Sedition and the 'race war'

After hearing and reading the bitter, angry racial sentiments during the past five weeks, I think Dr Keith Rowley and his government were quite right to leave the Sedition Act alone, as old as it is (No. 10 of 1920, amended).

At least the part outlawing “feelings of ill-will towards, hostility to or contempt for any class of inhabitants distinguished by race, colour, religion, profession, calling or employment” (Section 3).

This multi-ethnic society experienced so much ill-will, vile racist statements and even physical threats shared on social media, it all became quite scary.

It severely broke the boundaries of good manners, mutual respect and civil discourse. Worse yet, it revealed hatred such that facts and reason “fled to brutish beasts.” It was headlined “a race war.”

Fake news, malicious rumours, post-truths are also prohibited by the Summary Offences Act (Section 106). For example, “any person who sends any message by telephone which is grossly offensive or of an indecent, obscene or menacing character” is liable to a $200 fine or one month's jail.

So how come all this published “racial ill-will and hostility"? How far and deep is it? Why and when does it get triggered?

The social media “cuss-outs” and mainstream headlines rocked the social and economic order. Differences of opinion went berserk with the most foul, insulting, obscene language. The f-word, the n-word, the c-word and others in coded Facebook forms – “ymc,” “fu,” etc.

I couldn’t and still don’t believe that such sentiments are possessed by the majority. I therefore posted on August 14: “I don’t want to spoil the fun. But really, what proportion of Indians and Africans feeling/talking so on media? Small or big proportion?”

It is further disappointing that so many young people share this mutual animosity.

Has the education system failed? It is not only about unconscious bias. It seems unconscious racism too. If it is that we are not born prejudiced or racist, what are the socio-economic and political conditions of life that help shape, sustain and trigger such sentiments?

Of course, we had ethnic controversies over politics, calypso, employment, educational inequity, etc. But it looked like something broke the camel’s back this time, with Ramsaran’s beverage industry at the centre.

There was a time when words like “damn,” “a--,” even “backside” were seriously frowned upon. The Catholic season of Lent demanded a stricter code, especially for children. Mothers and neigbours would frown, complain and correct.

Not so today. I know things have changed, but to where?

I asked a young lady two months ago if she knew why so many young people, rich and poor, have large holes in their jeans, new ones too. She said it is “the style now, even for adults.”

I asked a young man at a grocery store, quite respectfully, why he wore his pants so low down below his waist, exposing his underwear. He smiled. Are bus’up jeans and exposed underwear part of a cultural war?

There was a time when a tiny tear in your shirt or pants would cause shame. Today, it’s fashion.

The related story is in primary school. Every morning teachers inspected our nails, hair and having our shirt in our pants too. Boys and girls had to sweep and clean their own class.

Bus’up jeans and exposed underwear? People would laugh at you. Cursing received punishment. Such “discipline” helped shape character, respect and lawfulness. Today, freedom has turned into vulgar licentiousness – unchecked, unsupervised and, in fact, quite normalised. To raise an objection is to invite rude rebuke and rebellion.

These examples may appear trivial. But as an educator all my working life, I realise that if the primary school system breaks down, all afterwards suffer.

Children yearn for guidance, structure and example. To them, little things matter to help shape their later lives. Much of what recently happened tells us how much the education system has failed.

Social media and the Facebook revolution present a dilemma. How much to censor? Is it useful to know how others think, bad as it may be? Witnessing an overload of shared obscenities, seditious threats and racist ill-will, I put out this post on August 14: “US Congress pressed Facebook owner to block hate/racist views. Zuckerberg agreed. Why not here ? Agree?”

Many did.