THE Rotunda Gallery at The Red House, Port of Spain, is paying tribute to the people who have helped shape Trinidad and Tobago with a portrait-only exhibition celebrating national icons, both celebrated and unsung.
Titled Portraits of Honour: A Tribute to the Nation’s Icons, the exhibition features 50 works by 24 artists and brings together a cross-section of visual art honouring outstanding citizens who have contributed to the country’s social, cultural and political development. The exhibition runs until January 30.
Portraits of Honour invited artists to look beyond celebrity and explore the deeper meaning of what it means to be an icon. Participants were encouraged to consider figures from across science, sports, music, art, dance and literature, as well as symbols of culture, cultural beliefs and practices, and the ongoing efforts to preserve heritage and national identity.
According to the Rotunda Gallery, the vision behind the exhibition rests on the belief that national heroes and icons are not limited to well-known figures but also include groups and community activists whose life’s work has left a lasting mark on TT.
Celebrated pan arranger Jit Samaroo.. –
The exhibition aims to celebrate individuals who, through dedication and service, have contributed to national development and inspired generations to continue dreaming and striving for achievement. In doing so, artists were challenged to reflect on authenticity rather than fame, highlighting the real impact these figures have had on society.
By preserving and presenting these stories through portraiture, the Rotunda Gallery hopes to strengthen collective identity and underscore the narratives that unite the nation.
The exhibition also aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 10 – Reduced Inequalities – by recognising diverse contributions across all sectors of society, and SDG 11 – Sustainable Cities and Communities – through the preservation of cultural heritage and the promotion of civic pride.
Artists were invited to submit portraits in a variety of media, depicting individuals who embody the true spirit of the nation. These include pioneers in politics, science, literature, music, dance, visual arts, sports and community service, as well as everyday heroes whose influence resonates within their local communities. The works on display span multiple genres, including painting, photography, drawing, sculpture, prints, fabric art, collage, installation art and digital art.
Curator Chenelle Maharaj said the exhibition builds on an earlier initiative by the Gallery.
“This is our second show featuring portraits only; the first was back in 2023. The major motivation behind the show is really just to highlight or celebrate citizens of TT who have contributed to our society, whether it be in politics, sports, arts, music or entertainment. It gives viewers an opportunity to get familiar with some of our local icons.”
She said the response from artists was comparable to that of the previous portrait exhibition, with about 30 artists submitting 69 pieces.
Maharaj noted, however, that many artists gravitated towards familiar figures, particularly within popular culture.
Former national footballer Dwight Yorke. –
“Most of the artists focused heavily on icons in the music and entertainment industry. There are also quite a few who focused on icons in politics, for example, Dr Eric Williams. While it is important to highlight said persons, I felt like the artists could’ve dived deeper and highlighted some other persons who viewers may not be familiar with. For example, highlighting women in politics or perhaps persons in science and medicine and more persons in sports.”
Despite this, she said the exhibition succeeds in sparking conversation about representation, remembrance and whose stories are told within the national narrative.
Following the close of Portraits of Honour, The Rotunda Gallery will turn its attention to Carnival heritage with a new exhibition titled Walking with the Spirits: The Legacy of the Moko Jumbie, running from February 2-27.
According to the Gallery, Moko Jumbies are far more than Carnival performers. They are guardians of culture, storytellers of the past and living symbols of resilience. Each movement carries meaning, with slow, deliberate steps representing the act of overcoming obstacles, while high kicks and spinning motions symbolise triumph and spiritual balance.
Ace pannist Len “Boogsie” Sharpe. –
Traditionally, Moko Jumbies wore masks and long, full skirts paired with Eton jackets made of brightly coloured satin or velvet, reflecting a blend of African and European influences. The look was completed by an admiral’s hat, distinguished by long peaks at the front and back and a crown adorned with feathers.
Like Portraits of Honour, the upcoming exhibition is aligned with several United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, notably SDG 4: Quality Education, by promoting cultural education through exploration of the history, artistry and symbolism of traditional Carnival characters and fostering awareness of African heritage. It also reflects SDG 10 and SDG 11 through its emphasis on inclusion, cultural preservation and community pride.
Together, the two exhibitions underscore The Rotunda Gallery’s ongoing commitment to celebrating national identity, honouring those who have shaped the country’s past and present, and preserving the cultural legacy that continues to define TT.
A PEOPLE’S aspirations can never be defeated. This is the lesson of our history.
I’ve written repeatedly about how divided we are in Trinidad and Tobago – by class, geography, race, and more. This did not start today, and it has not been helped by those in government – this, the last, or those before.
This division shows itself in a thousand ways: the abandonment of rural and south Trinidad from necessary infrastructure like access to pipe-borne water, paved roads, and completed schools, despite pleading and protest. It shows itself in statements thrown back and forth – from the racist “go back to Africa” from those believing they live in “UNC country” to those in the PNM who look at Indo-Trinidadian citizens and disparagingly “wonder if we’re living in Bangladesh or Delhi.”
We are separated by numerous systemic and historical superiorities and inequities, and everyone impatiently galleries with the little bit of power they have.
A major challenge is that what some read as racist is often not recognised or affirmed as so or is downplayed by others – though examples abound on all sides in how we debate on social media; in how we weaponise each other’s “government name;” in the eras during which we find our voices and speak out and the eras during which we don’t; and the issues we consider important or not and how we interpret them.
At times, we do not even properly understand what upsets our “other,” and we fail to focus on bridging the experiences, fears, and rhetoric that make us disagree.
Social media has made it worse because we do not have to “live good with each other” online – and typing comments is a terrible substitute for talking, but also because media and blogging culture thrives off clickbait, big reveals, echo chambers, and posts that amplify dismissiveness, disinformation, obfuscation, and a sense of threat, anger, and exclusion.
These are perilous times for public deliberation if we don’t see the urgency of crossing these divides by connecting our common ground.
Caribbean organising which crosses boundaries – bringing us together over shared concerns, whether in relation to women, artists, domestic workers, ecological destruction, agriculture, sports, or peace requires courageous engagement with those whom we consider different and, sometimes, denigrating.
It requires movements born out of the hard work of consensus-building. It requires understanding who we are such that we can see our strengths and common values and counter the modus operandi of those whose bread and butter is stoking what Professor Emerita Rhoda Reddock theorises as a politics of “competing victimhoods” and a world of vastly different and partial grasps of the same reality.
Indeed, who are we?
We are the thousands who sell in our markets each week, carrying what we have grown across the region by boat, and commonly believing that “everybody have to eat,” in putting a little extra, and in building social relationships out of economic transactions. The same people, excluded from banking, who found ways to save using sou sou hands; grounding a grassroots practice built on trust, mutuality, and shared betterment as a local ethos.
We are indigenous communities – from the Amerindians in Guyana to the Maroons of Suriname to the Garifuna of St Vincent, the Kalinago of Dominica, the Maya of Belize, and Trinidad’s First Peoples – who believe in collectivism, communal land, co-operatives, and models that counter individualism and disconnection.
We are people who believe in the arts as sites of collective and home-grown spirituality, skill, and transcendence – whether pan, tassa, dance, literature, theatre, oral traditions, and traditional forms of commemoration, masquerade and celebration that bring multi-ethnic histories to culture, sharing it so generously across our territories.
We are people who believe in care for others, as witnessed by the thousands of citizens who contribute to food, healthcare, homes, counselling and much more to those in need – whether locally amid floods or everyday poverty, or in Dominica, Cuba, Jamaica, or Haiti following disasters.
We aspire to peace. We aspire to treat each other with dignity. We aspire to regionality. We aspire to justice. In the face of political elites, multinational corporations, and Monroe Doctrine militarism, we aspire to self-determination.
We can fight each other or mediate a unity that exists around what we value and all to which we aspire. Even as no one can take these aspirations from us, no one will do the work for us, not governments, politicians, militaries, or foreign powers.
Take a breath. Find your best self. Understand well what we most must do.
HEAD of the Dr Eric Williams Memorial Committee Reginald Vidale has called on UNC PRO Dr Kirk Meighoo to retract his statement that Williams was not the first prime minister of Trinidad and Tobago, which gained independence from Britain on August 31, 1962.
He made this call as Meighoo made another Facebook post doubling down on his view.
On September 1, Meighoo said this was his personal opinion and not the UNC’s.
In a telephone interview on September 2, Vidale described Meighoo’s statements as illogical and irrational.
He said the statements are being made by someone who is supposed to be “intellectually of some substance.”
Meighoo’s statement that Williams is not TT’s first prime minister, Vidale continued, “borders on total, total ignorance which has no fundamental bearing, at all, at all.”
He said the history on this matter is clear.
“Dr Williams was the first chief minister of this country. He was the first premier of this country. He was the first prime minister of this country.”
Vidale said it was indisputable that Williams led TT to independence.
“He took us to Malboro (House in London). He led us to independence on August 31, 1962.
Vidale said Williams was not satisfied with only this.
“He took us on to republican status in 1976. So for Dr Kirk Meighoo to make a statement like that, I would want to say that something is fundamentally wrong with his thinking and he needs to revisit his intellectualism as it were.”
He said to articulate otherwise would be “pure adulterated ignorance.”
Asked if this was an attempt to rewrite history, Vidale said, “Well I think there is a very subtle one and I think that if the PNM had protected the legacy of Dr Williams, then there would be no room for anyone like Dr Meighoo to even try to talk about changing the history of TT.”
Over the years, he continued, “I have been honouring Dr Williams’ memory and I have not gotten the support from the party which should have been giving me the support to do what I was doing.”
Vidale said this creates the opportunity for people to change the narrative that Williams was never TT’s first prime minister.
Dr Eric Williams. –
In a Facebook post on September 2, Meighoo said, “Given the controversy and misunderstandings (both genuine and deliberate), I will elaborate on my personal statement for clarification.”
He claimed the PNM Publishing Company of the 1950s and 1960s distorted the facts of TT’s independence and helped institutionalise the party’s version of history which was meant to glorify Williams and the PNM.
“They did not present unbiased history in our education system.Our actual history needs to be reclaimed.”
Meighoo repeated that in the short-lived West Indian Federation, January 3, 1958- May 31, 1962, TT was a province and not a country.
Each province has a premier and the federation had a prime minister.
“In 1961, our premier was Eric Williams and our prime minister was Grantley Adams.
Meighoo said, “In 1962, TT became an independent country and Eric Williams was its first prime minister.”
But he repeated, Williams was not our first prime minister.
“Our history is deeper and wider.”
At an event on August 20, 2022, Williams’ daughter Erica Williams Connell said her father fought for the best deal for TT’s independence.
Williams Connell said starting from 1950, as their colonies became independent, the British customarily offered a “golden handshake,” a sum that was to be used to buy British goods. No other colony in a similar position fought for a better deal, she insisted.
“The golden handshake is the complete representation of the fight for the best deal. It lasted a year.
“Eric Williams was the only post-colonial leader to refuse it. Every other post-colonial leader accepted the terms and conditions and said, ‘Thank you very much.’
“And he refused it on the basis of his historical study about slavery and what slavery contributed to the British and American industries.”
Williams Connell made these comments in response to a statement by then opposition leader (now Prime Minister) Kamla Persad-Bissessar that TT never fought for its independence from Britain.
“That was the fight! No, we didn’t go and shoot guns on a hill to fight for independence, but we did fight, and the fight lasted a year.”
CROSS Rhodes Freedom Project director Shabaka Kambon is declaring victory after Port of Spain Mayor Chinua Alleyne’s August 1 announcement that the Christopher Columbus statue will be removed from the city. The NGO has been advocating for the statue’s removal for nine years.
Alleyne also announced that Columbus Square, the current location of the statue, will be renamed.
In a phone interview on August 4, Kambon told Newsday the statue’s removal was a win for every group, particularly the Warao Nation who fought with Freedom Project to have it done.
He also hoped it would inspire other Caribbean countries to take similar steps.
Alleyne announced the removal at this year’s Emancipation celebrations and said it would be relocated to the National Museum.
He also announced that a new monument would replace it and a part of Oxford Street would be renamed Kwame Ture Way.
A Newsday report quoted Alleyne as saying the statue would be removed as soon as possible in the new financial year.
Cross Rhodes Freedom Project director Shabaka Kambon. – Photo by Angelo Marcelle
Kambon said, “This is huge, because we are talking about a colonial narrative that was interwoven into the very fabric of our identity.”
The fight to have this done was started in 2017 with the Warao Nation. A petition to have the statue removed was also started in 2018.
In 2022, then prime minister Dr Keith Rowley announced a cabinet-appointed committee to review the placement of statues and monuments. Consultations were held last year.
“It took us nine years to get rid of both the statue and the ships from the Coat of Arms. We declare victory today, but we acknowledge the importance of the victory.”
He agreed with an earlier suggestion by Emancipation Support Committee of TT (ESCTT) executive chair Zakiya Uzoma-Wadada that while they were thankful to Alleyne and his council for the partial renaming of Oxford Street, that the entire street should be named Kwame Ture Way.
“I agree with sister Zakiya. I don’t think it is too much for us to name one street after a national hero of the proportions of Kwame Ture.”
He highlighted that in the UK, the homes of TT-born heroes like CLR James and Henry Sylvester Williams had blue plaques which meant those buildings could not be touched.
However, their respective homes in Tunapuna and Arouca were destroyed and/or re-purposed.
“We have failed to educate our citizens about who are their real heroes while upholding these false heroes and the damaging colonial narratives associated with them,” Kambon.
“But we must congratulate the mayor for both of these decisions.”
Kambon: Don’t restore Columbus statue
He said even though most of the world had recoiled from the veneration of Columbus there were still “hegemonic forces” on the planet which would like to reverse that development.
“We want to congratulate the mayor in supporting our position that the monument be replaced by a statute to indigenous resistance.
“But the other thing we think the mayor should consider is when they remove the statue and place it in the museum, rather than restoring it they follow the approach that was taken in Bristol, UK with the statue of (colonialist) Edward Colston and place it in the prone position (lying flat on the stomach) with all of the graffiti, paint and so on with the damage that it took.”
It should also include a proper historical note letting people know how it got to that, Kambon added.
He hoped that would spur other Caribbean countries to follow suit and remove Columbus’ monuments.
“The fact that it is so difficult for us to celebrate our own heroes while being so challenging for us to remove these false heroes from our public space really speaks to where we are as a nation.”
Uzoma-Wadada said the ESCTT was elated with the announcement and knew it would have happened eventually.
In that phone interview on August 4, she told Newsday it was heartening in the era of reparations and decolonisation that this was coming from the lips of not only civil society, but government officials.
“We thank the mayor for his courage to ensure that it happened.”
The exact time frame for removal would come from Alleyne, she said.
She said the national reparations committee wanted the replacement to be something in tribute to the indigenous people.
ESCTT executive chair Zakiya Uzoma-Wadada. – Photo by Faith Ayoung
“We give thanks again for the initiative to start the process,” she said of the partial renaming of Oxford Street.
“What has been offered is the renaming starting from Argyle Street to Charlotte Street Kwame Ture Way, but the request is that Oxford Street be removed and replaced by Kwame Ture Way.
“That is the ideal. That is the objective. And even though we give thanks for a start in that direction, what is required is the renaming of the whole street.”
She said there were concerns by some businesses of having to change addresses etcetera, but the committee felt those sacrifices were worth the effort of ensuring that a street on which Kwame Ture lived as a son of the soil was named in his honour.
The ESCTT also thanked Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar for saying she would continue the fight for reparations and said it was looking forward to how that unfolded.
Historian: How will statue’s removal help Trinidad and Tobago?
Historian Dr Jerome Teelucksingh said the removal of the statue was a good move for the psyche of those who felt offended by it.
He added that he was glad it was being preserved in the museum so future generations could see what Columbus looked like.
He has some reservations, however, wondering how the move could reduce poverty, unemployment and crime.
“I find it a bit strange that we have allowed our emotions to get the better of us, and we feel that the removal of this statue would bring good luck to the country or help us in some way.
“I know we cannot change the past, but we are helping to improve the future. But I don’t see how a dead, inanimate object could help us in the present.”
Historian Dr Jerome Teelucksingh. –
He wondered how much would be spent on the replacement monument and if it would represent all of the people affected by Columbus’ presence.
He agreed it took the country further along the decolonisation process.
“The pulling down of statues also means regime change. When statues are pulled down it symbolises the end of a political regime,” he added.
He asked why the statue was not removed by the country’s first prime minister, the late Dr Eric Williams?
“How come Dr Eric Williams did not move that Columbus statue and he knew the evil and destruction that Columbus caused. I want the public to also ask themselves that. He also did not change street names,” he said.
He asked why had the country waited so long to get rid of the statue.
Teelucksingh suggested that other mayors check to ensure that monuments and statues properly represent their constituents.
“I know what I going to do. I going and open a place, a holy place, a Shrine. Whey we could come and serve we Orisa without pretending dey is somebody else God. And I going to teach the children the chants, all what we believe, all the sayings we does live by, how to raise we chirren.”
– Ma Titi, Freedom Morning Come by Eintou Pearl Springer
IN ORDER to survive a brutal system, they hid themselves. They played fool to ketch wise, adopting the cunning of Anansi, dancing while plotting rebellion. What survived of the African sensibility? Was it buried too deeply under centuries of deception and survival? Will the African community ever rediscover the values, culture and belief of which Ma Titi dreamt?
For some, emancipation is a time to prepare for the Emancipation Day parade, dress up and celebrate African culture. It is also a time to acknowledge the successes of people of African heritage. In Tobago, the Heritage Festival conceptualised by JD Elder is a space of respect and remembrance. From sport to politics, music, film, fashion and more – there is much of which African descendants can be proud.
But for some of us, this is not enough. That is because beneath the many successes lurk the silent echoes of racism, colourism and ongoing attempts at the erasure of African identity started centuries ago. These realities are fuelled by the fact that successive governments have not had the foresight, the will, or both, to properly include people of African heritage into education, public spaces or the religious diversity of our nation.
The impact of the lack of attention to people of African heritage manifests in a number of ways. Schools in East Port of Spain that look like prisons or the disproportionate number of African youth involved in crime and incarcerated.
There is also an unfortunate absence of sensitivity in the way that enslavement and colonialism are taught. It was not so long ago that my niece was asked to write an essay extolling “the good things about slavery.” My stomach still ties in knots at the image of young African men prevented from receiving school certificates because of their hair.
Too many of the young people we interact with from schools and universities have never heard of our great Pan-Africanists. They therefore have no frame of reference for their own sense-of-self as young people of African heritage.
So, for some of us, emancipation is a time to focus on reclaiming those traditional African values that Ma Titi mentioned. A crucial one is the importance of growing and cooking our own food and healing herbs. The proliferation of foreign fast food is not simply affecting our health and placing undue pressure on the national health system. Our inability to promote healthy eating goes against our claims of wanting to be free of colonial dysfunction.
In 1970, Dr Eric Williams wrote that Trinidad and Tobago and other Caribbean nations had simply substituted one form of foreign importation for another, “the vehicles of import being the educational system, the mass media, the films and the tourists.”
In the period before emancipation, Africans protected their traditional beliefs by hiding them inside Christianity. Today, there is less hiding, but the discomfort from the rest of society is still there. Again, the issues stem primarily from a lack of sensitivity to non-Christian forms of religious expression at the highest levels of government leadership and policy-making.
A people’s belief is integral to its world-view, to how accepted they feel by society and for their sense of identity. As a nation, we will continue to struggle to attain real freedom unless we create an environment of religious acceptance that includes traditional African beliefs.
We do not need to rely on data about femicide, gender-based violence or child neglect to recognise that our communities are in peril. However, what we do need is information about the ordeal faced by African families across all indicators, whether education, housing, income or entrepreneurship. We must recognise that if one sector of our society is in trouble, then no one is free.
In 1838, our ancestors were finally released from the most gruesome crime against humanity. Sadly, almost 200 years later, their descendants still have to overcome enormous odds to gain true freedom. I pray that I will be alive to see real change. Ase.
Dara E Healy is a performing artist and founder of the Idakeda Group, a cultural organisation dedicated to empowering communities through the arts
PROFESSOR Lewis Gordon, head of the philosophy in the University of Connecticut, equated revolutions such as the Haitian revolution with love, at his feature presentation during the Kwame Ture Memorial Lecture Series at NAPA, Port of Spain, on June 15.
Gordon spoke on colonialism and revolution through the eyes of Frantz Omar Fanon, a French West Indian psychiatrist, political philosopher and Marxist from Martinique.
“At the heart of every revolution is the radicality of love,” he said. “At the heart of revolution is the courage and the commitment to build the extraordinary in such a way that future generations could live it in their own ways, which would be ordinary for them.
“And what a love that would be indeed, because if you do it right they would say, like what we said to Kwame Ture, Frantz Fanon and so on, is to enable the subsequent generations to say thank you.”
He said in order to be freed from the shackles of colonialism, people must be given power, through their institutions, culture and other areas.
“Power is the ability to make things happen with access to the conditions of doing so,” he said. “It doesn’t matter how many abilities you may have, unless you have access to the conditions to make those abilities work, there is no power.”
He said education, language, words, architecture are conditions that give people the power to free themselves from colonialism. In contrast, he said, colonialism is dis-empowerment.
“We already know that colonialism works not simply by using violence, but by convincing you that black skin is truly inferior.
“If you could be convinced and all the ways you rally for knowledge is to support your inferiority, then you don’t need police or soldiers – because you dominate yourself.”
He noted that people who were taken from African nations and carried to the Caribbean in the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade were part of complex systems where they were contributors to their society and had power.
“The people being enslaved were physicians, architects, they did agronomy (a branch of agriculture that deals with field crop production and soil management). The people directly from Africa had the knowledge from Africa and the conditions in the Americas were hostile for what they wanted in plantations.
“This was not just enslaved labour, this was enslaved knowledge. Part of oppression was to limit the conditions that people had access to.”
He encouraged the audience to think about the conditions they could affect today that would make a brighter future for generations to come.
“If you are looking to build a better world, that has in it the question of value that transcends you. That is dignity. It is when you understand the radical force of love.
“Hate is easy, you see something you hate, burn it down.
“But (love is) building homes, liveable homes where the people that come in are valued, where people come in as human beings and are treasured, where people learn to respect their environment
“It is where people understand that it is not just about us today, it is about understanding that we are the conditions of possibility for those to come.”
KNOWN for being the birthplace of the labour movement, Fyzabad has a rich history and culture. But in recent years, it has been making the headlines for something else – crime.
Heartless, disgusting and brazen were just some of the words residents used to describe those who have now tainted their once “lively, family-like” community through criminal acts.
They believe most of it is being done by young people and that something needs to be done about it sooner rather than later.
The Sunday Newsday requested data from the Police Service on crimes in Fyzabad but up until newstime, that information had not been provided.
On the TTPS website, publicly available statics from the Crime and Problem Analysis Branch show that in 2024, in the South Western division – of which Fyzabad is a part – there were 345 crimes reported for 2024. That division also includes Debe, Cap-de-Ville, Erin, Guapo, La Brea, Oropouche, Penal, Point Fortin, Santa Flora and Siparia.
Of those 345 crimes, there were 39 murders, 176 robberies, 64 reports of rape, incest and sexual offences and 99 reports of burglaries and break-ins.
In 2023, there were 426 crimes reported, including 39 reports of murder, 121 reports of burglaries and break-ins, 122 reports of rape, incest and sexual offences and 145 reports of robberies.
The Tubal Uriah “Buzz” Butler Statue in Fyzabad. – Photo by Lincoln Holder
In 2022,there were 428 reports of crime, including 153 reports of burglaries and break-ins, 35 murders, 80 reports of rape, incest and sexual offences and 151 reports of robberies.
‘All the young men in my village in jail’
One resident, a policewoman, said all the young men from her street are in jail.
She said she and other residents repeatedly tried to steer them away from that lifestyle.
“It’s the youths in Fyzabad that doing the crime now, from around age 14-23. And they’re not even reaching (staying alive until) 25.”
Asked who the youths are learning from, she said, “Honestly, they had senior ones (involved in crime) they may have looked up to because they want to be in badness and fast life…But all the men they look up to (are) in the Apex (cemetery) right now resting.
“I always tell them, it’s one of two places – the cemetery or jail.”
She recalled her shock and outrage at the news of an elderly woman being kidnapped and raped in the area.
On May 3, two masked men – one armed with a cutlass – broke into the home of an elderly couple. The men beat the 68-year-old man with a cutlass and subsequently raped the 63-year old woman. They then kidnapped the woman, taking her to a nearby abandoned house where they also assaulted and raped her. The men then fled the scene with $5,000, jewellery valued at $44,000, cell phones and IDs. Two men, one of whom is a teenager, have since been arrested.
“That one? Hmm,” the policewoman said to Sunday Newsday before pausing for a bit. “I didn’t look for that one at all.
“At first I was thinking it had to be an outsider but is one of we own. And even if it was an outsider, they would need an insider to bring them here and make arrangements, right?”
She said her own elderly grandmother no longer sits in her gallery since the incident and now keeps her doors shut at all times.
“They heartless, they disgusting, they don’t care about mother, child, old, disabled…”
A man chimed in to say it was the first time he had heard of that type of crime happening in Fyzabad.
As for solutions, one resident said he believes the only fix to crime in the area is to “keep the little ones busy.
“Yes, there are plenty of things for youths to do through the government but it’s mostly outside of Fyzabad, and the majority of them are lazy,” he candidly said.
“But if you bring activities here, that’s something different. Keep them busy. If they’re not busy, what do you think is going to happen?”
Issues at home plaguing youth
Jefferson Martinez, a football coach, said while he tries his best to mentor young people positively, many have still slipped through the cracks. He says family issues at home as well as poverty are major driving forces behind that.
Fyzabad shop owner Jefferson Martinez speaks to Newsday on June 9. – Photo by Lincoln Holder
Martinez, 70, said he grew up here and lived in Canada for a bit. He returned to TT in 2003.
“It’s a completely different place…
“I was used to just having a screen door to keep mosquitoes and so forth out, we used to leave the doors open. That all changed in 2003 and 2004 when I came back. I had six break-ins in my house after living in an area where Fyzabad was so friendly and crime-free and safe.”
He said it has only worsened since then.
He coaches with Fyzabad United Football Club and has been doing so since 2006.
“It has just gotten totally out of hand.
“The respect and discipline that we used to have…Respect for elderly people, just general respect for people – that has gone through the window. I don’t know what caused it.”
He, too, alluded to the “fast life” the previous residents spoke about.
“Young people know they want things now. You see things, you want it. You don’t want to have to go to school and study and get a degree or get a skill and get a job. They don’t want to have to wait. And if they are not capable of providing it, they go and steal it or rob.”
He said a lot of young men he coached around 2006 were shot and killed over the years.
“The most famous one was the kids who raided the Pennywise facility. Two of them I coached as little kids.”
On September 19, 2020, a total of six people were killed in a robbery attempt at Pennywise Plaza, La Romaine.
Police killed four suspects after two security guards were killed and two were wounded. All suspects were from Fyzabad.
Another one, Martinez said, “…Ended up, at the end of form four, hog tied in Penal with his limbs cut off and shot.
“We tried to get him to get out of it and he said it was too late. And he was my captain of my football team…He was in so deep he could not get out. And that started in form one for him.”
Asked how he feels when he hears the news about them, he said, “It is very distressing. Very, very distressing.”
But he believes it all stems from “the home and the family.”
He said father absenteeism was something that mentally affected many he trained, as they would confide in him.
“I coach kids for years now and you very rarely see a father showing up to the practices or games. Mostly mothers and a lot of them are single mothers coping with having to work and raise kids.”
On the other hand, he also witnessed cases of “mixed priorities” by parents.
A street sign in Fyzabad. – Photo by Lincoln Holder
“Some of them preferred to drink rum and fete than buy their kids proper football equipment or even buy them a water bottle, feed them breakfast before they come. Their priorities in the house have gone astray.
“And it’s not just the parents, the young parents now. It’s their grandparents who are also young.”
He added, “We try, but we only have a few hours in the week, and when they go home, they’re subject to so much delinquency all around them. It’s pretty tough.”
He said the crimes in recent times in Fyzabad have been “bizarre” and “just craziness.
“Just down the road, a gyro man early in the morning was killed and these kids, young men, were from right around the corner. There were situations of people who burnt an elderly man’s house just down the street and occupied his premises – just murdered him. Then there are drug dens…It’s not a safe place.”
He believes boot camps with necessary mentorship for young people can be an effective solution.
“Some may say it sounds draconian but you see, no matter where you put them, they go back into their home environment. And that’s where the problem starts. It’s the home environment. A little child won’t wake up one morning and be violent like that.
“They grow up in a household or in a neighbourhood that has violence all around them.”
Principles have changed
A Fyzabad/Siparia taxi driver said he and his colleagues were saddened by the recent news of a fellow driver who went missing and was later found dead.
On May 24, the decomposing body of 64-year-old Siparia taxi driver Sheraz Ali was found at Gerahoo Trace in Fyzabad.
Police were led to the body by a now-arrested 26-year-old man who admitted to stabbing Ali while he was a passenger in his car.
“That wasn’t easy to take,” the driver continued.
“Crime is a serious thing here in Fyzabad and in the rest of the country, too.”
He said it does not seem as though young people value life as there has been an upsurge of crime in the area.
“You can’t feel safe in your house any more and that is just the case there.”
He, too, spoke about the sexual assault of the elderly woman.
“People came in, when you’re at home, you’re in your own zone. But for somebody to break in your house and do you something like that, I mean, that is taking away everything from you.”
He said methods of disciplining schoolchildren need to be reviewed.
“Because if you look at the 80s where certain things were in school, the school system, we didn’t have this kind of behaviour.”
He added, “And the music that the youths are listening to nowadays and the freedom with some drugs that they have now…all these things contribute. Because to support your vice, you have to get money. And when you don’t have money, what’s the next alternative? You don’t get a job, you end up in crime, violence.”
He has been a taxi driver for over 20 years and has lived in Fyzabad all his life.
Two young men, one age 22 and the other, 30 also shared their thoughts with the Sunday Newsday.
The younger of the two said hearing about certain types of crimes like kidnapping and sexual assault have been “shocking.”
But he believes “outside people” are the ones coming into the community to do these things.
“It have to be that because Fyzo is love,” he said.
The other said bad parenting and poverty are the main causes for young people being led to a life of crime.
“There was always crime but it was more on the low. Everything coming out in the open now because of frustration and stress.”
He said many people he knows come from single-parent households and that youths “need strongholds in their life to help build them.
“We also need Fyzabad to be more modernised and get more attractions to inspire the youth to come out and move away from that backwards thinking of going into crime.”
Fyzabad vendor Deborah Gilead speaks to Newsday reporter Narissa Fraser on June 9. – Photo by Lincoln Holder
Deborah Gilead said the area she lives in does not have any issues with crime.
“But I hear about the things that go on in other places.”
She maintained, though, “For me, Fyzabad is still a safe place to live. It is a very close-knit community.”
Councillor: Unemployment a key factor
Councillor for Siparia/Fyzabad Jason Ali said one of the main issues is unemployment among the youth.
“They are looking for employment, firm, formal, sustainable employment.”
He added that programmes such as YTEPP (Youth Training and Employment Partnership Programme) have “collapsed over the past few years.
“If we could get those programmes to restart, that will also assist.”
He added, “Those programmes also have a stipend and they can use that to get to and from the destination where the classes are being held. And I say that because if even their parents are not working in some instances, at least they can use that to get them to the locations.”
Ali is also a primary school teacher. Because of this, he said, he understands the challenges young people face.
He said there is also a lack of recreational facilities, and the ones there are not well-maintained owing to financial constraints.
“We get is next to nothing to maintain these facilities within our level of occupancy or usage. On average, we get $80,000 for the year to upgrade our facilities throughout the constituency. I have three in my district: Standard Grounds, Mulch and Trace Grounds, and College Street Grounds.”
He said the lights at these facilities are not working well, and in some cases, at all.
“I have multiple letters we wrote to the Ministry (of Rural Development and Local Government), and nothing has been done about it.”
He also wishes to see the ALTA (Adult Literacy Tutors Association) programme returned to the area.
“A lot of young adults in Fyzabad cannot read or write. We used to have an ALTA class here many years ago and it collapsed. Things like that will assist in the overall development of Fyzabad.”
“There’s just a lack of avenues for upward mobility within the community for young men and women between the ages of 18 and 22.”
Police officers on patrol in Fyazbad on June 9. – Photo by Lincoln Holder
Many other residents declined to comment, with some showing interest in speaking to the Sunday Newsday until they were notified the topic was crime.
Some said while they are aware of the situation, they are not affected as they “grew up” with many of the criminals. “So they don’t come around us.”
Newsday was also told residents believe criminals from other areas “come here to hide out.
“We always seeing strange faces now.”
Others said they try their best not to be outside late at night any more.
DEMANDING reparations from the French government to Haiti, the Assembly of Caribbean People accompanied by trade unions and other organisations delivered a letter to the French Embassy on April 17.
As the letter was handed over to a representative of the French ambassador, David Abdulah, who is a member of the assembly’s regional executive committee, indicated that the letter was in French so the ambassador would have no excuse for not understanding the importance of its contents.
The delivery was done on the 200-year anniversary of France demanding a 150 million gold francs debt in exchange for Haiti’s independence.
On that same day the letter was delivered, French President Emmanuel Macron said that historic injustice was imposed on Haiti when it was forced to pay the colossal indemnity to France 200 years ago.
The Associated Press (AP) reported that Macron said in a statement that France “subjected the people of Haiti to a heavy financial indemnity…This decision placed a price on the freedom of a young nation, which was thus confronted with the unjust force of history from its very inception.”
The AP report said Macron also announced the creation of a joint French-Haitian historical commission to “examine our shared past” and assess relations, but did not directly address long-standing Haitian demands for reparations.
David Abdulah, a member of the regional executive committee of the Assembly of Caribbean People, delivers a letter demanding reparations for Haiti to a representative of the French Embassy on Mary Street, Port of Spain on April 17. – Photo by Ayanna Kinsale
Carol Noel, director of the Network of NGOs of Trinidad and Tobago for the Advancement of Women, said at the embassy, “Normally on anniversaries we are happy, we are joyful and we look back on all of our achievements. But the people of Haiti cannot rejoice, they are in anguish, they are in pain, they are denied certain privileges, and what is theirs has been denied to them.
“They are suffering, not only because of natural disasters, but because of what man has done to them and we need to lend our voice to that situation…They have no shelter and they have a whole nation that owes them money. A debt has to be paid, you incur a debt, it has to be paid.”
She encouraged all citizens of TT and the wider Caribbean to stand in solidarity with Haiti in demanding justice.
Representing the Emancipation Support Committee and the Caribbean Freedom Project, activist Shabaka Kambon quoted Guyanese poet Martin Carter as he spoke in front of the embassy.
“One of his poems is called Looking at Your Hands and in that poem he starts by saying, ‘No I will not still my voice, I have too much to claim.’
“That line really speaks to what we are here for this morning. We are here this morning because we have too much to claim on behalf of our brothers and sisters in Haiti. This morning we stand in solidarity with all those who would hear this call and are in front of embassies and consulates doing the same things that we are this morning.
Kambon noted that despite its vibrant culture and rich history, Haiti still remains one of the poorest nations in the Western Hemisphere with its citizens living in some of the most dire situations in the world.
“The rich nations of the world have their fingerprints all over this situation in Haiti and France is chief among them.
“This issue of the debt that France owes to Haiti has been discussed ad nauseam by the leading legal luminaries of the world. And there is a consensus that if this was really brought to trial in the way that it should, France would have to pay Haiti.”
He said despite the lack of attention paid to the issue by some regional leaders, civil society and the people of the region continue to remember the sacrifices that were made by Haitian revolutionaries.
Activist Shabaka Kambon speaks in front of the French Embassy on Mary Street, Port of Spain, on April 17. – Photo by Ayanna Kinsale
Kambon also told Newsday a story about his visit to Haiti just after the earthquake in 2010.
“The Presidential Palace had semi-collapsed, thousands of people were living in tent cities all around the Negre Marron (Black Maroon) monument and the only place it had running water for a long period was right behind the Presidential Palace and so everyone from those tent cities was going there to shower.”
He said during his mission he was allowed to go to the area to shower but was told by the guide to leave the doors of his vehicle, which contained his laptop, suitcase and other belongings, open.
“So I thought, boy, if this was Frederick Street all that stuff gone. So I start to calculate my losses one time. We joined the line and it took us about 40 minutes to get to the shower and when we came back, not a thing was touched in our car.”
He said that was the first time he got a sense that there was something special and different about Haiti and its people.
One of the first attempts of the administration of the united colony which demonstrated some consciousness of the importance of the issue of connectivity for the united colony, to deal with sea-related issues, was stimulated by a need to draw Tobago into the round-the-colony journey to New York.
It was the brainchild of then Governor Sir William Robinson, who in his response to the dwindling performance of the island’s agricultural sector, sought to establish a fruit trade between Trinidad and the United States. Farmers were encouraged to cultivate fruit, especially citrus and bananas, which would be collected at the production points to facilitate the trade.
A round-the-island coastal steamer service was organised to pick up the items of fruit for export. This service which was contracted to Turnbull Stewart and Company at the rate of £5,000 per annum for seven years, was conducted with two ships.
At union in 1889, Tobago was included in the itinerary of the steamers and, as a result, was bestowed with a fortnightly service.
Unfortunately, the fruit trade was not a successful venture. There were myriads of problems, not the least of which was the handling of the fruit by inexperienced farmers during both the pre and post-harvest stages. The fruit, which was not properly packaged for the journey, arrived in New York with bounces and bruises, some in an under-ripe and others in an overripe state, and was not attractive for marketing.
The trade effort flopped and the contract to Turnbull was withdrawn. However, Tobago was included in the steamship service to the east and north coast of Trinidad, which was started at the beginning of 1889, and included Tobago in October of that year.
After two failed attempts to provide the service through contracted arrangements and the incessant vociferous chorus of protest that emanated from traffickers from Tobago who complained about damage to their cargo and the unsuitability of the ships for the service, complaints from planters and merchants about the trading arrangements which were fickle and costly and the population of Tobago which suffered depredations because of the unreliability of the service which resulted in increased costs of items which became in short supply.
In addition, in the 1925 elections James Biggart who was elected to represent Tobago on the Legislative Council of Trinidad and Tobago, became the loudest advocate for the provision of a better service to Tobago. He forcefully advocated for the provision of a better service to the people of Tobago and highlighted the difficulties he encountered in his attempts to attend meetings of the council to represent his people.
The effort was extremely costly causing him much personal expense of finances and time and he became the loudest advocate for a radical improvement of the sea communications between Trinidad and Tobago. His appeals did not fall on totally deaf ears for the government of the colony which was faced with the spiralling costs of the existing service which became more expensive, less efficient and evocative of increasingly stinging criticism, decided to develop a shipping service that was conducted through the Harbour Master’s office.
On May 15, 1927, a sea communication committee was established under the direction of the Director of Public Works, M A Murphy with a mandate of this committee to determine how a satisfactory service which met the needs of both islands could be developed without the weaknesses of the previous arrangements and the spiralling costs to the government.
The problems which were highlighted at the committee level were: the increased costs of the previous efforts, the length of time taken to conduct the round-the-island journey which was influenced by the number of stops the ships were required to make, the frequent delays sometimes up to 24 hours that, were encountered on the journey.
In a contribution which reflected a total lack of sensitivity to the situation which faced the people of Tobago particularly, those in the Windward part of the island, the ship’s captain suggested removing the stops at Plymouth, Milford, Bloody Bay, Pembroke and Hillsborough. The problem in these areas was not related to a shortage of cargo to be collected for export to Trinidad, but a lack of jetties to allow the ships to come closer to the port area.
Before the committee submitted its recommendations, by letter to the Secretary of State, Tobago planters and merchants requested an inquiry into the state of isolation to which Tobago had been placed, the severe business losses they encountered, delayed mail which hampered effective communication and the difficulties of travelling from Tobago to Trinidad to conduct everyday business.
The committee dismissed the need for another inquiry and proceeded with its findings. It ascertained that what, in the past was being attempted by one ship, would be more efficiently done by the two ships which it recommended and that the service to and from Tobago should be operated through the auspices of government services rather than through contracted operators.
Government acquired two vessels, the Trinidad and the Tobago which offered a nine-hour journey from Port of Spain to Tobago and an eight-hour journey from Tobago to Port of Spain. The service, which commenced at night from both islands, occurred three times per week and included round-the-island trips which started from Roxborough and then went to the remaining bays on the windward and leeward coasts to pick up passengers and cargo.
Although this was considered an improvement in the service, the complaints continued because the necessary facilities had not been provided. Stevedores, who physically offloaded the cargo had to wade through the water to the small boats which would convey the items to the port. Depending on the tide, items would often get wet which was disastrous for goods such as flour, rice and dry peas.
The stevedores were also required to assist female passengers to climb down the rope ladders and carry them across the intervening water to enter the small boats which could be a demanding task depending on the size of the women and the tide.
The changed arrangement brought revenue to the government which then offered special weekend fares to stimulate holiday travel and increase government revenue. In addition, holiday trips to Tobago were advertised as well as trips to Guyana, Barbados and Grenada. These trips interrupted the schedule causing complaints from irate traders whose cargo was not transported causing them to incur losses to facilitate the tourism drive.
Another committee, the Nichol Committee was appointed in 1938 to determine whether the existing service met the needs of the population. The Nichol Report was formulated concerning the development needs of the island which were injected into the final report.
It stated that transport and economic development were interrelated and recommended that the economic development of Tobago rested on strengthening the agricultural sector with increased staff, diversification of agriculture, and an improvement in its system of roads and internal transport.
It recommended that the round-the-island service be maintained until roads were developed and that better accommodation should be provided for animals awaiting transport on the wharves. In addition, to foster tourism development, it recommended the implementation of a faster passenger service for domestic and tourist travel. Just when matters appeared to be hopeful, war broke out, the report was shelved, and the problems remained unresolved as attention became focussed on wartime emergencies.
THE members of the Tobago planting fraternity were totally opposed to the union of Trinidad and Tobago in their attempt to prevent the implementation of a policy which they anticipated would result in distasteful changes, not the least of which would be their separation from the reins of power.
But that union was a fait accompli where the imperial government was concerned and once the union was made operative, it became very clear that the position of dominance and the power traditionally wielded by the island’s planters and merchants were relegated to the past.
This was a difficult pill for the members of the erstwhile ruling class to swallow and in a desperate attempt to protect their interests, the Tobago Planters Association was formed in 1905. Its membership was composed of white and near-white planters and merchants who sought strength in unity with the hope that they could salvage some semblance of the influence which plantation owners and merchants once exercised.
It is to be noted that this body of planters and merchants constituted a new planter /merchant presence who had to function in a very different social and economic environment.
Firstly, the era of quick wealth from profit bearing plantations was over. The old plantocracy stubbornly held on to sugar cultivation until forced to give it up when the industry crashed, after which no suitable profit generating crop had been identified. The island became stuck in financial doldrums which along with the social ferment which it stirred, provided the imperial government with the opportunity to implement its policy of terminating the powers of the local assembly and implement direct rule over the island without effective opposition.
Secondly the new planters did not wield the powers of their predecessors who had surrendered their powers to the imperial government amid fears of a black backlash against exploitation and control.
Thirdly, the new planters needed workers on their properties, but they encountered a working class that resisted low wages and poor working conditions and was further stirred by the activities of the Trinidad Working Mens’ Association. In addition, the misfortunes of the sugar industry facilitated the actualisation of the land acquisition ambitions of the working class.
Since the start of union there was opposition to the over centralisation of decision making in Trinidad and there were calls for popular control over decisions pertaining to the island which increased towards the end of the 19th and into the early years of the 20th century when the number of black landowners was on the increase. To the employers this development created what was considered a void on the labour market forcing them to grapple with what they termed “a labour problem” which they were unable to resolve.
They failed (or refused) to see the growing consciousness of the working-class population of political matters and their strong desires for a more participatory administration.
Fourthly, the new crop of planters and merchants were small operators. The planters were unable to expend the required sums to put their operation on a financially sound footing and despite their intentions, plantation business was no longer a highly remunerative activity. Also, because they failed to consider the changed society in which they were operating, their fixation with past modes did not serve their best interests.
Like their predecessors, the new planters refused to see the black population as nothing other than labourers who were not to be allowed to have ambitions of their own.
The merchants found themselves severely restricted because all their business had to be conducted through business houses and agents in Trinidad, which limited possibilities for diversification and growth. This arrangement stifled the conduct of trade because all economic activity was dependent on the highly unreliable steamer service which connected the two islands.
As a result, the movement of people and goods suffered, spoilage occurred during the long time periods between sailings, profits were impaired. Shortages of essential items were common on the island and with it, price increases were regular while profits dwindled. It was extremely difficult to overcome this impediment without influence in the Legislative Council of TT where decisions were made. The council was dominated by the large Trinidad sugar and cocoa plantation owners, seven of whom constituted its unofficial element.
The prevailing opinion in the council was that Tobago was a dependency; its agriculture was in shambles and not worth restoration and generally they attached no importance to Tobago’s issues. Its label as an island ward did not work in Tobago’s favour because during discussions in the council, it was argued that the island did not merit special consideration, particularly for projects which required large sums to be expended since it was just like any of the other wards in the colony. No consideration was given to the special needs of the island and even Tobago’s representative on the council was disrespected.
The situation was further exacerbated by the challenges which were faced by the Tobago representative. Owing to the unpredictability of the steamer service, the representative was unable to attend council sessions frequently, but those who were nominated before 1925 were planters whose concerns were focussed on planter interests and not on the welfare of the island as a whole.
In addition, Tobago did not feature as a prospect for the colony’s agricultural growth which was the main concern of the large planter component of the council. While the power and influence of the Tobago planters declined those of the Trinidad planters who were members of the council increased. The reality was that both the planters of Tobago and the island’s representative in the council wielded no power over Tobago’s affairs.
However, the planting community and their supporters had demonstrated their lack of interest in the welfare of the population and had no commitment to the development of Tobago. They were strenuously opposed to constitutional reform which empowered the labouring class.
A discussion which was held during one of their meetings, which leaked to the public, revealed their commitment to their group over the interests of the island. They wished to punish the lazy Tobagonians to they wanted to grant crown lands to Indians from Trinidad as a strategy to relieve their “labour problem.” They were both angry and embarrassed when the matter was made public and in response, they kept their meetings secret and far removed from from the prying eyes and cocked ears of their opponents.
They advocated for the island’s administration to be headed by a Commissioner Warden who they hoped would be able to influence the executive in Trinidad and manage the affairs of Tobago, so giving them the access to decision-making on the island, which they craved. The authorities did not initially approve this proposal and when they did after lengthy debate, the commissioner/warden was not given the powers they hoped for.
In 1938 the members of the Tobago Planters Association joined the Chamber of Commerce, which was formed in 1936, but this organisation was dominated by its Trinidad members and the Tobago members did not have a voice.
When the Franchise Commission was established Tobago’s representative, was Robert Reid, a planter who advocated a high-income qualification for both voters and candidates which was contrary to the desires of the population.
Despite their efforts, the Tobago Planters Association was not able to turn the direction of both the administration of Tobago and the direction of its development along their preferred path. Their efforts to turn the tide of change back to the past had failed.
HAVING gained possession of Tobago in 1763 following a series of conflicts between the various European claimants, the primary aim of the British government was the establishment of sugar cane cultivation on the island.
This led to a hasty attempt to subdivide and sell land to establish sugar plantations, a policy which was prompted by the dual aim of staving off French advances on the island and the desire to benefit from the lucrative market for sugar in Europe.
The need for labour led to the importation of captive Africans to the newly established estates, which initiated African enslavement on the island. Following the pattern established by the slavers in Barbados, those in Tobago, some of whom were also plantation owners in Barbados, applied the strict slave code which was created in Barbados.
These laws were based on the principle that the Africans were chattel, the property of their purchasers who had the right to exert full control over them and treat them as they pleased.
The Barbadian Slave Code was in fact based on the fears of the slavers that they would not be able to control their property unless they applied rigid restrictions and inflicted brutal punishment for transgressions by their enslaved property.
The other consideration was their need to institute measures to secure their investment in purchases of Africans and estates, and to secure the desired profits from the enterprise.
One of the areas that was specially targeted in the Barbadian code was in the realm of culture. Despite the harsh laws of the land which underscored their inferiority, the natural instincts of the enslaved Africans were to have recourse to their innate cultural practices as indices of their identity, strategies for survival, expressions of their religious beliefs, connections with their ancestors, and mechanisms of resistance.
A central feature of life in their homeland was communication across the vast continent, which was an integral part of life in African communities. The experience of the Barbadian slavers caused them to put specific emphasis on the most commonly used method of communication, the drum, one of the most revered cultural items, which one writer described as “the lifeblood “of the African.
Although the slavers objected to the noise and what they considered primitive pagan tendencies of drumming, the fact was that they did not understand the encoded messages which were communicated by drumming, but there were both an awareness that there was deeper meaning to the activity and fear that it could be used against the enslavers themselves and their ability to maintain the institution of slavery.
Drumming was associated with plots and revolts and enslavers recognised that drums spoke a language that they did not understand. Their solution to this dilemma was to impose a legal ban on the drum with severe punishment for the offenders, which was in force since the 18th century.
But for the creators and users, it was a battle with the authorities who felt a particular urgency to deal with drumming from the mid-18th-mid-19th century, when Emancipation occurred.
There were resistance movements which rocked the fledgling sugar industry in Tobago during the 1770s, which made the slavers particularly concerned about drumming and its impact and made them increasingly hostile to drummers and drumming.
In addition, the persistent French threat to the island made the British authorities concerned that any uprising of the enslaved would provide an invitation to French activity in Tobago.
Secondly, the British/French hostility provided the opportunities for French and other pirates and privateers around the coasts, which raised security concerns.
The anti-drum thrust was increased with the termination of the British slave trade and the movement for emancipation. During to period between these two events, slavers were anxious to crush any resistance movement which they believed to be centred around the drums and drumming.
However, the need of the enslaved Africans for communication with their fellows in other parts of the island, for spiritual release and entertainment was so great that they were willing to utilise whatever material was available, be it hollowed tree trunks or unused articles, to create their drums.
In addition to the system of enslavement itself, the ban and related punishment stimulated the African creative pulse, resulting in the creation of various types of drums in the Caribbean.
The response to the ban was the development of a resistance movement to find ways of circumventing the law, which led to the creation of the Tobago tambrin drum. With brave determination, the enslaved Africans sought to protect their creation from destruction by the slavers by hiding the drums in their crude mattresses or in secret places in or around the plantations.
The Tobago tambrin takes its name from a creolisation of the word tambourine, the instrument which was used by missionaries who served on the island to Christianise the “savages,” to accompany their songs.
The making/tuning of the drum is an art which involves a meticulous process and use of the right animal skin to produce the desired sound. So too is playing the drum, which is a skill that requires knowledge of the processes of making and tuning the instrument, constant practice and, in addition, the ability to prepare the goat skin by heating it to the right temperature, before starting to play.
The drums were made from discarded kegs and barrels used for shipping rum and molasses and were headed by goat or other animal skin. When cheese was imported into the island, initially cheese boxes were used to make the rims for the kegs but were replaced by the wild cassava, a vine which grows in the forest, and which held the skin in place.
Kegs were stolen from the estate and hidden, and the drums were made in secret, but their existence was revealed when they were put into use. Then the authorities would confiscate and destroy the drums and the skins of slaughtered animals to deprive the Africans from access to them.
The premises on which drum making was known or suspected to be conducted were frequently inspected. But as drums were destroyed and individuals punished, the Africans found more creative ways to give expression to their inner desires and oppose the restrictive laws and practices.
They created drum orchestras made up of three drums – the bass or boom drum with a deep low-toned bass, the fuller or roller which carried the tune, and the high-toned cutter. The fiddle or violin and the steel triangle completed the ensemble. The Tambrin Band provided the music for entertainment, ceremonies, dance and spiritual rituals in Tobago.
From its 18th century beginnings, the beating of the tambrin, though shrouded in fear and secrecy, was a consistent effort of the Africans to hold on to aspects of their identity through their music of resistance, which flowered after Emancipation when the African population was freed of the fear of punishment for asserting this aspect of their cultural expression.
ATTENDEES at the workshop performance of Judith Theodore’s play The Arrival of Scald praised the writer for highlighting decades-old experiences with a modern twist.
It was performed as part of the 2024 New Play Festival, where playwrights got feedback from attendees at the end of each performance.
The first performance of Theodore’s play was on November 29, and the last was on December 1.
It was held at Theatre 2, UTT Academy for the Performing Arts, (APA), NAPA in Port of Spain.
The Arrival of Scald was described as being about a “titular character” who moved from country life to living in the city. It is set in the early 1970s.
“As he integrates into a lively group of friends, Scald encounters a series of comedic misadventures, provoking reflections on luck and friendship in a vibrant urban landscape,” the synopsis said.
At the 2 pm show on December 1, audience members were laughing throughout the performance.
It was about an hour-and-a-half long.
Scald, the main character, and his close-knit group of friends that became family resonated well with them.
But during the moments when some serious topics such as racism, classism and injustice were highlighted, many were nodding in agreement at the points being made.
Judith Theodore. – Photo courtesy New Play Festival
Some other themes included poverty, love, friendship, lust, deception and unemployment.
The predominant language used was Trinidadian English creole.
The feedback given by the audience after the performances aligned with their real-time reactions.
“I think it reflects our society – past and present,” an elderly man said.
He added, “I’ve been around, and a lot of what was displayed here is what I would have experienced growing up.”
Some other attendees agreed with him saying while they understood it was based in the 70s, it included many things that they can relate to even now.
On the topic of colourism, the elderly man said younger people who did not “share the 70s experience” (The Black Power Movement) may not be aware of the strides that have been made since then.
“Some of that came out in the production and there were some emotions, too.”
A woman said she “found herself laughing, probably more than anyone else.”
She commented on the group of friends, “They really were looking out for him and backing him up. And even when he was doing what he really shouldn’t be doing, they really turned out to be more like family and I really appreciated that threat.”
She praised Theodore as well as the actors.
Theodore told Newsday she finished writing this play in early 2023.
She has been writing plays for almost two decades and this was her second entry into the New Play Festival. The first was Dey Dey Gets a House in 2019.
Asked about the inspiration for The Arrival of Scald, she said it was based on a real person who had been “down on their luck” for some time.
A snapshot from a workshop performance of Judith Theodore’s play The Arrival of Scald at NAPA, Port of Spain. – Photo by Paula Lindo
“So I decided to write a play based on the incidents that happened.”
She said the topic of colourism stood out to people the most based on the feedback she has received.
“People always think if you are fair (in complexion), you can get through (life easily).
She said the play is simply “about life.”
“And a lot of the audience members felt like that, too.
“These things happen in life. These are the things that happen – being stolen from, having false accusations made against you…How would these things make you feel?
HISTORIAN Dr Rita Pemberton says the education system is not tailored toward ensuring that students understand themselves and their talents.
She was the main speaker at a discussion, titled History & Heritage, at the Hochoy Charles Administrative Complex, Calder Hall, on December 3.
The two-hour discussion was among the series of events to commemorate Tobago Day, officially celebrated on December 4.
Saying the world is becoming increasingly competitive, Pemberton told an audience of mostly students that the education system needs to respond more strongly to global trends.
She observed students are still being steered towards certain types of jobs.
“We are still caught up with this silo education – directing people, specialising people from very early. But people do things (in school) and when they come out they want to do something completely different,” she said.
Pemberton, a Newsday Tobago columnist, said she knew a student whose father wanted her to be an engineer but opted for another career.
“She went and did the engineering and then she come and do English because that is what she wanted to do – she wanted to be a writer. We have to be sensitive to that, that all of us have some kind of talent and school is the place where you develop the talent.
“But the first thing school must do for you is to make you understand you – and that is where our education system is failing miserably. So we have people who discover they love history. But when? When they get old.”
Responding to a student who felt that art and history were not as lucrative as medicine or engineering, Pemberton asked, “Do you know there are many unemployed doctors in Trinidad and Tobago now? They not making any money.
“You know that some artists make heavy money.”
She observed the orange economy has become very lucrative over the years.
“If you look around, you will see that we have too many doctors, too many dentists. Then we have some doctors we don’t trust, some too expensive.”
The retired university lecturer also said in the modern world, it is not enough for young people to have a first degree.
“That gets you nowhere. You’ve got to specialise, and highly specialise too. So the doctors who make money are the ones who do surgeries; you attend to bones and knees; or you do treatment of diseases that really plague people. But you’ve got to specialise in any field that you are in.
“You are not going anywhere with a first degree, that is just like an introduction. You’ve got to move up with your qualifications and new opportunities are coming.”
She said people in various fields, from medicine to the culinary arts, are also involved in carnival, mas-making and other activities.
“You have got to keep that in mind. So if somebody has something that they love – a passion or hobby – that they make into a business, that’s how the world will be.”
Pemberton said during the post-Emancipation era in Tobago, many young people were expected to learn a trade.
On December 2, Gwyneth Morris-Alexander, acting permanent secretary, Ministry of Education, said the ministry is working on revising the school curriculum to adapt to modern technological advances and create employment opportunities for students.
She said the focus will be on revitalising technical and vocational education and training (TVET) “as a premier option and a dynamic entrepreneurial pathway for students.
“We are actively revising curricula at all levels to align with contemporary technological advancements and industry trends, ensuring relevance and adaptability in a rapidly changing world.”
Morris-Alexander spoke at the opening ceremony of a regional workshop, Designing Courseware for Blended Technical and Vocational Education and Training, at the BRIX hotel, Cascade. The Commonwealth of Learning, Caribbean Association for National Training Authorities and the National Training Agency of TT collaborated on the initiative.
This story was originally published with the title “Historian: Education not helping students understand themselves” and has been adjusted to include additional details. See original post below.
HISTORIAN Dr Rita Pemberton says the education system is not tailored toward ensuring students understand themselves and their talents.
She was the main speaker at a discussion, titled History & Heritage, at the Hochoy Charles Administrative Complex, Calder Hall, on December 3.
The discussion was among the events to commemorate Tobago Day, which ends on December 19.
Saying the world is becoming increasingly competitive, Pemberton told an audience of mostly students that the education system needs to respond more strongly to global trends.
She observed students are still being steered towards certain types of jobs.
“We are still caught up with this silo education – directing people, specialising people, from very early. But people do things and when they come out they want to do something completely different,” she said.
Pemberton, a Newsday Tobago columnist, said she knew a student whose father wanted her to be an engineer, but who opted for another career.
“She went and did the engineering and then she come and do English because that is what she wanted to do – she wanted to be a writer. We have to be sensitive to that – that all of us have some kind of talent, and school is the place where you develop the talent.
“But the first thing school must do for you is to make you understand you, and that is where our education system is failing miserably.
“So we have people who discover they love history. But when? When they get old.”
FROM THE late 15th century there was a continuous onslaught by Christian discoverers, missionaries and explorers against Indigenous peoples in the Americas. Their intrusion wreaked havoc on innocent people.
The unwelcome presence of the Spanish, who were Roman Catholic, and later, other European nations (some who belonged to Protestant sects), polluted our Caribbean space. Their actions set in motion unprecedented negative forces. The decimation of the First Peoples was the Western Hemisphere’s first genocide.
The cruel mindset of the Spanish had been earlier exposed during the dreaded Inquisition in medieval Europe. The discovery of new lands by Spain included the misguided belief that Christian countries had a right to govern and rule non-Christian nations. This warped philosophy was known as the “Doctrine of Discovery” and was conceptualised by the RC Church. In 1513, Spain decided to formalise the Doctrine of Discovery in a document known as the Requerimiento (Requirement).
In this biased document, an arrogant King Ferdinand of Spain claimed that God had declared that the pope ruled all peoples, regardless of their law, sect or belief.
The Requirement was neither a vague nor disguised document, but the ulterior motive was obvious: “We shall take you and your wives and your children, and shall make slaves of them, and as such shall sell and dispose of them as their Highnesses may command; and we shall take away your goods, and shall do all the harm and damage that we can.”
All Spanish expeditions were supposed to carry a copy of the Requirement.
The past has constantly haunted us. The First Nations of North America have suffered in this holocaust. The shame of imperialism included stolen lands and burnt villages. These once-free peoples were forced into reservations and later became victims of alcoholism and gambling.
In 1992, efforts to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the arrival of the Spanish expedition into the New World erupted in heated protests in Latin America and Caribbean. The debates revolved around Christopher Columbus’s so-called “discovery” of the region and the subsequent repercussions.
One might ask: How could events that occurred more than 500 years ago affect the Caribbean economies?
It did, and the intrusion of the European powers had a profound impact on our architecture, cuisine, flora and fauna.
This foreign influence wreaked havoc on a tropical environment unaccustomed to sudden change, as the balance of nature was disrupted. Also, it is indubitable that the destruction of a sustainable Caribbean and Latin American environment continued, unhampered, by successive colonial regimes.
This dealt a severe blow to our biodiversity and paved the way for a monoculture which led to a painful economic dependence. Even the introduction of sugar cane to our region can be traced to the ill-fated colonial conquest.
On June 11, 2008, the prime minister of Canada issued a formal apology on behalf of Canadians for the negative impact of the Indian residential school system. In Canada, during the 19th and 20th centuries, residential schools separated over 150,000 Aboriginal (or Indigenous) children from their communities and families. This was a government policy that sought to deliberately isolate Aboriginal children from their culture and language so they could be better assimilated into the dominant European culture. This cultural genocide was only part of the colonial tragedy, as many of these innocent children suffered emotional, sexual and physical abuse in the schools. Furthermore, they were inadequately clothed and fed and some were murdered. This was part of the tragic Christian presence in North America.
Some institutions have acknowledged the stolen lands. For instance, Simon Fraser University (SFU) in Canada has publicly stated that it is located on unceded, traditional territories of the Squamish, Musqueam, Tsleil-Waututh, Katzie and Kwikwetlem First Nations. The Australian government offered a similar apology to the Aboriginal population in February 2009. The thousands of children who were forcibly removed from their families and communities and forced to assimilate were known as the Stolen Generations.
Zita Wallace, an Aboriginal woman from Australia, who is part of the Stolen Generations, recounted her life in an institution operated by the RC Church: “We got belted for speaking our language. We were called pagans and heathens and spawn of the devil. We cooked for the nuns, we washed their big bloomers, we cleaned their rooms. We got just enough education to read and write.”
The abuse committed by so-called religious people is another incident in which the guilty have not been punished. The repercussions of such brutality will not be easily forgotten in history.
Former Central Bank governor, former foreign affairs minister and Congress of the People founder Winston Dookeran believes the Government should look at changing the country’s watchwords instead of redesigning the national coat of arms.
His comments come during public debate over the Prime Minister’s announcement that pan will soon replace Christopher Columbus’s ships on the country’s coat of arms.
Dr Rowley made the announcement on August 18 at a special People’s National Movement convention in Port of Spain. It was called to determine the party’s position on constitutional reform on the basis of the report of a Cabinet-appointed committee
“I don’t think there is any attempt, and if there is, to incorporate a new set of watchwords, I would agree with that,” Dookeran said.
In a phone interview with Newsday on August 20, he said the country’s watchwords – discipline, tolerance and production – have not served it well.
He recalled debates between the late Benedictine monk Dom Basil Matthews and the late Dr Eric Williams before Independence about them. Matthews had a different concept of what the watchwords should be and his focus was on issues of unity, justice and progress, Dookeran said.
“I gave a long speech along those lines about a year ago, about Dom Basil’s contribution to the debate on the watchwords of Trinidad and Tobago. I think that needs to be reviewed, because that has not served us well.”
The coat of arms and national anthem were highly acclaimed not only in TT but abroad, especially the anthem, wherever he went, Dookeran said.
Dr Winston Dookeran believes the Government should look at changing the country’s watchwords instead of redesigning the national coat of arms. –
“Trying to interfere with these symbols of nationhood is not a matter for one person to decide. It is not a matter for a committee to decide. It is not a matter to take lightly, and not a matter, in my view, that should be dealt with in a very ad-hoc (manner).”He said the issue had “come out like a thief in the night to interfere and perhaps divert the attention of the political electorate of this country.”
Do not reinterpret history
He also issued a warning to those who reinterpret history, whether good or bad.
“I always believe we must honour our history – whether we like it or not.
“Any attempt to change the history of the country is fraught with peril. For those who do so will, one day, find their own history being reinterpreted.”
Dookeran said a major principle of nation-building was that history should be honoured.
He believes the coat of arms has served TT well and reflected its historical background.
“I see no sensible reason to interfere – other than for political purposes – with that important symbol of our identity,” he added.
While there has been much debate about the use of an image of the pan, Dookeran said pan was deserving of a lot more recognition, but this should be done in other ways.
It deserved the recognition, he felt, because it was birthed in this country, but also represented a whole new musical range, globally. But the best way to recognise it was to develop a school of music and develop it to international standards.
The national coat of arms pictured at the Eric Williams Financial Complex, Port of Spain, on August 20. – Photo by Ayanna Kinsale
Doing so “would also introduce a commercially-viable steelband production for the world,” he added.
Dookeran said Rowley’s idea was ill-timed and fraught with great peril for future nation-building.
He believes the idea is a political one.
‘Redesign the arms completely’
Former Art Society president Peter Sheppard addressed the issue of design with Newsday.
While he saw nothing wrong with upgrading a company’s logo, corporate insignia or a national emblem over time, he felt simply incorporating a contemporary element into an existing design was not the way to do it.
“Unless they are redoing the coat of arms in its totality, through a panel, which is how it was done in the 60s – no problem.
“(But) you cannot just put a graphic of a steelpan over something and carry on.”
Sheppard said other elements should be included in the potential redesign, not just the pan.
Various memes were also created after Rowley’s announcement, some adding symbols of some of the social ills with which TT grapples (such as crime and guns).
“I am sure there are other elements that are applicable to TT, the republic, today, versus what it was in the early 60s when it was designed, that they want to incorporate,” he said.
Sheppard suggested the redesign should not simply include pan, but take a holistic approach.
Artist Peter Sheppard said other elements should be included in the potential redesign of the national coat of arms, not just the pan. – Photo by Jeff K Mayers
“There may be other elements you want to incorporate over time, and you relaunch your brand, so to speak, and you have a new coat of arms that will transcend the next several decades in our history yet to be made.”
While some argued there should have been public consultation, Sheppard said the committee formed to consider national monuments would possibly have discussed the change.
The Cabinet-appointed committee set up to review the placement of statues, monuments and signage, particularly the removal or retention of statues of Christopher Columbus, is due to hold a public consultation on August 28.
He did not think there’d be a new coat of arms tomorrow. Sheppard believed the Government would have mechanisms in place to deal with this, and hoped there was discussion before the announcement was made.
Sheppard believes a complete redesign would eliminate any potential copyright issues that might arise from the proposed change.
He agreed there were more pressing matters to address right now.
But he also agreed the country needed to modernise, look at its culture and, if the coat of arms was out of date, come up with a new design concept.
Logistics of change
Dookeran said it would be a difficult thing to change everything bearing the coat of arms. As a former Central Bank governor, he said the coat of arms could easily be added to new money, but does not think all the currency would be changed overnight.
“I think one would introduce a change in the coat of arms in the currency when it is going to be issued, which is normally done on an annual basis.”
If the intent was to change all the currency immediately, that would be a costly exercise, he said.
As for the Central Bank itself, it said in response to questions, “The banknotes and coins of TT embody the country’s coat of arms as a key element of national identity.
“Any changes to this national symbol will be incorporated in new printing and minting orders.”
As for altering the original design, the copyright for the design of the national flag and the coat of arms is vested in the State in perpetuity, under the National Emblems of TT (Regulation) Act.
History of the coat of arms
Taken from the National Library and Information System Authority’s (Nalis) website
“The coat of arms of TT was designed by a committee formed in 1962 to select the symbols that would be representative of the people of TT. The committee included noted artist Carlisle Chang and designer George Bailey.
“The coat of arms with the accompanying motifs which represent indigenous features of TT were selected and formally agreed to be used as the coat of arms of TT in 1962, in a design approved by the College of Arms.”
“One ceremony in the saraka was the sprinkling of plain and ‘sweet water’ and rum…This and the plate of unsalted food…represented offerings to the ancestral spirits. Food consisted of goat meat, sweetbread, chilibibi, ground black-eyed peas, unsalted and fried in balls to make akara, black-eyed peas boiled soft with oil and pepper, cornmeal and cassava kuku, breadfruit and banana fufu.”
– Maureen Warner-Lewis, Guinea’s Other Suns
THE LEGACY and history of African-influenced food in Trinidad and Tobago is complicated and painful. Africans were forced to endure the cruel system of enslavement, which, among other ills, legally classified them as property.
On plantations across the Caribbean, southern America and other places, they learned how to transform leftovers and rejected cuts of meat into culinary wonders that we still enjoy.
Unfortunately, we have yet to give African food the acknowledgement and respect it deserves. For instance, at major events with a wide variety of dishes, patrons are treated to foods that are clearly defined by their cultural origins. In stark contrast, African foods are often given vague, generic explanations like “Trini cuisine” or, worse, “Creole food.”
This type of cultural erasure is typical of our ongoing colonial trauma. We proudly declare that a typical Sunday meal for us comprises foods like coo-coo, callaloo, pelau and some type of stewed meat, but we do not teach our children about the African origins of these foods. These include our love of “cook-up” rice, very similar to the Nigerian one-pot jollof rice dish. Certainly, it is rare for recipes to use the word “African” in the description.
Knowledge of herbs and plants helped Africans to be more resilient. Several years ago I had the privilege of visiting a garden in Louisiana that highlighted foods eaten by runaways. The garden was part of a small museum displaying tools, artifacts and documents preserved from that time.
The stories about the special herbs and plants were similar to the ones I grew up with. This bush for a painful insect bite, that one to clean out the body or another special one for “belly” pain. As we listened to the short talk, I remember thinking how important such in-depth research would be for us here at home.
Resistance through food was fundamental to their survival. Young people must be taught that the emancipation of Africans came about in large part to a sustained campaign of resistance that included food. In Trinidad there were maroon communities in places like Paramin, Tamana and Santa Cruz. Marronage, or the practice of enslaved people running away to set up communities outside the plantations, was common. Remembering their ancient food traditions and practices from Africa would have been key to restarting their lives as free people.
I always admired the way enslaved Africans addressed discrimination through food. “The white planters would get the best cuts, while enslaved workers were given the leftovers for their rations – feet, heads, ribs, fatback and offal.” Chicken-foot souse, ox-tail soup, barbecued ribs and foods usually described only as “local” foods reflect the ingenuity of the Africans who used vinegar, hot peppers and seasonings to turn “hog food” into meals that now reflect a large part of the soul of our nation. Food holds ancestral memories through the recipes and knowledge that were passed down through generations. Certain foods were taken from Africa and placed on the ships for the journey from the continent to the Caribbean. These included yams, ochroes, black-eyed peas and even rice. For instance, “…cowpeas, okra and rice were indigenous to the Senegambia region of West Africa.”
Watermelon is said to have originated in the Kalahari Desert. The formerly enslaved African-Americans who received land in Moruga and other places after fighting with the British in 1812 brought their knowledge of hill rice. Their descendants – the Merikins – continue to grow and cook the rice today, ensuring that this food tradition is not lost.
Commemorating African emancipation offers us another opportunity to engage and change the conversation about food. We need to talk about traditional African food and our health. As we saw in the opening quote, food for ancestors was unsalted. Land must now be seen as a vehicle of empowerment and not enslavement.
But these are long-term solutions. The next time you enjoy Sunday lunch, tell your family, “These foods are from our African ancestors. Give thanks for their memory and resilience through food. Ase.”
Dara E Healy is a performance artist and founder of the Indigenous Creative Arts Network – ICAN
THIS YEAR is the 90th anniversary of the 1934 protests in Trinidad and Tobago, but many people, especially our students, are unaware of the fact that the uprisings of 1934, 1935 and 1937 are closely linked.
Every year in TT the June 1937 disturbances and the role of Tubal Uriah Butler are celebrated, but there is little or no mention of the 1934 protests.
What were the factors that triggered these protests?
The agitation of sugar workers in 1934 was part of the overall climate of protest by the working class in the colony during the Depression years. The agony of the Great Depression (1929-1930s) lingered on and added to the misery of the masses. Rampant poverty among labourers contributed to malnutrition, poor sanitation, illiteracy and unemployment. Housing provisions for workers in the oil and sugar industries were in a deplorable state.
From 1933-1935, unemployed Afro-Trinidadians in Port of Spain were mobilised in hunger marches under the leadership of Elma Francois, Jim Headley, Jim Barrette and Dudley Mahon of the National Unemployed Movement (NUM). The name of this group was later changed to the Negro Welfare Cultural and Social Association (NWCSA).
ON Bolland argued that the NUM played an instrumental role in mobilising workers and began “a new, radical labour politics.” During 1934 the NUM played a role in spearheading and influencing demonstrations among discontented workers.
The NUM contacted the sugar workers and was informed by Poolbasie, an outspoken Indo-Trinidadian worker, of the problems facing the workers. These included high rents of barracks, high levels of unemployment, estate drivers who exploited young female sugar workers, increased tasks, and a drought which made the land unworkable.
The protest by 800 sugar workers on July 6, 1934, at Brechin Castle and Esperanza Estates, later joined by frustrated workers from the central and northern estates, set in motion a series of civil demonstrations.
The police sought to quell the outburst but were attacked. After the violence subsided, 12 people were arrested.
The domino effect was evident, as almost 15,000 sugar workers in Tunapuna, Chaguanas, Couva and San Fernando staged similar protests. Fortunately, nobody was killed, though many protesters were jailed or fined.
The spontaneity of the disturbances and the fact that no leaders emerged could be a reason why these working-class disturbances tend to be forgotten by the public.
The UWI’s Bridget Brereton is accurate in describing the action of the sugar workers in 1934 as “the politics of the streets” and “a watershed in Indian participation in labour movements in Trinidad.”
This development in 1934 introduced a new factor in the challenge of the working class against capitalist domination. Although thwarted by police, the proposed hunger march of sugar workers on July 20, 1934, from Caroni to Port of Spain, planned to unite Indo-Trinidadian sugar workers and Afro-Trinidadian hunger marchers, of the NUM, in a massive city demonstration.
Although the agony of the Indo-Trinidadian working class found expression in the disturbances of 1934, they did not seem threatening to the government and the employer class in the colony, unlike the 1919-1920 strikes led by the urban Afro-Trinidadian working class, whose potential for societal disruption was always feared by the white elite. It was the attempt at racial and class unity of the protests which the colonial authorities sought to suppress.
The 1934 sugar-belt unrest revealed the continued isolation of Indo-Trinidadian workers, whose interests were ignored by the urban working-class leadership of the Trinidad Workingmen’s Association (TWA), whose president was Capt Arthur Cipriani.
The unrest among sugar workers in central Trinidad, the hunger marches of the unemployed in Port of Spain, coupled with the Apex oil strike of 1935 (in south Trinidad) unleashed torrents of anger and frustration against capitalist exploitation and governmental apathy as social conditions worsened.
The protests in TT were part of the regional disturbances during the 1930s that affected the British West Indian colonies. There were protests in 1934 in Belize (then known as British Honduras). The causes of this protest included low wages, poverty, unemployment and neglect by colonial authorities. In 1935 there was a labour rebellion in St Kitts and strikes in St Vincent and St Lucia. These were soon followed by disturbances by workers in Barbados and the Bahamas in 1937 and Jamaica in 1938.
It seems odd that these very important protests of 1934 are absent from the textbooks in primary and secondary schools in TT. The greater tragedy is that 1934 is not in the public memory.
Historian Dr Jerome Teelucksingh thinks some of the societal problems Trinidad and Tobago faces are because local history is unknown or muddled.
Teelucksingh, a Newsday columnist, spoke to Newsday as the annual World History Day on June 24 drew near. This year’s theme was Cinematic Historians and History Preservation.
Worldhistory.org says, “World History Day is an international observance day to be celebrated globally to re-record the history of the nations of the world and preserve it for the next generations through the media platforms available.”
Teelucksingh believes digital technologies like TikTok, podcasts, 3D and AI should be used to tell, reconstruct and make indigenous history attractive to younger audiences.
Professor of History at UWI Jerome Teelucksingh. –
“Many of TT’s students and adults are ignorant of our local history. They don’t seem bothered that they lack this knowledge. They don’t see it as a loss, they don’t feel deprived and that is frightening.”
He saw a multi-stakeholder group, passionate about history and geared toward ensuring historical accuracy, as a possible solution to this problem.
Although figures were not immediately available for the Caribbean and TT, the UK’s Royal Historical Society said there has been an increase in the number of students sitting A-Levels (CAPE is the Caribbean equivalent) in the arts, humanities and social sciences.
Teelucksingh believes the historical deficit comes from the societal belief that “whatever foreign is good.”
Another stumbling block to people knowing their history was the deliberate attempt by some to distort it.
“When people ask me to speak about local history, they usually just call me to speak about slavery and indentureship. They are so negative.”
Teelucksingh said he would tell people there were positive historical accounts like the quest for independence and/or becoming a republic, and TT’s involvement in major world changes, particularly during the 1970s and through the Black Power Revolution.
March 4, 1970, Black Power demonstration South Quay, Port of Spain. “There are positive historical accounts like TT’s involvement in major world changes, particularly through the Black Power Revolution,” says Dr Jerome Teelucksingh. – Photo courtesy Infomation Division
But these were less focused-on than negative historical accounts, he said.
“You see this debate about if to remove the Columbus statue – that is colonial history. That is negative history, and about changing street names.
“We like our local history, but it is mainly changing a street sign and a statue. But that would not make the majority appreciate local history.”
“You see this debate about if to remove the Columbus statue – that is colonial history. That is negative history, and about changing street names,” says Dr Jerome Teelucksingh. – Photo by Roger Jacob
Some people weaponised history to gain political office and supporters, he added.
“We need to be careful about who is pushing the local history. The local history could also be diluted and become propaganda.”
A holistic approach is needed for a deeper appreciation of TT’s history, he said.
Teelucksingh said this could be achieved through using digital technologies to make historical facts and stories more appealing to younger citizens.
Although the facts have been available through books for a while, people were less attracted to CSEC and CAPE and tertiary-level history, he said.
“We have to tap into the younger generation. We can’t print a textbook, pelt it at a student and tell them, ‘Read this.’”
Teelucksingh suggested the creation of a TT History app and telling more of the country’s history through film. Folklore and the story of independence, among others could be told through these media.
He warned against recreating history and omitting to tell the stories of minority groups.
The 2024/25 Syrian Lebanese Women’s Association committee: “Could you imagine we recreate our history and there is nothing on the Syrians, Lebanese, Chinese, the Portugese? Could you imagine? And there is nothing on the Rastafarians, Orisha and Shangos, nothing on the Spiritual Baptists?” says Dr Jerome Teelucksingh. –
“Could you imagine we recreate our history and there is nothing on the Syrians, Lebanese, Chinese, the Portugese? Could you imagine? And there is nothing on the Rastafarians, Orisha and Shangos, nothing on the Spiritual Baptists?”
He said the controllers of technology and digital media needed to be aware and open-minded to produce a holistic account of local history, otherwise TT would continue to have a distorted history.
To ensure that all groups were represented and their stories told, Teelucksingh suggested a committee to be set up along with subcommittees for religion, cuisine etc.
These needed to be headed by some of TT’s brightest and creative minds, he said, and well funded by Government and international bodies to ensure its sustainability.
A holistic telling of TT’s history could also be a foreign-exchange earner, he added. Teelucksingh believes there is a market for this particularly among the diaspora.
“It is not just putting local history into the heads of citizens but it has the potential to earn millions if it is properly managed and packaged.”
Teelucksingh said many people did not see local history as profit-earning, but as a waste of time, and knew little to help their children.
“They know a pinch of history and they throw that pinch to their children and their children would take that pinch and pelt it to the next generation. So I think the Government has to sit down and various ministries have to come together.”
He said there were people in their 80s and 90s with first-hand accounts of historical experiences who were dying, but their stories should be documented.
“We fail to realise that history could be the catalyst for peace. History could be a catalyst for positive change.
“If I could go in the history and show you all where, during colonial times, Afro-Trinidadians and Indo-Trinidadians lived peacefully and there was a lack of racism, there was less crime, people would be shocked,” he said.
History could empower young minds and help present solutions to the world’s problems, Teelucksingh said.
Although many might think young people might not be interested in history, Ako Mutota sees it differently.
He thinks there are many younger people who are interested in history, and credited it with changing his life and the lives of some involved in the 1970 Black Power Movement.
In a phone interview, publisher, businessman and history-lover Mutota said he gained an appreciation of history during that revolution as a 19 year old involved with the National Joint Action Committee (NJAC).
Ako Mutota, publisher, businessman and history-lover. – Photo courtesy Facebook
He described it as an anti-colonial revolt because despite TT’s being independent for 17 years before then, there was an absence of knowledge of the country’s history and its dominant ethnic groups, Afro- and Indo-Trinidadians.
That “liberation movement” struck a chord with many of the nation’s youth then and these ideas inspired him.
“Through this research and through the seeds of public-education endeavours, a number of young people like myself came to understand a different perspective of history.
“As a 19 year old that sparked my imagination. I grew up in a rural community – born in Guayaguayare and went to school in Rio Claro – so we were remote and had no idea of this kind of history.”
Mutota gave personal examples of growing up and not being aware of the historical signs and symbols around him, for example a place called Abyssinia in Guayaguayare which was also a name for Ethiopia.
“All of these things were in my consciousness as a child, but there was nothing to connect it to a broader stream until I began to research, to read more and get exposed to history.”
Mutota said all over TT there were remnants, through the oral tradition, of African history but there was no connection to it, as it was never taught.
His involvement in NJAC gave him a whole different understanding of the role of history played in a society’s development.
Even though TT had a historian as a leader for 25 years (the late Dr Eric Williams), Mutota said indigenous history was not an integral part of the country’s education or social system.
He added that a lot of discriminatory practices that exist today, like colourism, emanated from the slave and colonial experience.
“We never developed a serious plan to decolonise our minds and our education system,” he said.
Even today indigenous history is not given the significance it deserves, Mutota added.
He said aspects of the education system were decolonised, like literature and the use of Caribbean authors, but to a large extent, the system still followed the colonial model.
“That is what I think is a problem with a lot of our young people who are dysfunctional psychologically, because there is no connection to a wider history, purpose and civilisation.”
He lived abroad for a while and when he returned to TT in 2006, he started a non-profit organisation, the Jegna Institute, and held lectures on history as well as by local and Caribbean writers.
Two years ago, Mutota undertook a project called Men of Mayaro, followed by Women of Mayaro, which highlighted the lives of outstanding men and women from the community. The projects focused on their personal histories.
At the end, one participant told him it was only then he realised that his neighbour’s history was just as important as ancient history.
Many people in TT did not understand their personal or communal histories, Mutota said.
This is why he has started telling the histories of some of TT’s now-obscure historical figures like singer, folklorist and actor Edric Connor, who was born on August 2, 1913, and died on October 13, 1968, in the UK.
Many Trinidadians did not know of Connor or his achievements, he said, but he started one of the early literary and arts agencies in the UK and there was nothing in TT to highlight his contributions and excellence, Mutota added.
Like Teelucksingh, Mutota believes many of the societal ills TT faces are the result of many not knowing their history.
Using his life as an example, Mutota said when he came to know his history it made him a more responsible young person. He added when he was involved in NJAC there were young men who were involved in borderline criminal activities but who, on becoming aware of their history, became extremely productive citizens.
He, too, believes if history is well-packaged, younger people would be receptive to learning about it.
THE MATTER of resistance in Tobago has attracted little attention from writers because of the assumption that little resistance of note occurred on the island. It has been painted with particular descriptors at different times to suit the desires of particular individuals and groups. Attention should be paid to the people or groups who articulate these descriptors.
One of the features of the history of Tobago to which attention needs to be paid is the different descriptions of the island which reflect the attempts to paint it in a particular light as behooves the season in which the description was made.
Very early in the period of European encounters, despite the presence of settlements of First Peoples, of which they were aware, there was a common description of the island by all the interested Europeans that it was unoccupied and therefore available for European occupation.
This was an attempt to provide themselves with justification for their assumed right to take hold of the island, establish settlements and develop it as they saw fit. This right provided the competitive impetus which saw Europeans battling for possession of Tobago across the 17th and 18th centuries.
After the island was declared a British possession, the imperial administration was anxious to have it fully occupied with British citizens. To do this an advertising campaign was launched which emphasised its undisturbed natural beauty, its healthy environment, its fertile soils and its potential for development and for earning large economic returns. The intention of this advertisement was to attract investment in the plantations.
During the 19th century, the era of economic fluctuations, it was necessary to continually whip up investor enthusiasm for Tobago, so it was described as peaceful, healthy and full of potential. This was an attempt to counter real-life stories and project the image of a population of happy enslaved Africans who worked on the island’s sugar plantations.
The latter description was used by Governor Young and planters in their failed effort to derail the movement for emancipation by showing emancipation was not necessary in Tobago, where enslavement was benign, master/slave relations were good and enslaved Africans were happy. This is what they recommended as the solution to the issue of enslavement, to remove the atrocities revealed by the anti-slavery campaigners.
Although they were incorrect about the situation in Tobago, these descriptions were combined and used to describe the character of its African population during the post-emancipation era when there was a common perception that the African population was so happy there was little resistance from the free population after emancipation. In the search for explanations, some writers argue that it was their religious upbringing and their spirituality which prevented them from resisting.
The problem here is the term “resistance.” It is commonly assumed that resistance involves a physical confrontation between an aggrieved party, usually employees, and an exploiter, the employer. This resistance is usually manifested by protest marches, riots and violent action against the employer/exploiter.
The post-emancipation history of Tobago is marked by resistance activity against the oppression inflicted on the working class by the employer/planter class and its supporters in the administration. There were instances of physical confrontation such as the 1852 Land Tax Riot, the 1867 Dog Tax Riot and the 1876 Belmanna War.
There were other forms of resistance which have been overlooked by those writers who only recognise resistance when it involves physical confrontation between planters and their workers over terms of employment and wages.
The matter was complicated by the fact that money was scarce on the island and wages were paid in kind, which included access to land. To ease their burdens, planters tried to reduce the value of the work done by their workers and reduce the size of the land allocation for that specific job – in other words, reduce the already paltry wages.
The workers did not quietly accept these unfair arrangements, and challenged the system in a variety of ways to achieve their ambitions.
The main aim of the freed African was to own land, which was opposed by the planter element. However, they failed to force workers to work under their terms.
The workers resisted by confronting the issues they faced and using the device implemented by the planting community to resolve its problems to their advantage.
After emancipation, planters in Tobago argued that there was a shortage of labour, and beseeched the imperial government to allow them to import immigrant labour.
When this was consistently refused, the solution was to the implementation of the metayage system of sharecropping. Under this system, planters provided the structure and buildings, workers planted, reaped and manufactured the cane, and profits were shared between the two.
Facing injustices in the operating costs and the divisions of the returns, the workers applied resistance from within. Planters who needed labour found themselves competing with each other for the labour of the limited available workforce.
Hence by engaging in multiple metayage agreements with several planters, the workers used the system against itself to confront the issues which they faced.
In this way, much to the dismay of the planters, the workers were able to obtain increased access to land, which they cultivated and then sold their produce to plantations and increased their earnings. Planters complained bitterly about the resistance efforts of the workers and their refusal to respond to planters’ calls to start planting and/or reaping, preferring to attend to the crops on their own plots of land. They planted food crops on the cane banks and gave more attention to their crops than to the planters’ canes.
Additionally, noting planter vulnerability, the workers organised themselves into groups, the leaders of which paid more than the plantations. Planters were therefore forced to negotiate more acceptable wages for these workers, a situation they did not relish.
Ultimately the planting community got so frustrated with the way the system was serving the interests of the workers that they conceded the victory of worker resistance and agreed to the termination of the metayage system.
This shows that it was not simply spirituality at work, but the ability to take advantage of the opportunities that presented themselves within the existing system.
THE ECONOMIC state of Tobago during the years after enslavement got steadily worse because the island’s revenue was dependent on the declining sugar plantations. The termination of enslavement angered the planting community, whose members were not prepared to give up their modus operandi in the operations of their plantations.
But the African workers, who had their own aspirations and plans for their freedom, were not prepared to continue working under those conditions.
The era of freedom in Tobago began with workers and employers on opposite sides of the freedom fence, each strongly opposed to the other, creating deep-seated tensions.
Planter attempts to maintain the practices of enslavement triggered workers into intensified resistance mode in their efforts to free themselves from these restrictions. As a result, the post-emancipation period in Tobago was fraught with planter/worker conflicts.
These were seen as wilfully placed obstacles to the welfare of the sugar industry, which angered the planting community even more.
Even while it was embattled with the executive and struggling for its political survival, the assembly maintained a fixation with its interpretation of the conflict as something to be managed by the imposition of legal and physical restrictions to be enforced.
Planters convinced themselves that their problems stemmed from two sources. The first was that the island suffered from a shortage of labour and of credit, which gave the labouring class the upper hand in its dealings with the employers.
In addition, the Tobago worker possessed what were considered undesirable traits. They were described as being naturally lazy. Conditions on the island were so favourable to the workers that they were too well off, had gardens, could sell items and were too independent. There were no signs of poverty and no beggars in the streets. The workers in Tobago were said to be better off than their counterparts in Trinidad and other Caribbean territories.
The solution the planters favoured was to increase the numbers of workers. They therefore directed their attention to several schemes to increase the workforce.
Requests to the imperial government resulted in the allocation of two batches of liberated Africans to the island in 1851 and 1862, but these were children, who did not make the impact on the labour force that the planters sought.
The imperial government indicated that it was not prepared to fund immigration schemes to its colonies and mandated that these had to be funded by the colonial treasuries under specific regulations.
The Tobago Assembly sought to raise money to fund immigration by imposing several taxes in 1852 and 1870, the burdens of which fell on the workforce. Some members of the administration opposed these taxes, and at any rate they did not generate the amounts required for any effective action.
Faced with declining revenue, the Tobago Treasury could not afford immigration schemes, but Barbados, which possessed a large African population which did not enjoy the “liberties” of the Tobago worker, was targeted as a source of labourers. Barbadian immigrants were brought to estates in windward Tobago under private arrangements which did not require the importing planters to be responsible for the medical expenses of the immigrants.
This scheme never attained the levels the Tobago planters desired, because of the strong opposition of Barbadian planters to the recruiters, as well as the dissatisfaction of some immigrants with conditions on the estates.
There were also instances in which planters were disappointed with Barbadians who absconded and engaged in other forms of employment, and those who “acquired the habits of the creole labourers” in Tobago.
A small group of planters sought to access labourers from the Azores, where reports were that workers were willing to migrate. This scheme never got off the ground because correspondence with a recruiting company received the response that the wages offered in Tobago were far too low. A scheme to introduce Chinese labourers was discussed by the planting community, but never got off the ground.
There was conviction among the members of the community, especially the new planters who migrated from Trinidad, that immigration was the answer to Tobago’s problems. Based on the successful Trinidad immigration experience, it was considered expedient to introduce some time-expired Indian indentured immigrants. The Tucker brothers complained that they were unable to obtain the labourers they needed on their Waterloo Estate, so they were among the strongest advocates for the introduction of Indian immigrants.
It was felt that they would teach the Africans desirable work habits, which included working on Saturdays without objecting, and accepting the wages offered to them. This scheme was operative on the windward side.
The attempts at immigration failed to address the island’s labour problems, so Tobago’s sugar industry remained decadent.
The only other source of hope for the planters was a central sugar factory which would make the sugar industry viable. Since the island was unable to generate the capital required, the expectation was that it would be funded by the imperial government. But the Colonial Office was not sold on this idea.
Despite various attempts to stimulate the Tobago sugar industry into becoming a profitable enterprise, it continued on its downward spiral.
The fact is that these efforts were misplaced, since there was no attempt to deal with the fundamental issues which plagued the industry. Planters failed to confront their own role in contributing to the problems, preferring to blame the workers. They sought an increase in the numbers of workers, when the need was for a change in their methods.
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