By Dr Selwyn R. Cudjoe
02 January 2023
Two weeks ago I alerted the People’s National Movement to the Prime Minister’s desire to install Stuart Young in the party as its next political leader. I also asked the party leaders to understand how important black people are to the nourishment of the party.
In his reply, Minister Young accused me and the editor of the Express of being racist for publishing my observation. He commented: “The editor of the Express has made a conscious decision to use racism as the basis for an attack against me and I reject this… It is important at times like this when the media and others tend to attack people on the basis of race and a promotion. of racism, that we, the citizens, reject them and their messages, and I do that.” (Express, December 19.)
Black Stalin, whose main concern was the advancement of black people, left us on Wednesday to join our ancestors. In spite of our common grief, I exclaimed, “How auspicious!” Here was the personification of black pride, an advocate for black dignity, one of our brightest griots who left us to our suffering but provided us with a repertoire of wisdom to help us face each new day. As I pondered his legacy, I wondered if Young and his moneyed class friends considered Black Stalin a racist because he celebrated his racial origins.
Mia Amor Mottley, prime minister of Barbados and another proud black woman, captured the depth of Black Stalin’s work. She said: “Black Stalin was very conscious of our shared history, culture, passions and concerns and expressed them in his songs in a way that we never could.
“In true calypso tradition, Black Stalin was also a fiend, chronicling the issues and philosophies that affect our daily lives.” (Express, December 30.)
Stalin was black and proud of his blackness, hence his sobriquet, Black Stalin. He excelled in almost every aspect of his art, but was at his best when speaking of the plight of his people. One such moment was especially poignant when he appealed to St. Peter to allow him to crush our oppressors when they reached the gates of heaven. Mottley reminds us, “This was a powerful reminder of the exploitation and oppression of black people, by whoever and whatever.” (My italics.)
The meaning here is simple. Black people have an obligation to expose our oppressors, whoever they are or wherever they happen to be. He understood that it is a constant struggle to which we must devote our lives. So when our newspapers and Facebook pages are filled with encomiums of Black Stalin, I hope no one dares to call him a racist.
Stalin was made black by his society and the pride he felt as a black man despite the oppression he faced. He spoke of our common historical and cultural origin, convinced that a person who does not know his/her past can never discover his/her true identity.
He reminded us that we could do it if we tried. His wife, Patsy Calliste, recalled: “He denounced racism, championed the cause of the underprivileged and championed Caribbean unity.”
The only thing Young and the PNM leaders fail to understand is that despite the progress the country has made since its independence, blacks (or “the underprivileged,” as his (Black Stalin’s) wife called us) are still at the bottom of the economic pile. In this context, awareness of our origins and culture are indispensable weapons as we strive to overcome our “little troubles,” as Bob Marley said to our fellow sufferers in Zimbabwe.
At the same time that Young was voicing his inanities, the new United States ambassador to T&T announced her arrival in the country with fierce determination and pride: “The Bond family represents a proud line of black educators, professionals and community leaders. .
“Descent from slaves, our family has made significant contributions to the structure of our country. Indeed, our story is a proud American story…
“My mother was an educator who served as president of the school board in St. Louis—the first black woman to do so—and she served on President Lyndon Johnson’s civil rights commission…
“My parents were actively involved in the civil rights movement in the US. They were instrumental in the early days of garnering the key community and business support that was essential to electing black candidates to political office to which they had never previously had access.” (Express, December 19.)
I hope this self-declaration doesn’t make him racist.
Eintou Pearl Springer lamented, “the seeming absence of any Ifa/Orisa representation at the recently held National Day of Prayer… Let us not forget that African spirituality was deliberately targeted for the dehumanization of Africans during slavery and colonization… Ifa/Orisa spirituality must to be represented in all national events where religious leaders are invited to speak, to pray.” (Express, December 19.)
I hope it doesn’t come across as racist.
Black Stalin complained about the oppression of black people, Bob Marley went to Africa in solidarity with Zimbabweans, Prime Minister Mottley celebrated the achievements of this “nation builder”, while Springer advised: “Respect our spirituality”.
It is the duty of every conscious person of color to insist that we honor our own and seek that our struggles be rewarded in this life rather than the next.
Sometimes we create enemies when we talk about our people, but I take comfort from Victor Hugo’s observation: “Do you have enemies? Good. It means you have protected something, sometime in your life.”
Black Stalin gives us the courage to talk about the need for black people to fight for justice and fairness, and this is not racism. It is called pride of our origin.
