from being second class citizens in our own country that simply are exploited to support foreign investment. With all the investments over the past 10-12 years we still dont have a local university to re-educate and uplift our local knowledge base so we then become investors in our own country. Both parties have failed and are failing in this sense. We don't just want jobs we want to be the ones creating the jobs. We have the talent, knowledge, and skills, but our leaders lack vision and foresight that keep us dependant on foreigners.

For a country with 85% black controls less than 1% of its wealth and have less than that in capital investments. Check out the major banks in the country and see who has the most assets/accounts in our banks. Outside of our own governmental agencies the majority of the assets in Bahamaian banks are owned by the "other" 15% of our popukation and foriegners.

So Sir Arthur I beg you to talk of things more susbstantive than Sir Lyden and Lady Pindling and this one and that one. I hope no one talks of you the way you talk of them when your gone. Have some respect.

[bush]

PLP FNM all of them Full of Mess.
Nassau, Look and smell Like the Dumps. I want to know one thing when are they the Government going to clean and fix the raods? It's election season aint it?
well hope they visit the people houses and come down off thier high horse!
such is why Hubert Lost the last election 2002. He,he,he...
Now he lookig to rebound on the Bahamian People. "The tripple dipper"

[Nonsense]

I can't for the life of me understand why people like David continue to say the things they do about "the other 15%" and the distribution of wealth in this country.
Where does he drive? Where does he live? Does he work in a bank? I spent a lot of years in consumer banking in this country and it seems he would be surprised by how much wealth is in the hands of the "85%". And all you have to do is drive around New Providence to see who lives where and the amount of money people spend on dwellings, cars, etc. The vast majority of lawyers, accountants, insurance people, etc. are ...?
He that eyes to see, let him see.
So ... cut the crap with the racist claptrap which was maybe valid 50 years ago and talk about what you know, not the racist propaganda of people whose heads are stuck firmly you know where.

[Carolyne]

This article teaches that it is very important to research and know your history. What we Bahamians experience today are side affects from important political events which occurred years ago. I am presently insulted by recent ads by a political party which indicate the UBP days will return. How pathetic, desperate and insulting.This message can only be aimed at persons old enough to have experienced segregation and oppression 'cuz I ain't scared a no one'. We live in a democratic nation and the people decide what prevails not any particular party!
What kind of fools do these people believe live in this country?