National Progress and the Politics of Change

At a public lecture not so long ago, a local activist by the name of Edgar Kwame Lewis who is well known to me highlighted the need for a programme of civic education. He drove home his point by saying that many people who like to talk about politics do not know the definition of the word “politics.” He inspired me to write articles that contribute to public understanding on important subjects, matters or issues. In this article, I would like to address the issue of progress in a society. In order to determine if we are making progress as a society, we have to know the definition of the word “progress” in terms of national affairs. I found clarity on this definition from reading the words of some of the most prominent figures in Caribbean and American political history.

Marcus Garvey said that “chance has never satisfied the hope of suffering people” and that “Action, self -reliance, the vision of self and future have been the only means by which the oppressed have seen and realised the light of their own freedom.” I would like to supplement that statement with the following quotation of Martin Luther King Jr. –“Human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability; it comes through the tireless efforts of men willing to be co-workers with God, and without this hard work, time itself becomes an ally of the forces of social stagnation.”

The Marcus Garvey quotation tells me that social progress in a country can be seen in terms of liberation from some form of oppression. Former President of Guyana, Cheddi Jagan in his book ‘The West on Trial’ said that national liberation has 3 components – Political Independence, Economic Emancipation, and Social Justice. We would therefore be making progress in society if we are increasing the degree of our political independence, economic emancipation and social justice.

We also learn from the Marcus Garvey quotation that that we can only achieve social progress, liberation or development if we have a vision of a desirable future and take action in the spirit of self-reliance to bring it into being. The word self-reliance is not an idle word.

According to Former Prime Minister of Jamaica, Michael Manley in his book ‘The Politics of Change’, our societies are still to a significant degree characterised by a psychology of dependence or psychological slavery (as opposed to self-reliance), which is a legacy of slavery and colonialism. We must therefore cultivate a spirit of self-reliance. Mr. Manley also pointed out that one of the symptoms of a psychology of dependence is the wholesale importation of metropolitan institutions. We see the results of this in our political system, education system (we seem to have mindlessly imported the education system of Britain wholesale without thought as to its relevance to SVG’s needs and aspirations), dress code (we wear jacket and tie in a tropical country) and in other areas of national life. We need to re-shape and re-fashion many of these intuitions in our own image and likeness or tailor-make them to suit our circumstances.

We developed this psychology of dependence as a result of being deprived of responsibility and power for an extended period of time during the age of slavery and colonialism to the point where we became incapable of responding to opportunity because of no habit of self-reliance. We need to cultivate the habit of self-reliance.

Michael Manley believed that the first task for a post-colonial society is the development of a strategy to replace a psychology of dependence with individual and collective self-reliance (self-discipline and national discipline) and suggested that our leaders should mix cement, push wheel barrows, handle shovels, ride street cleaning trucks and perform other actions to break the stigma associated with some types of work or jobs.

The self-reliant person would typically ask himself: “What do I need and how can I provide it for myself?” and would only add as an afterthought if necessary the following enquiry –“What can the government do to bridge the gap between what I can do and the totality of my needs?” In other words, the philosophy of a self-reliant person is that the government is a partner and not a provider.

We can cultivate a spirit of self-reliance through a politics of participation by which we mobilise people and institutions behind national programmes aimed at achieving priority social objectives that command national consensus (e.g. reduction of unemployment). The instinct for self-help and community action set the stage for self-reliance.

The spirit can be harnessed as a foundation for national effort against for example, illiteracy or maybe underachievement in Mathematics. The educator has a responsibility to address his mind to the question of our needs (this entails a traumatic process of release from the psychology of dependence). This whole matter allows us to develop national spirit and a sense of achievement as well as a heroic image of ourselves.

Our leaders should not seek to acquire power for its own sake. They should seek to acquire power to bring about change. This word “change” is a special and meaningful word in politics. Michael Manley’s book was called The Politics of Change. I remind you that one of the principal slogans for Barack Obama’s first presidential campaign in the United States of America was “Change You Can Believe In.” When Bill Clinton ran for president in 1992, he asked the electorate if they wanted change or more of the same. I can also remind

you of the fact that the ULP Campaign Slogan in 2001 was “Time for a Change.” This was perhaps inspired by a similar campaign slogan from the Tom Adams political era in Barbados. “Change” is a powerful and important word or concept in politics. For a politician, the acquisition of power must not be the aim in terms of an end in itself, it must be seen as a pre-condition. We acquire power to use it to bring about fundamental change.

Luke Browne