The Peoples Empowerment Party (PEP) would like to publicly thank Minister Louis Farrakhan for visiting Barbados and lending his international stature and moral authority to the ongoing effort to motivate the people and governments of the Caribbean to come together in a powerful political and economic union that would be capable of delivering a future of genuine independence, sovereignty and self-sufficiency!
Farrakhan stressed that the old North American and European dominated structures are in a process of terminal decline, and that all of the little island-nations of the Caribbean were in serious danger of marginalization and decay. And according to him, the only logical and sensible solution was a resolution to do for ourselves, underpinned by a process of political and economic unification.
The minister also warned us that there were powerful caucasian entities that have fixed their eyes on the Caribbean and have decided that they want this piece of “paradise” for themselves. And, in this context, he deprecated the fact that we have neglected our agricultural sector and have been content to permit Europe and North America to feed us.
A particularly chilling and disturbing portion of the minister’s message was his warning that a calculated process of genocide was in train against the non-white peoples of the world. He reminded us that from as far back as the early 1970s important US policymakers such as Henry Kissinger had determined that one of the greatest threats to the national security of the US was the existence of large Third World populations and their consumption of minerals and other natural resources that the US required for its industrial system.
Farrakhan pointed out that black populations all over the world were experiencing plummeting outcomes in key health indices, with Barbados’ record as a world leader in diabetes and limb amputations, and Black Americans’ unenviable record as the most unhealthy ethnic group in the entire US population, being cases in point.
Truly, Farrakhan’s visit constituted a timely wake-up call to our beloved nation! But if we are to garner the full effect of the week of enlightenment and inspiration that he shared with us, we will have to keep the discussion going among ourselves and use the unity and clarity of vision that such discussion will generate to embark upon a collective action agenda.
The PEP is more than willing to play its part, and we look forward to continuing the process of discussion with the various groups that attended the lectures.
We would like to discuss with our fellow Barbadians the following three priority topics.
The things we need to do to strengthen Barbados internally, to embark on a new agenda to construct a productive Caribbean economy based on regional industries and on a multi-territory political union of Caribbean states, to reposition Barbados and the Caribbean in the world, and to develop a new relationship with such important regions as South America and Africa.
• The PEP column represents the views of the People’s Empowerment Party.
