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Politics – full of sound and fury

The next general election is just down the road and around the corner. The current administration is making promises and already signalling the need for more time to “continue” its work and the opposition is pointing fingers and asking questions. Political parties are starting to reveal their candidate slates as rumours about who will stay, who will go, and who will be newly nominated fly around.

Power struggles within political parties are coming to the fore. The media is in a state of perpetual readiness for stories of all kinds and sizes as it relates to internal political party issues, lambasting of one party by another, candidate announcements, and the possibility of an early election.

Partisan politics in The Bahamas is, by design, an absurd theatre that piques curiosity even in its monotony and predictability. Politicians are current and prospective employees of the Bahamian people. When they seek employment, they sing and dance, sing and dance, sing and dance.

Empty promises flow from their mouths with boring, repetitious, uninspiring rhetoric until they resort to name calling and lobbing accusations at others, punctuated by catchphrases and snippets of music that do nothing more than make people laugh. The employers are seated in the audience, eyes glued to the stage, watching the performance. Casting was done without their input. The stage was already set. All they can do is spend money at the concession stand and mindlessly eat and drink as they watch the show someone else selected.

Some audience members wonder what is going on backstage. Who wrote the script? Who is directing the cast? Why were these people even cast in these roles? Some notice the dark corners of the stage and try ‘to see what is happening where the lights are dim and the view of some performers is obscured. There is little room, it seems, for participation. Employers watch the show, waiting for the breaks between acts to discuss, make predictions, and argue with one another about the meaning of it all. Only when the show is over do most of the employers take their positions, ready to decide who will win it all with a single review—the vote.

When they are hired, the employees lose interest in pleasing their employers, even at the most basic level which, in our case, is putting on a show of dedication to the work that the employers—the people—want done. They take to the stage when it suits them, regardless of the presence of a waiting audience. The frequently show up unprepared, some never having attended a single rehearsal. It sometimes becomes clear that the employees fail to work together backstage before attempting another one-way engagement with audience. They sloppily deliver unplanned monologues and are thwarted by simple improv activities. They show that the backstage coordination is often nonexistent. They reveal their arrogance in their insistence on being a part of the performance, regardless of their levels of preparation. The stage, they believe, is theirs.

Once the prospective employees secure their positions, their already inadequate engagement with employers exponentially worsens. The performance required to get the job has depleted them, not only of energy, but the ability to pretend to care about the experience of the audience. If they sit in the theatre, in complete darkness, so be it. It is their own fault for expecting a show. The season is over. They should be grateful for the amateur hours that, from time to time, make use of the theatre space.

Politics can certainly take another form. There is the potential for the people, the employers, to reclaim power. It is entirely possible for the current and prospective employees to be held to a higher standard.

The existing system is dysfunctional. The existing practices disadvantage the people. Politicians see themselves as performers in a play, and they have no motivation to change the way they play their parts, much less commit themselves to affecting the reality that sits just beneath the fiction they use as cover. We, the people, know, to varying degrees, that what they see as a bit of fun amongst themselves is actually our lives. Allowing them to write the script and cast themselves and people like them is acceptance of ill fate.

The people vying for our votes are not leaders, and they are not trying to be leaders. They are satisfied to pretend. The fact is that we need representatives. One of our greatest struggles is that the people who get our votes—almost exclusively because we reject the people or the associated party running against them—do not know, care about, or ask us about the issues we face daily and need to have addressed. They do not live in our neighbourhoods. They seem to drive on different roads, present at different healthcare facilities, and send their children to receive a different quality of education than that which is available to us. We have to admit the self-governance and majority rule are not what we have when the people in parliament are not, in fact, like us. Worse, they prove, repeatedly, that they have no interest in even knowing what it is like to be us. If they did, they would engage us in the processes that have already begun ahead of the next general election. They are still more than comfortable with making a series of decisions with no input from the people directly affected by them, then turning to us with a singular question: This set of actors, or the other?

We need electoral reform. We need to know how political parties are funded. We need to be involved in the selection of candidates. We need to know when the election will be held, every single time, through a fixed date. We need to be assured that we will not have to endure the incompetence of any Member of Parliament for five years, equipped with a recall system. We need to be able to choose the best candidate in our constituencies without endorsing the leader of their political party to the prime minister. We need the boundaries to be set, not to be tampered with every five years. We need political quotas to reach gender equality in frontline politics. We need a modern system for voter registration and the tallying of votes. We need a national development plan that drives the agenda for every term and beyond.

We need a government that is led by the people. We need politicians who are the people, in every sense, and commit themselves to the highest good of the people, centring those in situations of vulnerability. We need to them to have integrity and be led it, and we need them to be discontented with the systems that do not serve us, such that they work together, with us, to build what we need rather than use the opportunity for personal gain.

At Women’s Wednesdays this evening, Equality Bahamas is facilitating a workshop designed to identify issues and develop recommendations to address them. There will be working groups on two thematic areas—social services and the environment. Members of the public are welcome to participate in one of the working groups at 6pm at the National Art Gallery of The Bahamas on West Hill Street. Register at tiny.cc/fbc2025.

Published in The Tribune on July 2, 2025.

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Labour Day and partisan mockery

Year after year, the Progressive Liberal Party sours national holidays that commemorate major achievements of the Bahamian people by claiming ownership, taking up an ordinate amount of space, and attempting to make them partisan.

Moments in Bahamian history are reduced, again and again, to a political party that relies heavily on its history—a far cry from its current state and demonstrated values—to maintain its fanbase and try to attract others. Majority Rule Day, Labour Day, and Independence Day all suffer the consequences of a political party—and a government administration—that prioritises being credited for historic milestones over national celebration, as one people, and creating opportunities for young people to learn more contemporary history of The Bahamas and for residents to advocate for the realisation of the benefits those achievements should have brought.

It is a loss for everyone when any political party seeks to dominate important days in the calendar year or tries to downplay the national significance of these holidays—days of observance—which is the repeated loss of opportunities to build a collective spirit, respect for our history and the people who made their mark on it, names known and unknown, and foster a culture of action by the people to create the change we need.

On Labour Day, it would be appropriate to acknowledge the wins of the labour movement and raise awareness of and garner support for actions as prioritised by workers.

What issues still exist in the workplace? What are the issues that are emerging now as society significantly changes, often outpacing the systems in place in the workplace? What needs of workers remain unmet? Which conversations have been “tabled” and never considered again? What are the relatively small demands that can be championed and actioned?

Labour Day is political. It ought to be political. The issue is that it is made into a partisan mockery, used to gain points and, near to general elections, to gain votes or excite party followers without doing an ounce of work.

In response to a question about social movements at a time of “American global hegemony, neoliberal economic relations, militarised counterinsurgency at home, and racial ‘colour blindness,’” speaking to both the US and global political climate in 2020, Angela Davis said, “I suggest that we need movements that pay as much attention to popular political education as they pay to the mobilisations that have succeeded in placing police violence and mass incarceration on the national political agenda. What this means, I think, is that we try to forge an analysis of the current conjuncture that draws important lessons from the relatively recent campaigns that have pushed our collective consciousness beyond previous limits. In other words, we need movements that are prepared to resist the inevitable seductions of assimilation.”

This is, of course, focused on the state of the US, yet we can take the recommendation that is at the root of the response. Popular political education is requisite to sustained organising.

People need to have an understanding of the conditions we live within, beyond the individual experience. Workers’ demands are not about the realities of one worker, the inequalities in one workplace, the violence of one employer, or the instability of one industry. It is about the ways that workers are regarded as a class and the understanding (and acceptance) of what is and is not considered work, what is and is not considered productive, what is and is not considered valuable, how value is assigned to tasks and the people who do them, who does and does not share in the profit, and what is and is not a safe environment.

A strong, sustainable labour movement spreads across industries, generations, and income levels, relying on political education to connect people. When systemic issues are identified and their characteristics known, the analysis of capitalism, racism, sexism, and xenophobia and their impact on labour is necessary, productive, instructive, and motivating.

The conversation is no longer about remote and hybrid in isolation, but about the commitment to systems that demand that employers or their agents lord over workers, controlling their tasks, the way they perform their tasks, and what they do beyond their tasks should they have the misfortune of appearing idle for five seconds.

This is not solely a drive toward greater productivity, but a breaking of will and conditioning of the worker to accept the dominance of another which is rooted in “isms” so many try desperately to ignore, pretending they are inconsequential in this place.

Collective consciousness does not just come about one day. It has to be built. It has to be nurtured. It comes from an understanding of history and the fact that the strides made in the 50s, 60s, and 70s were never meant to be the final steps. They were not the end of struggle, and they were not the last wins. They were always foundational, meant to be built upon by people who have information about what was done and how, now equipped with greater access to information and new technology to enable deeper analysis, more direct demands, and targeted actions to apply pressure to decision-makers.

On a podcast in 2022, Davis said: “I’m aware of the ways in which, especially in capitalist societies, there’s a tendency to focus on the individual at the expense of allowing people to understand that history unfolds, not as a consequence of the actions and the words of great individuals, but rather as a consequence of people coming together, joining hands, and uniting with their differences—not across their differences, but with their differences—in a quest to create more freedom and more happiness in the world.”

One of the stumbling blocks in any movement for change is the inability to work with differences. There is the refusal to acknowledge differences, there is the reluctant agreement to work together despite differences, and there is the alienation of people who are different in particular ways.

Working with differences is not easy. It requires, to an extent, solidarity. It demands that everyone face their own privilege and acknowledge the violence that others face as a result of the hatred of difference.

Standing together is a requirement. Across fields of work and across party lines, we must see the possibility of unity and the responsibility we have to build it. We must acknowledge it as a requirement for progress.

We have more common with one another than we do with the beneficiaries of capitalism and (low-)wage labour, and the differences among us are what show us all of the systems at play so we can develop tactics that target them all and benefit us all. We must submit ourselves to the learning process and be bold enough to engage in learning in public ways, enabling others to learn with us, grow with us, and join us in creating discomfort for those who are far too comfortable with the separation and the profit it drives to them every day.

Published in The Tribune on June 11, 2025.

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Gender parity and equal standards

On May 1, 2025, in what has been described as a “groundbreaking” moment in Caribbean frontline politics, Kamla Persad-Bissessar of the United National Congress (UNC) became the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago. Perhaps even more interesting than this is the fact that this is the second time she has been elected to this position.

What makes this groundbreaking, then, is not that a woman now has the position of Prime Minister, but that woman hold the top three constitutional offices in Trinidad and Tobago. Pennelope Beckles-Robinson is the leader of the opposition, the People’s National Movement (PNM). Christine Kangaloo, who has been president since 2023, was responsible for swearing them in.

Last week, social media was full of posts by Caribbean people celebrating the moment, highlighting these three women in these three positions, asserting that it is not only progress, but an uncomplicated achievement. It is not unusual for social media posts to lack gender analysis, and it is not unusual for people to see numerical and proportional increases as synonymous with the true advancement of women. Quantity, as we all should know, is not quality, so there is more to consider.

Following the US presidential election, Persad-Bissessar, as the (then) Opposition Leader, made clear her position on the Biden administration. She said, “They focused on pushing a woke, extreme left-wing agenda that offended basic common sense and morality, overturned the norms of civilised public life, disoriented and mutilated children, censored and cancelled dissenting views, disparaged religious and conservative values, fuelled wars around the world, weaponised the judicial system against political opponents and increased nepotism, corruption, crime, poverty, homelessness, and wealth inequality.”

Persad-Bissessar went on to congratulate and celebrate the current US president. She said: “He has survived assassination attempts, political persecution, and years of personal attacks, but he triumphed in the end.” She added: “I look forward to the return of meritocracy, excellence, and intelligence as a standard criterion for accessing equal opportunities.”

This position is cause for concern for anyone who cares about and is committed to the achievement of gender equality and full access to human rights, especially for those in situations of vulnerability including women, children, LGBTQI+ people, people with disabilities, and people experiencing poverty, all of whom are disproportionately affected and deliberately targeted by the dangerous actions taking by the current US administration.

We do need more women in positions of leadership. We do need to reach gender parity in all levels of governments. We do need women to have decision-making power. We do need women to design and implement policies that move us toward gender equality. Women, however, are not all the same. We are not a homogenous group. There are women who benefit from existing systems of oppression and who are committed to maintaining their positions, even at significant cost to other women. There are women who do not want to be the woman to make the statement or take the action that demonstrates commitment to gender equality and the advancement of all women, often because it is more comfortable to come close to fitting in (with other leaders and decision-makers, the majority of whom are men).

Feminist advocates know this. This awareness is the source of the clear distinction between “women’s groups” and women who are political aspirants who call for more women in parliament and the feminist advocates who acknowledge the nuances and call for more feminist women and women who support women’s rights in positions of leadership at all levels.

Ahead of the 65th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in 2021, stakeholders from across the Caribbean worked together to develop a regional position on the theme, “Women’s full and effective participation and decision-making in public life, as well as the elimination of violence, for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls.” The conversations had significant focus on women’s political leadership, ways to reach gender parity in frontline politics, and the markers of gender equality in leadership that extend beyond numbers and into outcomes, both for women and girls and for entire countries.

When gender equality and women’s leadership—particularly in the areas of political life and public life—is discussed, people focus almost exclusively on numbers. Just as there are difference among men in positions of leadership, there are differences among women in positions of leadership.

There are differences in beliefs and values, in skills, in leadership practices, in personal and professional interests, and in ideas and vision of success. It is easy for people to make assumptions about women in positions of leadership based on what they think they know. There are many gender stereotypes that are taken to be true, often entirely due to the frequency with which they are stated as though they are facts and the infrequency of them being refuted. Women do not all lead in the same way. Men do not all lead in the same way either. These facts do not necessarily change the longstanding ideas people have about the differences between women and men and what they mean for abilities and outcomes. This is a primary reason for the focus on gender, what it means, what it does not mean, and how it is used to limit opportunities.

Feminist advocates for women’s political leadership know that numbers are important. The call for women’s leadership in public and political life extends beyond women receiving nominations, getting votes, and being elected into office. It is for harmful gender ideology to be eradicated and social norms to change. It is for the creation of an enabling environment for women’s participation and leadership in public and political life. It is for increased positive representation of women in leadership in media. It is for early exposure to policymaking and spaces and processes. It is for the development of opportunities for women and girls to lead and conditions under which leadership by women and girls is supported, celebrated, and normalised.

Regarding the political moment in Trinidad and Tobago, Dr Gabrielle Hosein, lecturer at the Institute for Gender and Development Studies at the University of the West Indies St Augustine’s campus said, “In Trinidad and Tobago’s political history, having three different kinds of women leaders right now is unprecedented and historic.” Importantly, she noted that these wins are symbolic. “We have to see if they lead to ‘substantive’ wins, meaning approaches to governance that are less domineering and antagonistic and more inclusive and transformative, and create greater social, economic and gender justice,” she said.

Feminist advocates hold multiple truths. One is that women have the right to hold positions of leadership and decision-making power, and this is not contingent on any trainings or alignment on sociopolitical issues any more than is the case for men. Another is that the progress we need, particularly on women’s rights, gender equality, and social development, requires the participation and leadership of feminist women and women who are committed to working on achieving these goals, even in the face of great opposition, (from) wherever it rears its head.

This means that, just as many men in leadership are mediocre, women have the right to be mediocre in leadership. Just as men enter frontline politics without training, women can enter frontline politics without training. This, however, is not where the bar must be set. It is discriminatory to hold women to a different (and higher) standard than that to which we hold men, so must set higher expectations for all leaders while acknowledging the importance of increasing women’s representation to reach gender parity. This increases the visibility of women as leaders, demonstrates possibilities to young women and girls, normalises women’s leadership, and makes it possible for more women to take feminist positions not only at the personal level, but professionally, within the walls of parliament, cabinet, and the senate.

 

Published in The Tribune on May 7, 2025.

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Importance of community when systems fail

Systems are failing us all the time. These system failures lead to unfavorable conditions. They affect our daily lives. They affect our wellbeing. We have been, however, trained not ignore systems and to focus on the individual. We look for the ways that an individual has done less than their best, or the ways that we ourselves have somehow contribute to the situation we find uncomfortable, dangerous, or otherwise subpar.

We have a tendency to turn on and blame one another for failures rather than being attentive to the ways that systems malfunction or, in as is often the case, successfully degrade, endanger, subjugate, and limit us and our positive life outcomes.

Last week, someone posted in a popular Facebook group about the gates at public elementary schools being closed until eight o’clock in the morning. The person raised the safety issue this causes after a child “decided to jump in front of [their] car” and they slammed on the breaks to avoid hitting the child. They referenced recent events that let us know that there are safety concerns that must be considered with regard to school-age children. The post also included a note about the children failing to listen to the security guard before this change to the gate opening time was made.

The issue the post raised is valid. With the school gate closed until eight o’clock, when teachers are at work, there is a significant amount of time that children are outside of the premises and without supervision. Given the traffic on the road from seven o’clock to nine o’clock in the morning, the eight and nine o’clock start times for far too many jobs, the start time for school, and the inefficiency and safety issues of public transportation, parents are often forced to drop their children to school quite early to ensure that the children get to school on time and they are on time for work.

Somehow, many of the comments ignored the issue the person raised, instead casting blame on parents. Numerous people suggested that parents think it is someone else’s responsibility to supervise their children outside of school hours. Some referenced the disrespect and rudeness of children and the need for parents to better train and discipline their children. Others pointed out the school is not for babysitting children. A few noted that the eight o’clock opening of the gate is a Ministry of Education policy. These may all be interesting points that can explored further. The issue that remains is the inability of many parents to take their children to school at a later time or wait at the school until the gate opens. The options may be for children to miss school or to be there early, before the gate is open.

It a quite common for people to respond to systemic issues by imposing a set of rules or practices, however unrealistic, on individuals. There are sometimes ways that we can improve our lives and make more options available to ourselves, but we cannot bootstrap ourselves out of poverty and the same is true for other conditions that extend beyond our personal capacity to change.

There are many who cannot afford a one-bedroom apartment, not because they are unemployed, inept, or lazy, but because minimum wage is not enough money to live independently. People who are employed and unhoused do not need to be told to get jobs. They have jobs, and the problem is both the rate of pay and the incompatibility of the rate of pay with the actual cost of living. Reducing homelessness does not necessarily require job creation or helping people to find jobs, though this may be helpful for some. It requires a completely different approach to the remuneration of employees and the social services that should support people who are not paid enough to meet their basic needs. A shelter for unhoused people would be a great initiative, and it would not solve the problem. It makes for a good temporary measure while systemic changes are made.

In the case of the school gate opening at eight o’clock and the resulting situation of children being unsupervised and unsafe early in the morning, it may be useful for parents, administrations, teachers, and community members to get together and find a way to create a safe environment for the children who must be taken to school early. Opening the gate and having security to ensure only children and staff gain access may be considered ideal. Others may think there should be a “holding place” for the children before the gate opens, but this still requires adult supervision. We can think of many ways to address this issue on site, but the root of the issue would still be there. There is a system that needs to change.

School hours and work hours are not harmonised, and employers are not responsive to the needs of employees who are full human beings—not just staff, but have other responsibilities as family members and friends.

The 9-to-5 and 8-to-4 work schedule has taken root and become the standard, even in a country that is heavily dependent on the tourism industry (which requires shift work) along with other service industries. Many administrative job functions do not need to be performed during specific hours. Many businesses and customers would benefit from different open hours. There are numerous adjustments that can be made.

While New Providence is not growing in size, the number of cars on the road seem to keep increasing. Traffic is a mess almost all day, every day. It takes far too long to get from one place to another, all because of the number of cars on the road at any given time (and the ways they are driven). This can be alleviated with adjustments to the work day and overall flexibility in work schedules. Everyone does not need to be at work at eight or nine in the morning. Some can begin work at ten or eleven o’clock. We can go into detail about the ways this could benefit businesses, but it is really enough to recognise the benefits to workers and their families. That, on its own, is important, but it is not reflected in workplace practices because the priority is profit. That is the rule of capitalism, of course, yet we are all living in the world, living in this country, where we could all benefit from a better ecosystem, and that begins with support for families.

What needs to change with regard to the rights of workers? What do employers need to do differently? How can we make it possible for people to be as high-performing in their families as they are on their jobs? What have we accepted as normal or standard that need not be? How can we train ourselves to think beyond the individual, resist the urge to cast blame, and set about creating solutions that can be applied at the systemic level, for the benefit of all?

As we continue to navigate the challenges of a world that is unchanging in many ways, yet changing in ways that terrify and terrorize many, it is important that we remember the importance of community. We have a responsibility to be attentive, not only to individual and familial needs, but to the needs of the collective. We, as community members, need to actively care for one another, understanding the value of human life and the necessity of combining our efforts to assess problems, create solutions, and advocate for systemic change that is the responsibility of the people we elected to represent us.

National Poetry Month

April is National Poetry Month, so it is a good time to revisit favorite poems, pick up a book of poetry, or even put pen to paper to write a poem or two. To join the people participating in National Poetry Writing Month, send a message to Poinciana Paper Press on Facebook or Instagram to request an add to the WhatsApp group. The group will write a collective poem at Sovereign, the exhibition open at Poinciana Paper Press on Wednesday, April 9, at 6pm, and those in New Providence will meet at the National Art Gallery of The Bahamas on Sunday, April 13, at 2pm for a field trip that includes a look at this year’s National Exhibition and writing together.

“For Nothing Is Fixed” by James Baldwin

For nothing is fixed,

forever, forever, forever,

it is not fixed;

the earth is always shifting,

the light is always changing,

the sea does not cease to grind down rock.

Generations do not cease to be born,

and we are responsible to them

because we are the only witnesses they have.

The sea rises, the light fails,

lovers cling to each other,

and children cling to us.

The moment we cease to hold each other,

the moment we break faith with one another,

the sea engulfs us and the light goes out.

Published in The Tribune on April 9, 2025.

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The International Women’s Day march is over. Now, what’s being done on the issues?

International Women’s Day has, once again, come and gone. It is still Women’s History Month, however, and this is a good time to look at the progress made on women’s rights and be attentive to the persisting issues and what each and every person can and must do to affect change. Advocates, non-governmental organisations, and members of the public look to the government to make necessary changes to laws and policies in order to eliminate gender-based violence against women and combat gender-based discrimination. Businesses, though, are not often thought of or called upon to do their part.

Most of us spend our most valuable time at work and the workplace shapes our lives, both by what it demands of us, what it exposes us to, and the constraints it imposes on our lives. We must, then, look to employers to see us all as human beings, recognised that we have full lives, face the ways they contribute to gender inequality, and make adjustments so that that workplaces are not only productive, but responsive to the needs of the employees who keep them running.

Here are four policies that businesses need to adopt rather than waiting for the government take action and force the changes across the board:

1. Sexual Harassment Policy.

In 2025, there should be no business that does not have a sexual harassment policy. Even small businesses need to have human resource manuals and employee handbooks that acknowledge sexual harassment as a form of workplace discrimination, explains what it is and the forms it takes, and explicitly states that it will not be tolerate. There must be a clearly articulated procedure for reporting sexual harassment and handling the complaint.

2. Provide expanded parental leave.

The law currently allows for 13 weeks of maternity leave. There is no leave for fathers. These are both issues which become obvious when one becomes a parent and faces the reality of the healing process for mothers and the bonding that needs to happen with both mothers and fathers. Employers do not need to wait for law to make the necessary changes. Some companies have already taken small steps by providing paid leave to fathers, though the leave period is quite short. Both parents need time at home with their newborn. The birthing parents experiences pain, discomfort, and difficulty moving on her own, so she often requires assistances. The other parent needs to be present to provide that support and to participate in the care of the newborn.

Women face consequences of maternity leave when they return to work. It is not limited to people referring to this health leave as “vacation” or having bad attitudes due to the change in workload or dynamics during the mother’s absence, but includes the complete exclusion from opportunities for growth and promotion as people make decisions for her because she is a mother “can’t” do certain things like work late or travel for work. When men have leave, it helps to level the field in multiple ways. It challenges the idea that women are solely responsible for childcare, it gives men the opportunity to learn about and participate childcare alongside the women, and it combats the gender discrimination at work with both men and women benefitting from leave and face the reality of returning to work.

3. Implement C190 and R206.

The Bahamas ratified the International Labor Organization’s Convention 190 (C190) on Eliminating Violence and Harassment in the World of Work in November 2022. While the International Organization allows one year from the date of ratification for its Conventions to come into force, C190 has yet to be implemented.

Convention 190 defines the world of work broadly, extending beyond what may usually be considered the office, store, worksite, or other distinct area in which work is undertaken. Article 3 says:

“This Convention applies to violence and harassment in the world of work occurring in the course of, linked with or arising out of work:

(a) in the workplace, including public and private spaces where they are a place of work;

(b) in places where the worker is paid, takes a rest break or a meal, or uses sanitary, washing and changing facilities;

(c) during work-related trips, travel, training, events or social activities;

(d) through work-related communications, including those enabled by information and communication technologies;

(e) in employer-provided accommodation; and

(f) when commuting to and from work.”

Employers have a responsibility to create and maintain work environments that are free of harassment and violence. Recommendation 206 (R206), which accompanies C190 is an excellent place for employers to start as it includes the concrete actions that can be taken toward to the elimination of violence and harassment in the world of work.

It states, for example, that workplace policy should:

(a) state that violence and harassment will not be tolerated;

(b) establish violence and harassment prevention programmes with, if appropriate, measurable objectives;

(c) specify the rights and responsibilities of the workers and the employer;

(d) contain information on complaint and investigation procedures;

(e) provide that all internal and external communications related to incidents of violence and harassment will be duly considered, and acted upon as appropriate;

(f) specify the right to privacy of individuals and confidentiality, as referred to in Article 10(c) of the Convention, while balancing the right of workers to be made aware of all hazards; and

(g) include measures to protect complainants, victims, witnesses and whistle-blowers against victimisation or retaliation.

4. Flexible working hours.

While most people have to work full time in order to meet basic needs, there are demands beyond the workplace because we all live more full, complex lives than robots designed to produce, produce, produce. By law, all children of school age must be enrolled in and attend school. They need to be transported to and from school and, in many cases, this requires the involvement of at least one adult who has the use of a car or can accompany them by bus. This is the safest option for children who are young, small, impressionable, sexualised, and at-risk of harm at the hands of adult predators. Being an employee and being a parent are not mutually exclusive. Many parents have to leave work during the work day to collect their children from school and take them home or to another place where it is expected that they will be supervised and remain safe. The eight-hour work day with one hour break does not accommodate this specific, common need.

Many parents use their lunch hours for school pickup. This has become a norm, but it is not acceptable. It means a large proportion of employees do not have time to eat lunch — necessary for the physical health and cognitive function — or to take care of themselves in other ways, including having a break from their tasks. In addition, with most schools ending the day at the same time, causing an increase in traffic on the road, one hour is not sufficient. Not only would it be helpful to allow for flexible work hours, but it would be beneficial to make allowances for more flexible work structure and location, including the option to work from home. Working from home for part of the day — for example, from 1pm  to 5pm — or two to three days per week can assist employees in making the most of their work days while attending to their personal and familial needs. This also contributes to wellbeing in the workplace.

By extending these options to all employees, employers make it possible for fathers to be more full participants in the lives of their children by meeting one of their practical needs. When both mothers and fathers do the school run, there is less distinction between mothers and fathers which can lead to the end of stigma against mothers who are judged and punished for being mothers and having certain responsibilities laid at their feet with no support from fathers who are left to excel at work.

Gender-based violence against women and gender inequality are linked. Ending violence against women and achieving gender equality require the same kinds and levels of work. We are saddled with one lousy government administration after another, and we have to make our demands more consistently and loudly with every general election, and employers are left to do the bare minimum. This has to change. We must continue to pressure the government, and we must demand more of employers. The cost of treating employees like human beings can not be accepted as an excuse for inhumane practices and failures to adjust to the changing reality and the knowledge we gain which should result in change. Any business that cannot afford to implement policies and programs that reduce and eventually eradicate gender-based violence and discrimination cannot afford to be in business. They need to crunch the numbers and figure it out. Workers are not just means of production. Workers are people, with human needs and human rights. Employers need to step up and take action, even as the government fails to lead the way.

Published in The Tribune on March 12, 2025.

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‘Rape is rape’, except in our laws it isn’t

“Prime” describes minister. Every minister is not the prime minister. The prime minister is a specific type of minister. We can talk about minister in general, and we can acknowledge that different ministers are treated differently. In particular, the prime minister is quite different from other ministers given the specific aspects of the position that other ministers do not have.

In “curry chicken,” curry describes chicken. Every chicken dish is not curry chicken. We can talk about chicken dishes generally and at length, and we can acknowledge that all chicken dishes are not exactly the same. There are numerous chicken dishes that, for example, contain tomatoes. There are some that do not necessarily have tomatoes. Each variety of chicken dishes is distinct, though a part of this general group.

Adjectives are used to make a distinction between nouns that may otherwise be groups together and could be inappropriately treated as the same. Sometimes the adjectives are used for harmful division, causing difference in treatment that are discriminatory and lead to violent outcomes. Many adjectives are used to describe and mark difference between women who are, otherwise, all a part of one group. There are black women, working class women, migrant women, and married women. These are all women, and each subgroup, with the adjective adding description, has shared experiences that are different from those of other subgroups.

Married women share some experiences with unmarried woman because of their share womanhood, but some experiences are specific to married women. In fact, marriage comes with consequences for women, and this is why we have to talk about marital. It is the exclusion of spouses—married people—from the definition of rape in the Sexual Offences Act that makes it necessary for us to talk about marital rape when we should be able to talk about rape without the descriptor.

Why does the prime minister have a problem with describing rape?

There is actually a better question. Does the prime minister actually care about describing rape and the reason the term “marital rape” is being used? Use of this term is not without reason. It is a result of the fact that the Sexual Offences Act currently excludes married people from the definition of rape. One spouse can rape the other without legal consequence due to the exclusion, through “who is not his spouse” at the end of the definition of rape in Section 3 of the Sexual Offenses Act. “Marital rape”, then, is a term we use to talk about the specific act of sexual violence that the law not only does not address, but explicitly communicates disinterest and inaction with regard to it. The term “marital rape” is only used because the law has separated rape of a spouse by a spouse from every other rape.

To complain about “describing rape,” knowing the legal context and importance of advocacy—with precise language—to criminalise it is ridiculous. Unless we are to believe the prime minister is not particularly intelligent and passed the bar by a fluke, we can only read this nonsense opposition to the use of the term—which we need in order to address this issue—as disingenuous and especially disrespectful to the affected people and the people advocating for legal reform to make the use of the term unnecessary.

Women’s right organisations and advocates have not asked for rape to be “described”. In fact, we have clearly stated that there is no type of rape or descriptor of rape that makes it better or worse. There is rape by strangers. There is rape that occurs on dates. There is rape that is perpetrated by multiple people. There is rape that is connected to hatred of LGBTQI+ people. There is rape perpetrated by family members. There is rape that is facilitated by drugs. Yes, there is marital rape. Yes, rape is rape. The law, however, does not reflect these truths.

This is not the first time the prime minister has spewed this nonsense about marital rape and his personal dislike for the term. He made the same comment in April 2024. It is as absurd this year as it was last year. There is no need to consult on the issue, especially when the prime minister has stated that “rape is rape”. What is there to discuss or debate? Get rid of the categories of rape. Make the “descriptions” of rape useless.

Here is a one-step guide to getting rid of “marital rape” as a descriptor of rape: Criminalise marital rape by amending Section 3 of the Sexual Offences Act to remove “who is not his spouse” so that the marital exception is not in the law and all rape becomes illegal, regardless of any relationship that may exist between the perpetrator and the survivor or victim. The #Strike5ive campaign by Equality Bahamas clearly states additional amendments to make it strong, explicit, and free of loopholes.

Recommendations

1. Join Feminist Book Club in reading What Happened to Belén by Ana Elena Correa in March. Ana Elena Correa is a lawyer, journalist, and women’s rights activist in Argentina and this book is about Belén, a 25-year-old woman who did not know that she was pregnant and had a miscarriage. Doctors reported her to the authorities and she was imprisoned. This sparked the #niunamas—not one more—feminist movement which led to the decriminalisation of abortion in Argentina in 2021. Literary Hub said, “Ana Correa poignantly recounts how so many systems failed Belén, the movement that sprung to action to free her… an essential read detailing the harms created by police in healthcare settings, abortion stigma, and the criminalization of pregnancy outcomes whether it’s in Argentina or the United States of America.”

2. Plan to participate in the International Women’s Day March + Expo hosted by Equality Bahamas. The annual event will begin at the Eastern Parade (lawn east of Scotiabank on East Bay, accessible by vehicular traffic from Dowdeswell Street) at 8:45am when participants will gather for the march to The Dundas grounds on Mackey Street. Upon arrival at The Dundas, the International Women’s Day Expo will open with Zumba with Ms. Deidree followed by concurrents sessions including poetry writing, salsa dancing, and yoga, a dedicated space for art by Sixty 2 Sixty Art Gallery, a fun zone for children by Sustainable Me Summer Camp, and nongovernmental organizations including Bahamas Crisis Centre, The Dignified Girl Project, and Hands for Hunger. It is a great place to spend the day with family, friends, and new people and to engage in fun activities without having to spend money on site.

Published in The Tribune on February 19, 2025.

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Maternity: Putting people over profit

The world of work, with all of its complexities and far-reaching impact, is a fascinating one to explore, especially alongside society and its stagnation in some areas and changes others. We have learned to measure ourselves and our worth based on what we are able to (tangibly) produce. Even outside of the formal workplace, people feel the need to be productive. There is always work to do. Even in engaging in hobbies, there is the impetus to do more, more, more and, perhaps more devastatingly, to monetise. Very little is done for the sheer enjoyment of the activity. Even leisure is turned into work, or there is a significant, persistent encouragement to turn what was once fun into a money-making venture.

The push toward entrepreneurship was strong at the turn of the millennium, and not much has changed since then. People convince one another that it is good to struggle, that it will eventually pay off, and that the rags to riches stories can belong to everyone. Side hustles are the norm and have even become necessary for the survival of far too many people. After a while, there is pressure to somehow level up, and that could mean renting a brick and mortar space, significantly increasing the overhead cost, needing to produce even more to cover those costs, hiring people to help and not being able to pay them a fair wage, and pinching pennies in the (often futile) attempt to make ends meet. People, regardless of socioeconomic status, get caught up, quite easily, in the dream that capitalism tries to sell us—that we can all benefit from the capitalist system that only sees people as means of production and amassing wealth, if only we find people to subjugate with the promise of wages and benefits that are somehow better than abject poverty.

The same system that drags so many out of bed early in the morning to sit in traffic for more than hour to get to work on an island that is only 21 by 7 miles to be paid less than a living wage, all in the name of production, requires reproduction. Capitalism does not work without a labour force. It does not work without people. For capitalism to continue to function, babies have to be born, children have to raised and education, and people have to work for the money they need to survive. Capitalism needs people to reproduce. It requires both productive and reproductive labour from all of us. Productive labour is the work that produces commodities for capitalist enterprises, producing surplus value. Reproductive labour is the work, including paid and unpaid cleaning, cooking, and childcare, that makes productive labour possible.

The economy is such that people of all genders are necessarily engaged in productive labour. Households require two or more incomes to function. It is no longer the norm for men to go out to work and women stay at home to manage the household and the children. Everyone must work. At the same time, reproductive labour must be done. While the responsibility to bring in an income for a household to function has been redistributed to include women (with the acknowledgement that black women have always been engaged in productive work), reproductive labour has largely remained on the shoulders of women. Women, then, work a second shift. Women go to work all day, then return to home to prepare meals, clean the house, do the laundry, go through the homework, check on elderly family members, make the grocery list, and complete tasks that men may never even think about. This is not where it ends.

Women not only engage in productive labour (and for less money than men are paid for work of the same value as evidenced by numerous reports) and reproductive labour (for no pay if it is in their own households and low pay if it is in the household(s) of others); women also bear the cost of reproductive labour. Though pregnancy is different for every pregnant person, it is never without its scars and long-lasting effects. The body goes through drastic changes, there are medical expenses that sometimes require loans, and there is significant impact on careers. Women are punished by the workplace for taking maternity leave and for being mothers.

It is absolutely necessary for mothers to have maternity leave, both to recover from harrowing medical procedures and to bond with their babies. In The Bahamas, women get three months of maternity leave which is insufficient. It takes longer than three months to heal following the delivery of a baby, breastfeeding is recommended for six months, and nurseries do not take babies as young as three months old. The absence of paternity leave is also a challenge. It is absolutely necessary for fathers to have leave to support the recovery of the mothers and to bond with their babies. Expecting a person who has just given birth to take care of themselves while caring for a newborn who must be fed, held, and changed with great frequency is absurd and inhumane. Where there are two parents, they both need to be involved from the very beginning. This is important for the health of the mother, the health of the baby, and the change in societal expectations that women undertake all of the domestic and care work. Women and men both need to be involved in the lives of their children, and we all need to understand the importance of their equal involvement. Changing the law to ensure that father have access to paternity leave is one way to make it clear that reproductive labour must be shared.

There is tremendous stigma in the workplace related to women, maternity leave, and motherhood. Women are often reluctant to take maternity leave or to request additional leave when pregnancy-related health issues arise. Women’s careers are negatively affected by childbirth. Managers and coworkers complain about the planned absence during maternity leave, and it is not uncommon for managers to withhold opportunities for advancement. Some hiring managers are even reluctant to hire women who they suspect will have children, not wanting the business to be impacted by maternity leave or the responsibilities that everyone knows come with motherhood but seem to separate from fatherhood. Paternity leave would also shift this dynamic, making it clear that women and men are engaged in social reproduction and need to be involved in their children’s lives. The work of producing labourers for the continuation of the capitalist system should not be punished.

Small business in The Bahamas are struggling for many reasons. The cost of doing business—inclusive of the failed systems and long wait times for completion of simplest of processes—in this country is prohibitive to most and destabilising for those managing to get through the tangle. From the cost to purchase or rent commercial property and maintain it to forced closure of businesses and reduced customer and client traffic due to crumbling public infrastructure, small and medium-size businesses have great difficulty getting to and staying in the black. One of the most seemingly flexible costs is human resources, and this can lead to exploitation of workers, especially when they are young, in difficult situations, and unaware of labour laws.

It is no surprise that the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce made a statement against the extension of maternity leave. The Chamber has not shown any signs of progressive thinking or care for workers. The same Chamber opposed the four-day work week just months ago. The priority is, as the name suggests, the exchange of good and services. It does not care of the people whose labour makes commerce possible. The Chamber is not where we need to turn for commentary on human rights, healthcare, or the wellbeing of workers. Small business are often referenced as the scapegoat in claims that they cannot survive certain changes which, of course, are in the best interest of people rather than profit. Many small businesses simply cannot afford to be in business. It is not necessarily a sign of their own foolhardiness or failure. The Bahamas is a difficult place to do business. It is a difficult place to own a business.

A business that cannot afford to follow the law cannot afford to be in business. A business that cannot afford to pay a living wage cannot afford to be in business. A business that cannot afford to pay maternity leave cannot afford to be in business. A business that cannot afford to hire temporary workers when staff members are on parental leave cannot afford to be in business.

The needs of people cannot be secondary to the need for profit. There are many aspects of doing business in The Bahamas that need to change. Many changes can improve the economy and our participation in it. There are measures that can be taken to support small and medium-size businesses, to improve public infrastructure, to implement a living wage, and to support families. The extension of maternity—which ought to be no less than six months, especially if a primary goal to support breastfeeding—and the addition of paternity leave is necessary. It will be beneficial to families and communities, and it will move us toward gender equality. No small business can or should stand in the way of that.

Published in The Tribune on January 15, 2025.

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We must put a stop to blaming the victims

It is day 10 of the Global 16 Days Campaign, also known as 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence. When the campaign started, on November 25, people were still upset about the rape and murder of 12-year-old Adriel Moxey. People were still upset that, just days after Adriel Moxey’s body was found, it was reported that 72-year-old Vernencha Butler had been raped and murdered. Today, there is hardly any reference made to the girl or to the elderly woman. As always the news cycle moved people along. The focus has been on corruption of police and politicians.

This is why the Global 16 Days Campaign exists. Sixteen days is not nearly enough time to talk about gender-based violence, highlight cases of import, look at recommendations that have been made to The Bahamas, review laws and policies that are discriminatory and violent, or advocate for specific changes. There is always more work to do. The campaign does, however, give us a period of time that is recognised by many institutions and some individuals as necessary, requiring attention, and demanding meaningful action.

The immediate reaction to reports of the rape and murder of Adriel Moxey, and comments following interviews with her mother, showed that the general public is accustomed to focusing on individuals — specifically to blame them —instead of looking at the environment and systems that people are trying to function within when they are not built for our benefit. It is difficult to hear about a tragedy and not be able to place the blame on someone, especially when the blame can help us to deny that the tragedy could ever affect us. People want to think they are too smart, too good, too careful to be victims of tragedy.

It is easy, too, to blame the perpetrator for his violent, horrific crimes. It is actually easier to blame the person who acted in an abominable way than it is to blame people who are not only innocent, but suffering as a result of the tragedy. The Bahamas, however, has practised blaming victims and, in particular, blaming mothers. When a child is missing, when a child is murdered, when a child is apprehended by police, when a child is struggling in school, “Where was the mother?” Even in asking the question, people are generally uninterested in the facts of mothers’ whereabouts and competing responsibilities. People do not want to face the fact that working to get money to meet children’s physical needs is not compatible with meeting the psychosocial needs of children.

Systems designed by the government and private sector do not allow parents to work and be active parents, able to be with their children when school is out. Alternatives are generally not provided — not in the form of flexible work arrangements, and not in the form of childcare. There is nothing less interesting than this to the people screaming out for the heads of mothers except the whereabouts and priorities of the fathers.

The people who have enacted violence are the ones that must carry the blame for what they have done.

We need to change the questions we ask when children are abducted, sexually violated, and murdered. It is not productive to ask why a child was walking. Children walk every day. They walk to school. They walk to the tuck shop. They walk to the grocery store to work. They walk back home. Adults walk too. Sometimes adults are also assaulted. On their way to the bus stop where they expect to be able to catch a bus to go to work. On their way to the grocery store to pick up a few items. On their way to a party. On their way back home. People walk.

Sure, we can ask what it would be like if people did not have to walk. The way to get there, however, is not that everyone owns a car and drives themselves and their dependents everywhere they need to go. A properly functioning, safe, reliable public transportation with extended hours may be a bit closer to where the conversations need to focus. Still there are better questions.

What if we could walk? What if elderly people could walk from church to their homes at 8pm? What if women could walk to the bus stop before daybreak? What if girls could walk home from their after school activities? What if it was simply safe to walk?

We need to consider the reasons that so many need someone— a person — to blame when they failed systems and lack of systems are blatant. We need to consider the reasons that mothers are seen as the only parents, and the only people with any responsibility for their children, even when they cannot be with them at all times. We need to consider the reasons that the first (and sometimes only) idea that many people have is to restrict the movement and freedom of women and girls in an attempt to prevent violence against women and girls. We need to consider the reasons that people are not talking about the very real, very obvious problems which include the fact that we cannot safely walk and the fact that there are many sexual predators and murderers around us. We need to learn to ask better questions. We need to demand more of the government which exists to meet our needs, acknowledging that we cannot meet them all ourselves, through enactment and implementation of laws as well as provision of reliable, quality public goods and services.

Remaining Global 16 Days Campaign events, hosted by Equality Bahamas.

Wednesday, December 4: Managing Disasters, with Barrise Griffin

Barrise Griffin is known as the the Master of Disaster. Her work focuses on critically examining the social perceptions of risk to create more effective strategies in disaster preparedness and response throughout the Caribbean. Equality Bahamas will be in conversation with Barrise Griffin about disaster management, putting focus on disaster preparedness, response, and recovery. Disaster management cannot be about individual actions, contingent on our limited resources. To be effective, it has to be systemic and for the benefit of all. Join the session to find out about existing systems for disaster management and what The Bahamas still needs to build. Register: tiny.cc/16daysgriffin

Thursday, December 5: Femicide in the Caribbean, with Taitu Heron

Since 2020, Equality Bahamas has included advocacy to end femicide in its Global 16 Days Campaign activities. In 2023, we had a conversation with Myrna Dawson about her work to build and maintain the Canadian Femicide Observatory. Taitu Heron attended the event and later connected with Myrna Dawson and decided to conduct research on femicide in The Bahamas, Barbados, and Jamaica. Femicide is the killing of a woman or girl because of her sex or gender. The term is not used in The Bahamas or the rest of the Caribbean which means the killings of women and girls are not properly counted or analysed. We’ll be in conversation with Taitu Heron about her research on femicide in select countries in the Caribbean. We are looking forward to finding a way forward in research on femicide and ensuring that cases are recorded and the analysis contributes to the work to prevent femicide and gender-based violence. Register: tiny.cc/16daysheron.

Saturday, December 7: Making Our Rage Visible, with Sonia Farmer and Margot Bethel at Poinciana Paper Press.

We need time and space to engage with the arts and create art of our own. Equality Bahamas partners with Poinciana Paper Press to host and facilitate sessions to bring people together to try new activities, have discussions, and create items imbued that are useful, beautiful, and meaningful to everyone involved. On Saturday, people are welcome to drop in at any time between 10am and 5pm to try block printing (which will involve making a stamp) and screen printing. Participation in these activities come with the gift of newly printed pieces, including a bandana that is part of a limited run and connect with a campaign by Equality Bahamas. This event, as with all Equality Bahamas events, is free of charge.

Monday, December 9: Writing Our Rage, with Staceyann Chin at Poinciana Paper Press.

Staceyann Chin is known across the Caribbean and all over the US as a poet who writes and speaks her rage with a conviction and energy that brings other people into it. There is limited capacity in the writing workshop she will facilitate for people interested in getting their rage on the page. No experience in writing poetry is necessary to join this workshop. Register: tiny.cc/ragewriting

Tuesday, December 10: Let’s Make a Rage Book! with Sonia Farmer at Poinciana Paper Press.

Making a book is challenging, fun experience. Doing it in a group is even more fun because everyone can see the skills in the room. Each person is always particularly good at one of the tasks, and no one can really guess which person will be best at which task. There are many ways to make a book, but participants will have to wait until Tuesday to find out which one Sonia Farmer will demonstrate and guide us through. Equality Bahamas highly recommends that those interested in making a book also participate in the printmaking day on Saturday. The prints made on that day may be used for the book covers. In this session, we will keep the rage theme going and everyone will leave with a rage book of their own. Register: tiny.cc/ragebook

Published in The Tribune on December 4, 2024.

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Shakespeare in Paradise

We all want and need to see ourselves. No matter how different we are, how unique our circumstances, it is important to know that there are other people have similar experiences, facing similar struggles, failing in the same ways, and trying to find the light at the end of the tunnel. Sometimes we find this when we, or others, are bold enough to share stories, ideas, and work in progress. Many of us are deeply private, have been convinced whatever goes wrong for us are signs of personal failings, and rely heavily on ourselves to save ourselves, so we talk very little about challenges we face, and try to show only the highlight reels. This means that, in many cases, the only time we really see ourselves, and that the difficulties we encounter are not just are own, it is in the arts. Movies, television shows, plays, and music, remind us that the human condition, and human suffering, are not so different that they cannot be shared with others.

 

In The Bahamas, we spend a substantial amount of time and energy trying to convince one another that we live in paradise. More specifically, we try to make one another believe that we have access to the paradise we work our fingers to the bone to create for other people, particularly through the tourism industry and acting as extensions of it for our survival. Every now and then, someone uses art to capture a true, true Bahamian moment or phenomenon and, no matter how saddening or embarrassing, the loudness of the truth brings us joy. 

 

Yes, that is a real thing that happens! Yes, that was a ruinous act! Yes, that was a spectacular failure! Yes, that is exactly how things do not work around here! 

 

Yes, that is just the kind of attitude those people give us every time. Yes, that is how many times we have to call before anyone ever calls back. Yes, that is how much more money that necessity costs than what any of us can afford. Yes, that is how mad we get when those people tell us the same nonsense over and over again, expecting us to believe it. Yes! Truth! Facts! Preach!

 

As angry as people in New Providence were about the road works at the time, hearing “da road dem dig up dig up,” tickled us greatly. We sang along, able to find the humor in a months long saga that made the drive from anywhere to anywhere else much too long and frustrating as detours seemed to send us all around the earth. It was a shared experienced. We could rant about it at work, at family gatherings, and on the phone with friends, but the song was different. It pointed out the absurdity of the experience and the inconvenience to all, and it made us laugh at it. It eclipsed our frustration. It plainly stated the truth, so we all felt seen and together in the maze, yet made it possible to see it as a moment in time would always be remembered by those of us who experienced it, and with something other than anger. 

 

Bahamian plays do something like this for us all the time. They, through very specific events, create portals that take us to our own experiences. We are watching the scene unfold while recalling our own stories, knowing almost exactly what will happen next, but not knowing exactly how. It is in these moments, in theaters, laughing alongside other Bahamians and residents of The Bahamas, that we see the universality of this life. It is then that we feel a connection to, a kinship with, other Bahamian people. We have this in common. This dysfunction, this feeling of being stuck, this knowing that we could be better, and we could be more. This incredulity about our circumstances, this appreciation for the creative people who put our realities on the page, to music, and on the stage. We are together in our knowing, in our wishing, and in our perceived inability to, as individuals, make any of it different. 

 

On Monday night, I went to the opening of Short Tales which is easily my favorite part of the Shakespeare in Paradise festival. Early in the year, there is a call for 10-minute plays by new writers. The selections are made, and the audience at Shakespeare in Paradise is treated to ten new plays. These plays are funny, gut-wrenching, and thought-provoking. They are set in places we all know well, from livings rooms to funeral homes. This year, the ten writers include Imani Ashari, Patrice Francis, Deon Simms, and S.A. Hanna. One play teleported a young Black man to a kitchen in the 1700s. Imagine what happened there. Another gave a lesson on five women in the Bahamian Women’s Suffrage movement. My personal favorite of the night gave a glimpse into the inner (not) workings of the government system. Whether you want to be doubled over in laughter or have something to think about for days to come, there are a few short plays in the mix for you. 

 

Ten minutes is not a long time, but buy a ticket to Short Tales and see what the writers, directors, and actors do with theirs. You can see Short Tales on Friday at 8pm, or next week Tuesday, Thursday, or Saturday at 8pm.

 

This year, the Shakespeare play is Hamlet 50/50—Hamlet with a twist. The cast includes T-Day, Julian Reid, Patrice Francis, Joanna Hepburn, and Chigozie Ijeoma. Get your tickets for tomorrow at 8pm, or Saturday, next week Monday, Wednesday, or Friday at 8pm. Visit shakespeareinparadise.org for the full schedule and online purchases.

 

Shakespeare in Paradise is now in its 16th year, with its theater home at The Dundas Center for the Performing Arts in need of financial support. Since the need to replace the air conditioning in the Winston V. Saunders Theatre, the larger theater space at The Dundas, arose in 2020, that space has been closed. The Black Box, which seats 70 people, has become the temporary space for all productions. It does not generate enough revenue to cover the expenses, so yes, buy tickets, and buy festival shirts and make donations if you are able to do so.  

 

The Dundas needs us to survive and, in many ways, we need The Dundas to survive. It is where we go to see ourselves. It is where creative writers take their work and hold up the mirror so we can see ourselves. The stage is a place to lay the truth and dare anyone to refute it. It Is the place to provoke action. It is the place to generate emotion. It is a place we need, and an experience we love. Nothing we love can stand without a foundation to support it.

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The toll Nassau’s traffic takes on us

After crossing over from Village Road to Soldier Road, in the left lane, the driver to the right of me cut across me to turn into the drive-through of one of the fast food restaurants on the corner. Luckily, I anticipated that the person would do something foolish, so I drove with an abundance of caution so I did not end up in an accident. On the same day, I was the second car in the left lane on Bernard Road, waiting to turn onto Soldier Road when a driver went up the middle lane and turned left in front of the cars in my lane that were correctly waiting for a green light.

I learned to drive in an environment where everyone seemed to drive with aggression. People did not wait to be let of our corner. They, instead, inched their cars out of corners, eventually forcing someone to stop because they blocked the road enough to warrant the use of brakes. They may have received a free curse-out too. The pushing out of corners remains the same, but the other cars come fast and furious, in the true sense of the phrase. Some of them cannot stop fast enough. Some of them refuse to use their brakes, daring the person inching their way out of the corner to keep doing it. The person trying to come out of the corner may decide that they would like to force the driver with the right of way, whether or not they are speeding, to test their brakes, so they keep pushing. Maybe they caause it, maybe they are hit with high impact by the speeding car. It is a foolish game, and more people seem to be playing it than not.

My friend and fellow advocate Erin Greene raises the issue of traffic on a daily basis, sharing anecdotes of the dangerous driving she witnesses and near-misses she experiences. It does not even take ten minutes of being on the road before one encounters a person who has decided that their rush to get where they are going or their adrenaline rush from doing nonsense is more important than people’s lives, often including their own. This, as Erin Greene regularly points out, is a metaphor for the social environment we are constantly creating for ourselves.

People get into the driver’s seat and feel a sense of power that they do not feel when they are not controlling a motorised vehicle. They are able to engage with other drivers in a way that is far from socially acceptable in any other circumstance. The car becomes a weapon and the aggressive use of the car is a threat that it will be used against anyone in its path. Many drivers become bullies. While most drivers would mutter to themselves or the people in their cars with them, people now put their windows down to verbally assault other drivers and, in some cases, pedestrians. Some put their cars in park, jump out, and (try to) start physical fights in the road.

Not being let out of a corner is seen as disrespect. Not being able to stop a driver from getting out of a corner somehow deflates the ego. Getting into a parking space before another driver, who was obviously waiting for the space, is a triumph. Carelessly overtaking the vehicle ahead, causing the driver of an oncoming vehicle to swerve out of the way, is fun. Driving while drunk, endangering everyone on the road, is brag-worthy. Blowing horns to pressure other drivers to break the law, from running red lights to endangering the lives of pedestrians trying to cross the road, is satisfying. Slowing down to annoy the driver behind is hilarious. Stopping to gawk at and take photos and videos of an accident scene, offering no assistance, is second nature.

Other drivers, when in vehicles, are not seen as real people. People get behind the wheels of cars and seem to think they have been transported to a video game. It is all about them. No one else on the road is real. There are no other lives of value. The goals are to get to the destination, to get there quickly, to have the kind of “fun” that only comes from taking ridiculous risks, and the biggest, baddest bully on the road at that time, and not necessarily in that order.

It is even more frustrating that we see police on the road who we know must see what we see. They see the illegal and reckless driving we see, and they often choose not to respond. We know the hotspots where the most foolish behavior takes place, and we know that they know too, but they never position themselves there. We know that the people who drive like no one else matters and notice there are few consequences are likely to test limits in other ways. Law-abiding people are insulted by the inaction on traffic infractions, especially as taxes increase (when there are many traffic fines to issue and collect) and traffic fatalities flood social media.

Traffic in the streets of New Providence tell us more than we would like to know about one another. Impatience may be the least of the problems we see there. The endless anger and the need to express it, by any means, are not to be taken lightly. How is it that a person becomes so incensed by another driver’s reasonable caution that they get out of their vehicle to instigate a fight, with or without a weapon? What does it mean when so many of us try not to react to the ludicrous behavior we see on the road because “they might have a gun” and we do not want to become the country’s next murder victim? Most people who do not work from home start their days with the kind of frustration that should not live in anyone at nine o’clock in the morning, but that is a consequence of driving to work.

We all complain about customer service and it not being our fault that people hate their jobs, but we are all less than cheerful after an hour in traffic, guessing what other drivers will do and trying to avoid the consequences of their actions. How could we not be exhausted by the time we get to our destinations? There is pent up frustration that has to go somewhere, and without the ability to recognize and manage our emotions, without the safety of talking about our feelings without being judged, and without the freedom to take a few minutes to recalibrate, it is almost inevitable that an relatively innocent person will bare the brunt of out frustration.

Living in New Providence, truth be told, is hard. Having to drive everywhere we go is difficult. The lack of safe, reliable public transportation to get to and from work and school is inconvenient and costly. Living in a society plagued by violence that seems, at times, to be indiscriminate or rooted in petty motivations, is scary and tiring. We are always on guard. We are always in defense mode. The tension wreaks havoc on our minds and bodies.

There is an anger problem here. There is a widespread attempt to push back against the lack of control that people have in their lives. There is little value assigned to human life, especially when the lives are seen as separate from our own. The traffic problem we have is not just that people are jerks or that people are absolute idiots who do not know or have no regard for the rules of the road. This, too, may be true. It is also that people feel lost and powerless, that people have no regard for other people’s lives, and that people have little focus on the longterm.

There is no quick fix for the problems we have allowed to fester. We have years of work to do. We need to find the cause of the hopelessness, lack of control, and anger that people feel. We need to help them to identify these feelings and to manage them in healthy ways. We have to find ways to build community and shared sense of responsibility for our collective wellbeing. This is a role for families, schools, faith-based organisations, and government entities to play. We did not get here overnight, and there is no quick and easy way out of it. Conversations, social protection, civic education, conflict management, and community programming are all a part of the solution, and this requires investment. The question is, as always, what is the longterm transformation worth to the government and the private sector which have the means to invest and innovate?

Published in The Tribune on September 11, 2024.

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