Michael Abrahams | JLP’s normalisation of racial prejudice and bigotry

It is unfortunate that the governing party of this country, the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), has chosen to normalise racial prejudice and bigotry. Its primary purveyor of prejudicial political pronouncements, member of parliament (MP) Everald Warmington, as well as fellow MP Juliet Cuthbert Flynn, have been repeatedly given a pass to utter racially divisive remarks aimed at the leader of the People’s National Party (PNP), Mark Golding,

While speaking at a political conference in November 2022, Warmington delivered an incendiary, racially charged tirade against the opposition leader solely based on his skin colour and ethnicity, even dragging his parents into the fray, asking, “Whey Mark Golding mother and father come from? A white man … from England,” adding, “Whey fi dem leader come from? Bakra master.”

Earlier this year, Golding’s ethnicity was again brought to the fore when his British/Jamaican dual citizenship, which is allowed by our Constitution, was publicly scrutinised, and racial prejudice raised its ugly head again. While referring to Golding in a tweet, Cuthbert Flynn said, “He can never be more Jamaican than any Black Jamaican. I have more rights to this land where my great great grand chopped sugarcane in St Thomas.”

Last week, the nastiness returned. At a political meeting at the Tivoli Gardens High School, Warmington picked up where he left off in 2022. During his latest onslaught, the uncouth MP offered these gems: “Because dis yah white man come yuh seh him can lead Jamaica. Over mi dead body,” “We are descendants of the slaves. We nuh want nuh descendant of slave master come rule us again,” “It’s better my dog bite me, than the white man dog bite me,” and, “This English white man, if him waan turn prime minister, guh a England.”

A few days later, at the party’s annual conference, Cuthbert Flynn took to the platform to claim that Mark Golding, who she referred to as Markie British, is “a man who believes in holding chains around the around the neck of black people,” and that “him a tek picture a hold chain round man neck, the Rastaman neck.”

DISGUSTING AND INEXCUSABLE

The repeated racially charged attacks against Mark Golding are disgusting and inexcusable. However, this is not the first time we have seen race being weaponised in our politics. The pigmentation of former JLP prime minister Edward Seaga, who was not black but of mainly Lebanese descent, was unfairly used against him by the PNP. It was wrong to discriminate against Seaga because of his skin colour, and what made it even more egregious was the fact that his contribution to the development and promotion of our culture was immeasurable. Similarly, using Mark Golding’s skin colour against him is wrong now. Such nastiness should have no place in our politics.

The accusations and reasons given to disqualify Golding have no rational basis and smack of hatred, dishonesty and stupidity. Warmington’s campaign to label Golding as a son of “bakra masters” (slave masters) and a descendant of slave owners has no basis. Not all white people of British descent are descendants of enslavers, and there is no evidence that Golding is descended from any. Looking at his life, no evidence has come to light of him displaying a racist mentality either. In fact, he is married to a black Jamaican woman. And even if he was descended from slave owners, what would be of relevance is his attitude and behaviour today. One of our national heroes, the Rt Excellent George William Gordon, was a direct descendant of a slave master, as his father, Joseph Gordon, a white Scotsman, owned slaves. Gordon’s mother, Ann Rattray, was a slave. But not only did Gordon not follow in his father’s footsteps, he risked and eventually lost his life after he was hanged after being tried for high treason after standing up for poor Black Jamaicans. Gordon’s contribution was so valuable that the official meeting place of the Jamaican Government, Gordon House, is named after him. So, the “Slave master descendant” argument used against Golding is invalid.

FLAWED AND RIDICULOUS

Cuthbert Flynn’s comment that Golding can “never be more Jamaican than any black Jamaican”, referring to her great-great grandparents chopping sugarcane, is equally flawed and ridiculous. Jamaica’s national motto ‘Out of Many, One People’, initially written in Latin as Indus Uterque Serviet Uni, reflects the racial and ethnic diversity of our people. A white person such as Golding, who was born and raised in this country, is no less or more Jamaican than a Jamaican belonging to any other racial group who had a similar upbringing. As for Cuthbert Flynn’s great-great grandparents and their contributions to nation-building, the massive contributions of Golding’s father, Sir John Golding, to the well-being of Jamaicans, especially the poor and disabled, are unlikely to be even approached by Cuthbert Flynn in her lifetime.

That comment was a stupid one, but her latest, claiming that Golding believes in “holding chains around the neck of black people” is astoundingly dishonest and mean-spirited. She made reference to him taking a picture of him holding a chain around a Rasta man’s neck but gave no context. At a PNP political meeting, a short skit was staged during which Golding used a key to release a chain from around a man’s neck. It was meant to symbolise Golding releasing Jamaicans from bondage, not placing them into it. However, the image of him standing beside a black man wearing a chain around his neck, understandably, set him up for criticism.

It is concerning that fellow Labourites, particularly the party leader, Prime Minister Andrew Holness, have not called out Warmington and Cuthbert Flynn for their vile utterances. What, then, are we to think of the ethos of the party and its leadership? What example are they setting for our youth? Is it okay to discriminate against someone based on the colour of their skin and the country of origin of their parents? Why should we respect such a party and its leader?

Michael Abrahams is an obstetrician and gynaecologist, social commentator, and human-rights advocate. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and michabe_1999@hotmail.com, or follow him on X , formerly Twitter, @mikeyabrahams