July 2020 – Go Lean…Caribbean

Month: July 2020

Conscientizing on VIDEO: Advocating for Empathy

Posted on July 31, 2020 in Ethos, Social

Go Lean Commentary

There are positives and negatives in all life experiences; good things to continue and bad things to cease-and-desist.

Yes, there are the negative traits that members of society should avoid while there are positive traits that these ones should be encouraged to pursue.

Which are which?

Every adult has the moral compass to ascertain good and bad; yet still, many times we need to be reminded to double-down on those good traits for the Greater Good. Think Charitable campaigns! Think appealing to people’s Better Nature. Think empathy …

Doubling-down, Greater Good, Charitable Campaigns, Better Nature …

… there is a trend here; there is currency and urgency as well. These are the dynamics of an active campaign ongoing in the Caribbean member-state of the Bahamas right now, branded:

BahamasKind…
The #BahamasKind Campaign is a community program launched to encourage community solidarity and social cohesion. The program’s aim is to promote positive relationships between all persons in our communities, to diminish xenophobia and stigma. …

This is a program launched during the COVID-19 pandemic … to promote positive relationships between all persons in our communities, fostering compassion, empathy, [humanity, diversity] and unity. – Source: Retrieved July 30, 2020 from: https://www.facebook.com/KindBahama

See a related news article in the Appendix below.

This is a genuine effort to appeal to the Better Nature of Bahamians to double-down on traits that promote the Greater Good.

Stakeholders for the movement behind the 2013 book Go Lean … Caribbean got to witness this campaign … and participate in it. This was “par for the course” as we have done this conscientizing before using electronic media. Our previous effort – documented in a previous Go Lean blog-commentary from July 13, 2017 – was on a Radio Talk Show; this time the medium is a TV Show for Facebook VIDEO’s.

“Conscientizing”?!

… it is not an everyday word; but it does have an ever-effective definition:

Conscientize (verb) – to make somebody/yourself aware of important social or political issues. – Oxford Dictionary.

The conscientizing theme this time, with the Go Lean movement’s participation, was on Empathy.

This is one of 5 shows, 4-of-5; they were all moderated by Bahamas Kind host “Howard Grant Jr.”. This is the full series; (you are encouraged to consume all the VIDEO’s):

Topic: “Humanity” with guests Dr. Christopher Curry and Dr. Ian Strachan.
Topic: “Compassion” with Pastor Edward St. Fleur and Pastor Mario Moxey
Topic: “Diversity” with Dr. Nicolette Bethel and Activist Chris Davis
Topic “Empathy” with Activist Alicia Wallace and Go Lean stakeholder “Robb Sawyer”
VIDEO – #BahamasKind | Episode 4. Empathy – https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2614088355497195
Topic: “Unity” with Activists Erin Brown and Dr. Christopher Curry

These truly are fine qualities to foster: Humanity, Compassion, Diversity, Empathy and Unity. Unfortunately we do not have enough manifestation of these in our communities today. We need a change; we must change.

But is this “pie-in-the-sky”? Is it truly reasonable to expect such changes, that the people and institutions in one Caribbean community after another will develop and deploy more and more of these fine qualities in society?

Yes, we can …

The Go Lean book identified that our Caribbean attitudes needed to change, that we have to double-down on many qualities – including these ones identified here. The book provides 370 pages of instructions on how to foster these community attributes – how to forge change; consider this direct quotation (Page 20):

Forging Change – A Roadmap
…
Change is not easy …

Just ask anyone attempting to quit smoking. Not only are there physiological challenges, but psychological ones as well, to the extent that it can be stated with no uncertainty that “change begins in the head”. In psycho-therapy the approach to forge change for an individual is defined as “starting in the head (thoughts, visions), penetrating the heart (feelings, motivations) and then finally manifesting in the hands (actions). This same body analogy is what is purported in this book for how the Caribbean is to embrace change – following this systematic flow:

Head Plans, models and constitutions

Heart Community Ethos

Hands Actions, Reboots, and Turn-arounds

Leaning in and going lean for Caribbean regional integration hereto requires engaging all three body parts, figuratively speaking, none more important than the heart. The people of the Caribbean must change their feelings about elements of their society – elements that are in place and elements missing. This is referred to as “Community Ethos”, defined as:

noun – (www.Dictionary.com)

the fundamental character or spirit of a culture; the underlying sentiment that informs the beliefs, customs, or practices of a group or society; dominant assumptions of a people or period: In the Greek ethos the individual was highly valued.

the character or disposition of a community, group, person, etc.

The foregoing VIDEO series presented advocates and activists longing to reform and transform their Bahamian homeland. Where as, these people “labor in the fields to harvest” change in the Bahamas, our Go Lean…Caribbean movement seeks to reform and transform the whole region – “raise the tide and all the boats in the harbor are elevated”.

The last time we conscientized – on the radio – the location was in Florida, as we were appealing to the Caribbean Diaspora in the audience market. Now, this time, we are in the Caribbean, appealing to Caribbean people directly. Our quest is to direct the audience to the Go Lean book as a published guidebook – 370-pages of turn-by-turn instructions – on “how” to adopt the new community ethos, plus the strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies to execute so as to reboot, reform and transform the societal engines of Caribbean society.

Empathy was our focus in the foregoing FB VIDEO …

This is not our first time conscientizing on the subject or implication of Empathy – the ability to understand and share the feelings of another – consider these previous Go Lean blog-commentaries that elaborated on this subject and some lessons learned:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=20105	Lack of Empathy can cause the Wrong Ethos to rise
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=19215	Some people are more disciplined & empathic to thrive – Is that so bad?
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=17135	Lack of Empathy for Puerto Rico: Speaks to “true status” with America
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=13664	Sexual Harassment Accusers – They have always needed “Empathy”
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=10532	Its Bad to abuse someone for resemblance – stereotype – to enemies
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=10201	Obama disbanded the Bad Policy of Wet Foot / Dry Foot – No Empathy
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5964	Movie Review: ‘Tomorrowland’ – ‘Feed the right wolf’ for Empathy
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5238	Prisoners for Profit – Justice tied to Empathy – #ManifestJustice

The foregoing VIDEO stressed the need for empathy, justice and progress. Without these important ingredients in the societal recipe, bad things happen – people flee and the community suffers.

Let do better NOW! It takes a little bit of effort to show kindness to others, the way we would like for them to show kindness towards us.

We must not “sit still” in our participation in society. We must step up, step in and step forward. We must commit to the heavy-lifting to reform and transform our communities. This is how we will make our homeland a better place to live, work and play. 🙂

About the Book
The book Go Lean…Caribbean serves as a roadmap for the introduction and implementation of the technocratic Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU), for the elevation of Caribbean society – for all member-states. This CU/Go Lean roadmap has these 3 prime directives:

Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion & create 2.2 million new jobs.
Establishment of a security apparatus to ensure public safety and protect the resultant economic engines.
Improve Caribbean governance to support these engines, including a separation-of-powers between the member-states and CU federal agencies.

The Go Lean book provides 370-pages of turn-by-turn instructions on “how” to adopt new community ethos, plus the strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies to execute so as to reboot, reform and transform the societal engines of Caribbean society.

Download the free e-Book of Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

Who We Are
The movement behind the Go Lean book – a non-partisan, apolitical, religiously-neutral Community Development Foundation chartered for the purpose of empowering and re-booting economic engines – stresses that reforming and transforming the Caribbean societal engines must be a regional pursuit. This was an early motivation for the roadmap, as pronounced in the opening Declaration of Interdependence (Pages 12 – 13):

xi. Whereas all men are entitled to the benefits of good governance in a free society, “new guards” must be enacted to dissuade the emergence of incompetence, corruption, nepotism and cronyism at the peril of the people’s best interest. The Federation must guarantee the executions of a social contract between government and the governed.

xii. Whereas the legacy in recent times in individual states may be that of ineffectual governance with no redress to higher authority, the accedence of this Federation will ensure accountability and escalation of the human and civil rights of the people for good governance, justice assurances, due process and the rule of law. As such, any threats of a “failed state” status for any member state must enact emergency measures on behalf of the Federation to protect the human, civil and property rights of the citizens, residents, allies, trading partners, and visitors of the affected member state and the Federation as a whole.

xiv. Whereas a free market economy can be induced and spurred for continuous progress, the Federation must install the controls to better manage aspects of the economy: jobs, inflation, savings rate, investments and other economic principles. Thereby attracting direct foreign investment because of the stability and vibrancy of our economy.

Sign the petition to lean-in for this roadmap for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation.

—————–

Appendix – #BahamasKind initiative targets xenophobia

By: Sloan Smith, ZNS Eyewitness News

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — The International Organization for Migration Bahamas is expected to launch a campaign in collaboration with IsraAid and Church World Services to help sensitize Bahamians and reduce stigmas of Haitian migrants.

The #BahamasKind will seek to foster increased community solidarity, encourage compassion and empathy, and reduce xenophobia and stigmas of Haitian migrants in The Bahamas, according to the IOM.

In its latest situational report, the organization said it intends to host eight activities to improve intra-communal trust, sensitize communities, and enhance cooperation.

The activities will include weekly journalistic talks with influencers on prime media channels, online activation, and physical activation of the Bahamian population.

Additionally, wall paintings on kindness subjects will be posted in schools and public squares, further solidifying the message of kindness in The Bahamas.

IOM Bahamas was established shortly after Hurricane Dorian barrelled its way through Grand Bahama and Abaco last year.

Dorian pounded the two islands between September 1-3, claiming the lives of a confirmed 74 people — and displacing thousands, many of whom resided in Haitian shantytown communities in Abaco.

The Category 5 storm destroyed the two largest of the six shantytowns on the island – The Mudd and the Peas.

The organization has been providing aid to the government in a number of areas and has also been assisting the migrant Haitian community.

IOM Bahamas is currently working with the Ministry of Health surveillance unit to develop a comprehensive risk assessment to determine risks of Hurricanes and transmittable diseases like COVID-19 in the informal settlements in New Providence, Abaco, Exuma, Long Island, and Eleuthera.

The Ministry of Health trusts that this project can help to mitigate the impact risks of a COVID19 outbreak or natural disaster in the informal, according to the organization.

In May, the international body released a comprehensive assessment of the preparedness of emergency shelters on Grand Bahama and Abaco Islands for the 2020 Hurricane Season.

The report warns that the islands ravaged by Dorian still do not have adequate shelter capacity for the upcoming season and put forth several recommendations for forward movement.

IOM Bahamas has also partnered with the Community Organized Relief Effort (CORE) to help to clear more than 23.000m3 of debris from private homes, streets, yards, and public spaces.

The organization will also engage in supporting up to 40 families with the repair of their homes.

Additionally, the organization began repairs to the Bahamas Elite Sports Academy who accepted 16 displaced migrant children.

The organization has launched similar initiatives in countries worldwide.

Source: Posted June 4, 2020; retrieved July 30, 2020 from: https://ewnews.com/bahamaskind-initiative-to-help-reduce-xenophobia-in-the-bahamas

Share this post:

Civil Rights, New Media, Transform

Black Image – The N-Word 101

Posted on July 30, 2020 in Ethos, Social

Go Lean Commentary

It is not what they call you; it is what you answer to!

What is the name that Black people are called that shows disrespect, degradation and a lack of value?

The N-Word … or Nigger or Nigga!

In the English language, the word nigger is an ethnic slur typically directed at black people, especially African Americans.

The word originated in the 18th century as an adaptation of the Spanish negro, a descendant of the Latin adjective niger, which means black.^[1] It was used derogatorily, and by the mid-20th century, particularly in the United States, its usage by anyone other than a black person had become unambiguously pejorative, a racist insult. Accordingly, it began to disappear from general popular culture. Its inclusion in classic works of literature has sparked modern controversy.

Because the term is considered extremely offensive, it is often referred to by the euphemism the N-word. However, it remains in use, particularly as the variant nigga, by African Americans among themselves. The spelling nigga reflects the pronunciation of nigger in non-rhotic dialects of English. – Source: Retrieved July 30, 2020 from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigger

The N-Word notwithstanding, Black Image has endured a lot … over the years, decades and centuries; for more than half a millennia, Black people have been tossed aside as “Less Than” and treated derisively.

Enough!

No more!

Black Lives Matter!

This is our resolve. We are not the first with this advocacy and will not be the last. The heavy-lifting work continues.

The biggest contribution Black people can make to this “sad state of affairs” is to be a part of the solution, not a part of the problem!

This was the assertion in the 2013 book Go Lean…Caribbean, where it pronounced this in the opening Declaration of Interdependence (Page 10):

As the history of our region and the oppression, suppression and repression of its indigenous people is duly documented, there is no one alive who can be held accountable for the prior actions, and so we must put aside the shackles of systems of repression to instead formulate efficient and effective systems to steer our own destiny.

As the colonial history of our region was initiated to create economic expansion opportunities for our previous imperial masters, the structures of government instituted in their wake have not fostered the best systems for prosperity of the indigenous people. Despite this past, we thrust our energies only to the future, in adapting the best practices and successes of the societies of these previous imperial masters and recognizing the positive spirit of their intent and vow to learn from their past accomplishments and mistakes so as to optimize the opportunities for our own citizenry to create a more perfect bond of union.

The urging to Black people is direct: Do not use the N-Word … at all!

There is no doubt, on the macro, the Slave Trade, the institution of Slavery and African Colonization was all degrading to Black Image. On the micro, we should do our part to understand the challenges to Black Image and do our part to mitigate the negatives.

This is the completion of this Teaching Series for July 2020 on Black Image; this is entry 6-of-6 from the movement behind the Go Lean book. Every month, this movement presents a series on issues germane to Caribbean life: past, present and future. This last entry asserts that it has been too easy for people to just lambast the whole Black race by just yelling out the N-Word. There are many bad experiences of abuse; consider the track record of baseball greats Jackie Robinson and Hank Aaron. These men had to endure choruses of the N-Word as they perform their record-breaking feats for the game of baseball.

See the experiences of Jackie Robinson and Hank Aaron in Appendix A VIDEO and Appendix B VIDEO respectively.

It is no wonder Black Image is degraded, when viewed by the Euro-centric world. We are not “Less Than”, let’s not give in to the bad ethos of normalizing that word. We may not control what “they” call us; but we can control what “we” answer to!

This is the urging for the entire month’s series. The full catalog on Black Image was distributed in the following order:

Black Image: Corporate Reboots
Black Image: Pluralism is the Goal
Black Image: Colorism – The Stain of Whiteness – Encore
Black Image: Slavery in History – Lessons from the Bible
Black Image: Beyond Slavery: 1884 Berlin Conference
Black Image: The N-Word 101

The Go Lean book, serving as a roadmap for the introduction of the Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU), asserts that Caribbean stakeholders must do the heavy-lifting to better manage the image of Caribbean people. This applies to the macro and the micro.

On the macro, we need to produce and broadcast/distribute up-building media productions. This will elevate Black Image.

On the micro, we need to esteem Black Image ourselves in our thoughts, feelings, speech and action.

Consider the connection of thoughts-feeling-speech-action in this previous Go Lean commentary from March 5, 2019:

This is usually the order and process for change. Change doesn’t just start with Action; a lot more goes into it. It can be likened to a factory process; there is input and there is output. While Action is the output, “Thoughts, Feelings and Speech” qualify as input.

Got Change?

Want Change?

The movement behind the book Go Lean … Caribbean asserts that we have to be prepared to contribute the appropriate Inputs. In fact we must start changing the current Inputs to better reflect the values we want to see in our society. That means changing our thoughts, feeling and speech.

The target change here is what the Go Lean book refers to as a change in community ethos (Page 20).

the fundamental character or spirit of a culture; the underlying sentiment that informs the beliefs, customs, or practices of a group or society; dominant assumptions of a people or period: In the Greek ethos the individual was highly valued.
the character or disposition of a community, group, person, etc.

This focus, fostering change in the community ethos, has been a mission for this Go Lean movement from the beginning of this movement. This theme has been elaborated in many previous blog-commentaries; consider this sample here:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=20105	When Rising from the Ashes – Watch Out for changes to Bad Ethos
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=19833	Stamping Out Hypocrisy from Community Ethos & Leadership
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=17464	The need to change Bad Ethos to launch ‘New Commerce’
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=16408	Mitigating Bad Ethos on Home Violence
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5542	Judging the Bad Ethos of Rent-Seeking – Need for new values
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=2480	Learning a Lesson from History – Changed Community Ethos for WW II
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=214	Changing from Least Common Denominator to an Entrepreneurial Ethos

It was hard to be a Black Man in America and other countries outside Africa … or the majority-Black Caribbean. To be a public figure meant you had to endure onslaughts of the N-Word being thrown at you. This was true for Jackie Robinson in 1947, but in 1974 for Hank Aaron, rather that shouted out, Aaron got lots of threatening letters, laced with the N-Word; see Appendices.

(By 1974, it was politically incorrect to blatantly use the N-Word).

The public acceptance and toleration of the N-Word is a thermometer of the liberal progress of these countries. The US dreams to be a pluralistic democracy someday – it is not there yet! When that country finally reaches that destination, the N-Word would no longer be heard in public or private.

This dream will be the end-project of the chain of events associated with thoughts-feelings-speech-action continuum. A positive image is not automatic …

… everyone must engage and do the heavy-lifting.

If you are White, do not use the N-Word.

If you are Black, do not use the N-Word.

This is how we will reform and transform our society. This is how we will elevate Caribbean Image and Black Image. This is how we can make our regional homeland a better place to live, work and play.

Yes, we can … 🙂

Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion & create 2.2 million new jobs.
Establishment of a security apparatus to ensure public safety and protect the resultant economic engines.
Improve Caribbean governance to support these engines, including a separation-of-powers between the member-states and CU federal agencies.

Download the free e-Book of Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

xi. Whereas all men are entitled to the benefits of good governance in a free society, “new guards” must be enacted to dissuade the emergence of incompetence, corruption, nepotism and cronyism at the peril of the people’s best interest. The Federation must guarantee the executions of a social contract between government and the governed.

xii. Whereas the legacy in recent times in individual states may be that of ineffectual governance with no redress to higher authority, the accedence of this Federation will ensure accountability and escalation of the human and civil rights of the people for good governance, justice assurances, due process and the rule of law. As such, any threats of a “failed state” status for any member state must enact emergency measures on behalf of the Federation to protect the human, civil and property rights of the citizens, residents, allies, trading partners, and visitors of the affected member state and the Federation as a whole.

xiv. Whereas a free market economy can be induced and spurred for continuous progress, the Federation must install the controls to better manage aspects of the economy: jobs, inflation, savings rate, investments and other economic principles. Thereby attracting direct foreign investment because of the stability and vibrancy of our economy.

Sign the petition to lean-in for this roadmap for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation.

——————

Appendix A VIDEO – “42” Jackie Robinson dealt with racism from Ben Chapman- https://youtu.be/GSWsA-NP6R0

Logic Owl
Uploaded Jan 17, 2019 – From the movie 42

Every bleep is the N-Word.

——————

Appendix B VIDEO – Hank Aaron – Life story – https://youtu.be/lkPRJRt7HEs

Uploaded May 9, 2012 – The actuality of the Southern city of Atlanta, the White backlash during the Civil Rights movement combines with Hank Aaron pursuit of a record set by a White man … was an explosive combination.

No copyright intended

———

Alternate VIDEO – Hank Aaron – Sports Century – https://youtu.be/7nhdNvNg60M

Share this post:

Civil Rights, Image, Transform

[Top]

Black Image – Beyond Slavery: 1884 Berlin Conference

Posted on July 29, 2020 in Ethos, Government, Planning, Social

Go Lean Commentary

There is no doubt, the Slave Trade and the institution of Slavery – installed by the dominant European cultures – were degrading to Black Image.

But Slavery was not the beginning nor the end of this degradation, or devalued appreciation of Black Image to the European world.

As related in this commentary series, the degradation started in 1491 when Pope Innocent VIII authorized Slavery and the Slave Trade. Most European powers ended their slavery institutions by mid-1800’s (i.e. UK: 1838; France: 1848; Netherlands: 1848; US: 1865). Yet in 1884, the Europeans were at it again; not with a new round of slavery but rather a new round of degradation:

The Scramble for Africa.

So rather than oppressing, suppressing and repressing African-descended people in the New World, the malicious actions went to the source, the motherland for Africans: Africa. See the Appendix VIDEO below and this excerpt from a previous Go Lean commentary about Black Nationalist Marcus Garvey:

There was a constant, efficient and emphatic “grab” for the assets and capital of Africa – human capital included. Garvey’s assessment was 100 years after the formal Slave Trade ended in 1807. Yes, the European nations had divided up all of the African continent for their own empire-building and economic manifestations; see the encyclopedic reference here:

The Scramble for Africa was the occupation, division, and colonization of African territory by European powers during the period of New Imperialism, between 1881 and 1914. It is also called the Partition of Africa and by some the Conquest of Africa. In 1870, only 10 percent of Africa was under formal European control; by 1914 it had increased to almost 90 percent of the continent, with only Ethiopia (Abyssinia) and Liberia still being independent. [Liberia was an American “Moral Protectorate”]. With the Italian occupation of Ethiopia in 1936, only Liberia remained independent. There were multiple motivations including the quest for national prestige, tensions between pairs of European powers, religious missionary zeal and internal African native politics.

The Berlin Conference of 1884, which regulated European colonisation and trade in Africa, is usually referred to as the ultimate point of the scramble for Africa.^[1] Consequent to the political and economic rivalries among the European empires in the last quarter of the 19th century, the partitioning, or splitting up of Africa was how the Europeans avoided warring amongst themselves over Africa.^[2] The later years of the 19th century saw the transition from “informal imperialism” by military influence and economic dominance, to direct rule, bringing out colonial imperialism.^[3]
Source: Wikipedia – retrieved February 5, 2019 from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scramble_for_Africa

This is the continuation of this Teaching Series for July 2020 on Black Image; this is entry 5-of-6 from the movement behind the 2013 book, Go Lean…Caribbean. Every month, this movement presents a series on issues germane to Caribbean life, history and prospects. This entry asserts that the normal and default setting for the European community ethos (attitude, disposition and/or driving spirit) towards African people is one of exploitation, unless the exploiters are met with a stronger opposing force.

(Remember: The Republic of Haiti, gaining independence in 1804, only after the well-trained Black Haitian Revolutionary forces executed 4,000 European citizens for constantly trying to enslave them). 🙁

It is no wonder Black Image as seen by the Euro-centric world is only that of “Less Than”.

We should never be surprised by this actuality. We should simply expect it. This theme is embedded throughout the month’s series. The full catalog on Black Image for this month is presented as follows:

Black Image: Corporate Reboots
Black Image: Pluralism is the Goal
Black Image: Colorism – The Stain of Whiteness – Encore
Black Image: Slavery in History – Lessons from the Bible
Black Image: Beyond Slavery: 1884 Berlin Conference
Black Image: The N-Word 101

The Go Lean book, serving as a roadmap for the introduction of the Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU), asserts that Caribbean stakeholders must Grow Up and handle their affairs themselves, rather than looking towards some “Overseas Masters” to manage our affairs for us. This must be the resolve, not just for governance, but for economics and security provisions as well.

Consider communications and media networks and how Caribbean people had been judged by foreign or Euro-centric standards:.

If the media networks in the region are owned by foreign entities, then foreign standards are still “the rule”.

No more!

Change has come to the world and to the Caribbean region. The advent of Internet Communications Technologies (ICT) now has voluminous options for media to be delivered without the large footprint … or investment. Now anyone can easily publish VIDEO’s and Music files to the internet and sell them to the public – models abounds: i.e. pay-per-play, or subscription.

There is the opportunity for Caribbean stakeholders to convene, consolidate and confederate the region for their own optimized broadcast and streaming networks. This was the lesson learned from the Berlin Conference of 1884; that if we do not have a “seat at the table”, then we are only “on the menu”. For the “1884 Table”, the menu was the land, people, resources and capital of the African continent – they divvied up the assets with no fights or battles. For the “Caribbean Table”, the menu is the eyeballs and consciousness of Caribbean people or Black Image.

Imagine the deployment of a new Caribbean Network! Not like ABC, NBC or CBS (in the US), but rather like the WWE Network or World Wrestling Entertainment. In a previous blog-commentary this definition was presented:

This is better! (Every mobile/smart-phone owner walks around with an advanced digital video camera in their pocket). We are now able to have a network without the “network”. Many models abound on the world-wide-web. Previously, this commentary identified one such network (ESPN-W); now the focus is on another, the WWE Network, associated with the World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. This network is delivered via the internet-streaming only (and On-Demand with limited Cable TV systems).

We have so many examples-business models; think: WWE, ESPN-W, YouTube and Netflix …

Let’s do our own Image Building Network; and let’s do that now.

This focus, building a regional Caribbean Network, has been a mission for this Go Lean movement from the beginning of this movement. This theme has been elaborated in many previous blog-commentaries; consider this sample here:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=19546	Big Hairy Audacious Goal – Caribbean Media: Learning from Netflix et al
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=17822	Caribbean Youtuber providing a Role Model with Expanded Audiences
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=17250	Way Forward – Caribbean ‘Single Market’ for Media
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=14224	How the Youth are Consuming Media Today – Digitally
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=4381	Net Neutrality: It matters here … in the Caribbean
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=2171	Sports Role Model – Turn On the SEC Network

A positive image is not automatic …

… for people of African heritage from their European counterparts. We must be deliberate and technocratic in our efforts for Caribbean Image management.

Yes, we can …

Black Image has endured a lot … over the years, before, during and after the bad old days of slavery. But we now know what to do; we know how and when we must act. Most importantly, we must do it ourselves. We must have a seat at the table.

As reported in every entry of this series during July 2020, we must message the truth, if not to the whole world, then at least here in the Caribbean. This is how we can make our regional homeland a better place to live, work and play. 🙂

Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion & create 2.2 million new jobs.
Establishment of a security apparatus to ensure public safety and protect the resultant economic engines.
Improve Caribbean governance to support these engines, including a separation-of-powers between the member-states and CU federal agencies.

Download the free e-Book of Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

xi. Whereas all men are entitled to the benefits of good governance in a free society, “new guards” must be enacted to dissuade the emergence of incompetence, corruption, nepotism and cronyism at the peril of the people’s best interest. The Federation must guarantee the executions of a social contract between government and the governed.

xii. Whereas the legacy in recent times in individual states may be that of ineffectual governance with no redress to higher authority, the accedence of this Federation will ensure accountability and escalation of the human and civil rights of the people for good governance, justice assurances, due process and the rule of law. As such, any threats of a “failed state” status for any member state must enact emergency measures on behalf of the Federation to protect the human, civil and property rights of the citizens, residents, allies, trading partners, and visitors of the affected member state and the Federation as a whole.

xiv. Whereas a free market economy can be induced and spurred for continuous progress, the Federation must install the controls to better manage aspects of the economy: jobs, inflation, savings rate, investments and other economic principles. Thereby attracting direct foreign investment because of the stability and vibrancy of our economy.

xxiii. Whereas many countries in our region are dependent Overseas Territory of imperial powers, the systems of governance can be instituted on a regional and local basis, rather than requiring oversight or accountability from distant masters far removed from their subjects of administration. The Federation must facilitate success in autonomous rule by sharing tools, systems and teamwork within the geographical region.

xxvii. Whereas the region has endured a spectator status during the Industrial Revolution, we cannot stand on the sidelines of this new economy, the Information Revolution. Rather, the Federation must embrace all the tenets of Internet Communications Technology (ICT) to serve as an equalizing element in competition with the rest of the world. The Federation must bridge the digital divide and promote the community ethos that research/development is valuable and must be promoted and incentivized for adoption.

xxx. Whereas the effects of globalization can be felt in every aspect of Caribbean life, from the acquisition of food and clothing, to the ubiquity of ICT, the region cannot only consume, it is imperative that our lands also produce and add to the international community, even if doing so requires some sacrifice and subsidy.

Sign the petition to lean-in for this roadmap for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation.

—————————–

Appendix VIDEO – The Berlin Conference (1884 – 1885) – https://youtu.be/vO3-SNpCbSo

Logic Owl
The history of the Berlin Conference and the colonial scramble for Africa during the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, as countries like Great Britain, France, Belgium, Germany, Italy and more fight for African colonies. At the expense of the African people across the continent.

Links:
https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opi…
https://www.britannica.com/event/Berl…
https://www.pbslearningmedia.org/reso…

Share this post:

History, ICT, Image, Model, New Media

[Top]

Black Image – Slavery in History: Lessons from the Bible

Posted on July 28, 2020 in Ethos, Planning, Social

Go Lean Commentary

Let’s talk fallacies:

The Original Sin in the New World was slavery! No, wrong!
Slavery was prominent in the Bible, even among God’s people! No, wrong!
The Black race is cursed and was condemned to slavery! Again, No, wrong!

These fallacious statements are why the racial reconciliation in the New World has been so complicated; why Black Image continues to be degraded. There is religiosity that causes people to feel that they are justified, authorized and excused for repressing Black people. Therefore, this is the root cause analysis for why Black Image is so challenged.

(Consider the historicity of the First / Southern Baptist chasm in Appendix A below; the Southern Church approved slavery, segregation and White supremacy).

If only we can get religion out of the decision-making. For those with a Judeo-Christian heritage, there is this reminder:

The hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God. – John 16:2

This is a commentary about Black Image and the Bible. This is a deep discussion! The movement behind the 2013 book Go Lean…Caribbean have asserted that this is an important discussion that have always needed to be addressed in this region.

The Church – religions and theologians – has not always been a good role model for the Caribbean. In fact, this dysfunction had been vocalized in a previous blog-commentary from August 30, 2018:

The same church that sanctioned and authorized the Slave Trade in the first place; (Pope Innocent VIII back in 1491). All of this history – then and now – forces us to ask these questions:

What role has the Church had on Caribbean life?

Has the Church been a uniting force … for good in the Caribbean?

These are important questions for the Caribbean. This commentary presents the thesis that the Church – the various religious organizations – have been a False Friend for integration, consolidation and collaboration among the Caribbean member-states.

This is the continuation of this Teaching Series for July 2020; this is entry 4-of-6, on Black Image. The Go Lean movement presents a series every month on issues germane to Caribbean life and prospects. This commentary asserts that we have to dispel the historic fallacies taught by the churches over the centuries. True, there has been successful reform since the bad old days of the Dark Ages – think; the Protestant Reformation – but more reform is needed. The false religious premises still have authority in public perceptions. We must message against that Bad Orthodoxy which is fueling the negative Black Image. The full catalog on Black Image is presented as follows:

Black Image: Corporate Reboots
Black Image: Pluralism is the Goal
Black Image: Colorism – The Stain of Whiteness – Encore
Black Image: Slavery in History – Lessons from the Bible
Black Image: 1884 Berlin Conference – Beyond Slavery
Black Image: The N-Word 101

The Go Lean book, as a roadmap for the introduction of the Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU), is not a religious or Christian Manual, but it does touch on the subject. In fact, there is a chapter with this relevant title of “10 Lessons from the Bible“. See here, from Page 144, as the headlines of these lessons are presented from the actual advocacies, strategies, tactics and implementations:

1	Lean-in for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU) to deploy a Bible-inspired brotherhood for the Region. This treaty calls for the unification of the region into a single market, thereby expanding to an economy of 30 member-states, 42 million people in a confederacy to provide economic empowerment, homeland security and emergency management (disaster recovery). The CU is to be established on a constitution that at its root, instantiate principles from Judeo-Christian laws. The Bible is not a Book of Economics, but its writings are economically astute, as with the gleaning arrangement, dictating care for the orphans, widows, disabled, poor and the sick. These groups are concerns for the CU and targets of regional missions as a Trade Federation, to monitor/mitigate against Failed State indices.
2	Emigrate for Economic Reasons
3	Repatriate When Distress is Relieved
4	Plan for Public Works
5	Repatriate After Exile in Babylon
6	Build on Solid Foundation – Prepare for Natural Disasters
7	First Calculate the Cost – Have Complete Funding
8	Pay Caesar Things to Caesar – (Mark 12:17)
9	The “Sick and the Poor” Will Always Be With You – (John 12:8)
10	Silver and Gold I Do Not Have, But I Will Give… – (Acts 3:6)

Despite the thorough landscape of lessons from the Bible, the Go Lean book did not address the reflections of ‘Slavery in the Bible’. Let’s do that now.

Let my people go! – Moses to Pharaoh demanding the abolition of slavery for the Hebrews in Egypt.

Hebrews?! Egyptians?! Black Image?! All of these subjects are related.

For starters, Egypt is in Africa. So the ancient people were all Black Africans. Egypt was the first conquering World Empire in History. So it is appropriate for the revered Black Image of African-descended people in the New World being stripped from a lineage and legacy of conquering Kings and Queens in their Old Country.

See the VIDEO portrayal in the Appendix B below. This was actually a decades-long production sponsored by the Anheuser-Busch Brewery conglomerate. The company continued this earnest Public Relations campaign promoting Black Image based on the prior conquests in Africa.

So was the slavery in the New World then just a revenge-play for enslaving the Hebrew people in Moses day?

(There are certain parallels of the Hebrew Slavery in Egypt to the African Slavery experience in the New World; see the summary of this encyclopedic reference in Appendix C below).

Is this the premise for believing that the Bible sanctions slavery?

No. The idea of the Bible sanctioning slavery is actually a fallacy too; see the points in Appendix D below. Overall, here is the summary:

Lesson from the Bible
The mature analysis is that the Slave-Master relationship in the Bible depicts the modern Employee-Employer relationship; with an urging for employees to not be insubordinate nor combative and for employers to not be abusive nor promote a toxic work environment.

While we are at it, let’s debunk all those other fallacies:

Theory: The Original Sin in the New World was slavery!
Answer: The first victims of European Conquest were the indigenous people of the New World; starting immediately with Columbus’s discovery in 1492; African Slavery did not develop as an institution until 1619.

Theory: Slavery was prominent in the Bible, even among God’s people!
Answer: The agronomist society in Hebrew times called for every family having their own plot of land to cultivate; misfortunes resulted in someone “selling themselves” into servitude; ‘prisoners of war” or captured people were institutionalized as slaves, but not their children. These ones made up the population of “aliens in your midst”.

Theory: The Black race was cursed and condemned to slavery!
Answer: The curse was to Noah’s grandson Canaan (son of Ham), who settled in the Middle East, not Ham’s other sons Cush and Put, who settled in the African region.

This focus, remediating the damage of a bad orthodoxy – religious and/or White Christian European – has always been a mission of this Go Lean movement. In fact, the points of naming, blaming and shaming the hypocritical religious role models have been elaborated in many previous blog-commentaries; consider this sample here:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=19217	Brain Drain – ‘Live and Let Live’: Introducing Localism
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=18963	Tolerating Chinese Culture – Allowing 1.5 Billion People to Just Be Themselves
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=18410	Refuse to Lose – Remediating the Bad History of ‘Columbus Day’
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=16944	Accepting Black Women ‘As Is’ Despite Bad Bible Interpretation
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=16534	European Reckoning – Christianity’s Indictment
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=16172	Bad Christian History: 918 Deaths in Jonestown, Guyana
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=16102	Diwali 2018 – A Glimpse of our Pluralistic Democracy
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15580	Caribbean Unity? Religion’s Role: False Friend
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=13299	Tolerating a Non-Christian Demographic – Hindus: Live and Let Live
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=10216	Waging a Successful War on Orthodoxy
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=9766	Rwanda’s Catholic bishops apologize for Christian genocide
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5695	Repenting, Forgiving and Reconciling the Christian Past
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=4971	A Lesson in Church History – Royal Charters: Truth & Consequence

The reason why the Black Lives Matter movement has gotten traction is that for far too long, Black Lives had not Mattered. This is an inconvenient truth; but the truth nonetheless. The prevalence of disinformation, disdain and disregard for Black Lives may be considered a direct consequence of a religious framework that “something is wrong with Black people”.

The truth is: there is nothing wrong … with Black people!

“You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” – John 8:32

People of African heritage were not the first slaves, nor the last. There is no justifying the institution of slavery: past, present or future. There is also no justification for devaluing the worth of Black people or anyone else. Black or White and every shade in between have the same abilities and opportunities to honor and please God.

³⁴ Then Peter began to speak: “I now truly understand that God does not show favoritism, ³⁵ but welcomes those from every nation who fear Him and do what is right. – Acts 10: 34-35

Black Image has endured a lot … over the years. The truth of Black Image has not always been commonly accepted. Those most responsible for the spiritual education, the Church, have many times been the ones that have failed most egregiously. Those are the ones with the most bloodguilt. 🙁

We must message the truth, if not to the whole world, then at least here in the Caribbean. This is how we can make our regional homeland a better place to live, work and play.

Yes, we can! 🙂

Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion & create 2.2 million new jobs.
Establishment of a security apparatus to ensure public safety and protect the resultant economic engines.
Improve Caribbean governance to support these engines, including a separation-of-powers between the member-states and CU federal agencies.

Download the free e-Book of Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

xi. Whereas all men are entitled to the benefits of good governance in a free society, “new guards” must be enacted to dissuade the emergence of incompetence, corruption, nepotism and cronyism at the peril of the people’s best interest. The Federation must guarantee the executions of a social contract between government and the governed.

xii. Whereas the legacy in recent times in individual states may be that of ineffectual governance with no redress to higher authority, the accedence of this Federation will ensure accountability and escalation of the human and civil rights of the people for good governance, justice assurances, due process and the rule of law. As such, any threats of a “failed state” status for any member state must enact emergency measures on behalf of the Federation to protect the human, civil and property rights of the citizens, residents, allies, trading partners, and visitors of the affected member state and the Federation as a whole.

xiv. Whereas a free market economy can be induced and spurred for continuous progress, the Federation must install the controls to better manage aspects of the economy: jobs, inflation, savings rate, investments and other economic principles. Thereby attracting direct foreign investment because of the stability and vibrancy of our economy.

xxxiii. Whereas lessons can be learned and applied from the study of the recent history of other societies, the Federation must formalize statutes and organizational dimensions to avoid the pitfalls of communities …

Sign the petition to lean-in for this roadmap for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation.

———————

Appendix A – ‘First’ versus ‘Southern’ Baptist Chasm

First Baptist Church – Providence, Rhode Island

Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing believers only (believer’s baptism, as opposed to infant baptism), and doing so by complete immersion (as opposed to affusion or aspersion). Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul competency (the responsibility and accountability of every person before God), sola fide (salvation by faith alone), sola scriptura (scripture alone as the rule of faith and practice) and congregationalist church government. Baptists generally recognize two ordinances: baptism and communion.

Diverse from their beginning, those identifying as Baptists today differ widely from one another in what they believe, how they worship, their attitudes toward other Christians, and their understanding of what is important in Christian discipleship.^[1] …

United States
Leading up to the American Civil War [(1861 – 1865)], Baptists became embroiled in the controversy over slavery in the United States. Whereas in the First Great Awakening Methodist and Baptist preachers had opposed slavery and urged manumission, over the decades they made more of an accommodation with the institution. They worked with slaveholders in the South to urge a paternalistic institution. Both denominations made direct appeals to slaves and free blacks for conversion. The Baptists particularly allowed them active roles in congregations. By the mid-19th century, northern Baptists tended to oppose slavery. As tensions increased, in 1844 the Home Mission Society refused to appoint a slaveholder as a missionary who had been proposed by Georgia. It noted that missionaries could not take servants with them, and also that the board did not want to appear to condone slavery.

The Southern Baptist Convention was formed by nine state conventions in 1845. They believed that the Bible sanctions slavery and that it was acceptable for Christians to own slaves. They believed slavery was a human institution which Baptist teaching could make less harsh. By this time many planters were part of Baptist congregations, and some of the denomination’s prominent preachers, such as the Rev. Basil Manly, Sr., president of the University of Alabama, were also planters who owned slaves.

As early as the late 18th century, black Baptists began to organize separate churches, associations and mission agencies. Blacks set up some independent Baptist congregations in the South before the American Civil War. White Baptist associations maintained some oversight of these churches.

In the postwar years, freedmen quickly left the white congregations and associations, setting up their own churches.^[73] In 1866 the Consolidated American Baptist Convention, formed from black Baptists of the South and West, helped southern associations set up black state conventions, which they did in Alabama, Arkansas, Virginia, North Carolina, and Kentucky. In 1880 black state conventions united in the national Foreign Mission Convention, to support black Baptist missionary work. Two other national black conventions were formed, and in 1895 they united as the National Baptist Convention. This organization later went through its own changes, spinning off other conventions. It is the largest black religious organization and the second-largest Baptist organization in the world.^[74] Baptists are numerically most dominant in the Southeast.^[75] In 2007, the Pew Research Center‘s Religious Landscape Survey found that 45% of all African Americans identify with Baptist denominations, with the vast majority of those being within the historically black tradition.^[76]

Source: Wikipedia retrieved July 28, 2020 from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baptists#Slavery_crisis

————

Southern Baptist Convention
The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world’s largest Baptist denomination, the largest Protestant denomination in the United States,^[2][3] and the second-largest Christian denomination in the United States, smaller only than the Roman Catholic Church according to self-reported membership statistics (see Christianity in the United States).

The word Southern in Southern Baptist Convention stems from it having been organized in 1845 at Augusta, Georgia, by Baptists in the Southern United States who split with northern Baptists over the issue of slavery, with Southern Baptists strongly opposed to abolition and black civil rights.^[4] After the American Civil War, another split occurred when most freedmen set up independent black congregations, regional associations, and state and national conventions, such as the National Baptist Convention, which became the second-largest Baptist convention by the end of the 19th century.

Since the 1940s, the Southern Baptist Convention has shifted from some of its regional and historical identification.^[5] Especially since the late 20th century, the SBC has sought new members among minority groups and to become much more diverse. In addition, while still heavily concentrated in the Southern United States, the Southern Baptist Convention has member churches across the United States and 41 affiliated state conventions.^[6][7] Southern Baptist churches are evangelical in doctrine and practice. As they emphasize the significance of the individual conversion experience and declaring their belief in Jesus.
…
Recent history
In 1995, the convention voted to adopt a resolution in which it renounced its racist roots and apologized for its past defense of slavery, segregation, and white supremacy.^[56][57] This marked the denomination’s first formal acknowledgment that racism had played a profound role in both its early and modern history. …

Source: Wikipedia retrieved July 28, 2020 from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Baptist_Convention

———————

Appendix B VIDEO – Great Kings and Queens of Africa – https://youtu.be/AUAheV852Qk

Anheuser-Busch
Posted Jul 23, 2012 – Documentary depicting the 30 pieces of original art that comprise the complete collection of the Great Kings and Queens of Africa along with highlights of the accomplishments of each king and queen.

———————

Appendix C – The Resistance: How African-American Slaves Were Different From Egypt’s Hebrews

Main Points:

Like the Jewish Exodus from Egypt, the emancipation has often been told as a story of passive slaves led by a heroic leader. This narrative is changing …

The abolition of slavery in the United States have become increasingly challenged in recent years by scholars who view the story of Abraham Lincoln’s heroic courage as simplistic and one-dimensional.

The fact is, Lincoln declared at his first inauguration in March 1861 that he had ‘no purpose, directly or indirectly, to interfere with the institution of slavery in the States where it exists’

—–

Playing a part in their own emancipation

Historians, together with other writers and scholars, were deeply influenced by developments, which showed how a community subject to prolonged oppression and systematic acts of violence was nevertheless capable of drawing on reserves of fortitude to demand justice. This affected the assumptions of researchers who were prompted to re-examine the history of slavery in America.

Was it really true that the slaves made peace with their enslavement, as had been claimed for so many years? If this was not the case, was it possible to conclude that they played a part in their own emancipation? In other words, could the abolition of slavery in the United States have been the outcome of resistance by slaves themselves, which Lincoln then supported?

—-

We should assume that the Hebrew slaves likewise prepared themselves for liberation. The very tale of the exodus from Egypt proves just how ready they were …

See the full article here: https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/lincoln-helped-free-the-slaves-but-he-was-no-moses-1.5964001

Posted March 4, 2018; retrieved July 27, 2020.

———————-

Appendix D – Christian views on slavery

Christian views on slavery are varied regionally, historically and spiritually. Slavery in various forms has been a part of the social environment for much of Christianity’s history, spanning well over eighteen centuries. In the early years of Christianity, slavery was an established feature of the economy and society in the Roman Empire, and this persisted in different forms and with regional differences well into the Middle Ages.^[1] Saint Augustine described slavery as being against God’s intention and resulting from sin.^[2] In the eighteenth century the abolition movement took shape among Christian people across the globe. …

In modern times, various Christian organizations reject the permissibility of slavery.^[3][4][5][6]

Old Testament
Historically, slavery was not just an Old Testament phenomenon. Slavery was practised in every ancient Middle Eastern society: Egyptian, Babylonian, Greek, Roman and Israelite. Slavery was an integral part of ancient commerce, taxation, and temple religion.^[8]

In the book of Genesis, Noah condemns Canaan (Son of Ham) to perpetual servitude: “Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers” (Gn 9:25). T. David Curp notes that this episode has been used to justify racialized slavery, since “Christians and even some Muslims eventually identified Ham’s descendants as black Africans”.^[9] Anthony Pagden argued that “This reading of the Book of Genesis merged easily into a medieval iconographic tradition in which devils were always depicted as black. Later pseudo-scientific theories would be built around African skull shapes, dental structure, and body postures, in an attempt to find an unassailable argument—rooted in whatever the most persuasive contemporary idiom happened to be: law, theology, genealogy, or natural science—why one part of the human race should live in perpetual indebtedness to another.”^[10]

[But the truth of the matter is] the Canaanites settled in Canaan, rather than Africa, where Ham’s other sons, Cush and Put, most likely settled. Noah’s curse only applied to Canaan, and according to biblical commentator, Gleason L. Archer, this curse was fulfilled when Joshua conquered Canaan in 1400 BC.^[8] …

New Testament
Early Christians reputedly regarded slaves who converted to Christianity as spiritually free men, brothers in Christ, receiving the same portion of Christ’s kingdom inheritance.^[8] However, this regard apparently had no legal power. These slaves were also told to obey their masters “with fear and trembling, in sincerity of heart, as to Christ.” (Ephesians 6:5 KJV)^[8] Paul the Apostle applied the same guidelines to masters in Ephesians 6:9: “And, masters, do the same to them. Stop threatening them, for you know that both of you have the same Master in heaven, and with him there is no partiality.”^[44] Nevertheless, verses like Ephesians 6:5 were still used by defenders of slavery prior to the American Civil War. Slaves were encouraged by Paul in the first Corinthian Epistle to seek or purchase their freedom whenever possible. (I Corinthians 7:21 KJV).^[8]

Avery Robert Dulles said that “Jesus, [preached] a number of his stories are set in a slave/master situation, and involve slaves as key characters. …These circumstances were used by pro-slavery apologists in the 19th century to suggest that Jesus approved of slavery.^[46]

It is clear from all the New Testament material that slavery was a basic part of the social and economic environment. Many of the early Christians were slaves. In several Pauline epistles, and the First Epistle of Peter, slaves are admonished to obey their masters, as to the Lord, and not to men.^{[47][48][49][50][51]} Masters were also told to serve their slaves in obedience to God by “giving up threatening”. The basic principle was “you have the same Master in heaven, and with him there is no partiality.”^[52] Peter was aware that there were masters that were gentle and masters that were harsh; slaves in the latter situation were to make sure that their behaviour was beyond reproach, and if punished for doing right, to endure the suffering as Christ also endured it.^[53] The key theological text is Paul’s declaration in his letter to the Galatian churches that (NIV version) “There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus”,^[54] suggesting that Christians take off these titles because they are now clothed in Christ.^[55]

Paul’s Epistle to Philemon was an important text for both pro-slavery advocates and abolitionists.^[56] This short letter, reputedly written to be delivered by the hand of Onesimus, a fugitive slave, whom Paul is sending back to his master Philemon. Paul entreats Philemon to regard Onesimus as a beloved brother in Christ.^[57] Cardinal Dulles points out that, “while discreetly suggesting that he manumit Onesimus, [Paul] does not say that Philemon is morally obliged to free Onesimus and any other slaves he may have had.”^[45] He does, however, encourage Philemon to welcome Onesimus “not as a slave, but as more than a slave, as a beloved brother”.^[58]

Paul’s instructions to slaves in the Epistle of Paul to Titus, as is the case in Ephesians, appear among a list of instructions for people in a range of life situations. The usefulness to the 19th century pro-slavery apologists of what Paul says here is obvious: “Tell slaves to be submissive to their masters and to give satisfaction in every respect; they are not to talk back, not to pilfer, but to show complete and perfect fidelity, so that in everything they may be an ornament to the doctrine of God our Savior.”^[59] …

Source: Retrieved July 28, 2020 from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_views_on_slavery

Share this post:

Bible, Civil Rights, History, Image, Model

[Top]

Black Image – Colorism: The Stain of Whiteness – Encore

Posted on July 26, 2020 in Ethos, Planning, Social

This series of commentaries assert that the issue of Black Image is unique to the global Black Community; there is never a concern to White Image. Why is that? Well, as related in a previous Go Lean commentary, the perception is that …

White is right?!
… in many circles around the world in general and the Caribbean in particular, there is the impression that “White is Right“.

Why does this fallacy proliferate and how can we dispel this false notion?

… “Whiteness” is only a social construct, a product of a bad history in social development. Though it is a different world today, some things still linger; think Colorism where “White is Right” on one end of the spectrum, while all things non-White is … “Less Than“.

So this answer relates to the historicity of European imperialism … over the centuries, as “they” wielded absolute power over the world. Looking back at this history means that we must consider the impact of the “White Western” / Imperial Conquests, through their experiences of the Slave Trade, Slavery, Colonialism and Post-Colonialism. It had an impact on social norms as to what is right and what is wrong.

This visual of a “Shades of White” spectrum is the continuation of this Teaching Series for July 2020 from the movement behind the 2013 book Go Lean … Caribbean; this is entry 3-of-6 on Black Image. The Go Lean movement presents a series every month on issues germane to Caribbean life and prospects. The full catalog on Black Image is presented as follows:

Black Image: Corporate Reboots
Black Image: Pluralism is the Goal
Black Image: Colorism – The Stain of Whiteness – Encore
Black Image: Slavery in History – Lessons from the Bible
Black Image: 1884 Berlin Conference – Beyond Slavery
Black Image: The N-Word 101

“Shades of White” or the “Stain of Whiteness” has had another affect; it has ushered in a variant of Tribalism, as related in another prior Go Lean commentary:

Tribalism is the state of being organized by, or advocating for, tribes or tribal lifestyles. Human evolution has primarily occurred in small groups, as opposed to mass societies, and humans naturally maintain a social network.
In popular culture, tribalism may also refer to a way of thinking or behaving in which people are loyal to their social group above all else,^[1] or, derogatorily, a type of discrimination or animosity based upon group differences.^[2]

In fact, the “Stain of Whiteness” have literally created tribes, and many bad consequences there-in.

Remember, Rwanda …

Remember the Tutsi and Hutus.

These are only social classes or ethnic groupings of the peoples of the African Great Lakes region.

The definitions of “Hutu” and “Tutsi” people may have changed through time and location. Social structures were not stable throughout Rwanda, even during colonial times under the Belgian rule. The Tutsi aristocracy or elite was distinguished from Tutsi commoners, and wealthy Hutu were often indistinguishable from upper-class Tutsi.

When the Belgian colonists conducted censuses, they wanted to identify the people throughout Rwanda-Burundi according to a simple classification scheme. They defined “Tutsi” as anyone owning more than ten cows (a sign of wealth) or with the physical feature of a longer nose, or longer neck, commonly associated with the Tutsi. …

The [Rwanda-Burundi] area was ruled as a colony by Germany (prior to World War I) and Belgium. Both the Tutsi and Hutu had been the traditional governing elite, but both colonial powers allowed only the Tutsi to be educated and to participate in the colonial government. Such discriminatory policies engendered resentment.

When the Belgians took over, they believed it could be better governed if they continued to identify the different populations. In the 1920s, they required people to identify with a particular ethnic group and classified them accordingly in censuses. … – Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tutsi retrieved July 26, 2020.

Click here to see related VIDEO

It would be nice to say that this visual – European standards used to judge native people – is only in the past. Nope! We have recorded time and again, that Colorism or the “Stain of Whiteness” continue to persist. Colorism and the resemblance of Whiteness still have lots of impact, even today.

We have addressed Colorism previously. The ongoing threat in our society had been published in this previous Go Lean blog-commentary relating this title: Colorism in Cuba … and Beyond.

“Lighter-skin” Cubans versus “Darker-skin” Cubans is a bigger problem there.

Let’s re-examine this discussion by presenting this Encore from March 10, 2015, here and now:

—————-

Go Lean Commentary – Colorism in Cuba … and Beyond

Image is a problem for Cuba. Most people in the Western Hemisphere may only know of one Cuban, perhaps Fidel Castro. What’s more, most people only knew of one Cuban before the Castro era, that was “Rickie Ricardo” of I Love Lucy fame. Unfortunately this demographic is not fully representative of Cuba’s population. Cuba has always had a large Black population; (though as a minority group during the Rickie Ricardo era). After the Cuban Communist Revolution, and the wholesale abandonment of most of the White community, today, Cuba is a majority Black nation … by far.

… and yet Majority Rule has eluded them.
… economic power has also eluded this population.

Change is now afoot!

This subject of managing change has been a familiar theme in the book Go Lean…Caribbean. Also the theme of preparing for and rebooting Cuba has been frequently detailed in previous blog commentaries. Now, the consideration is the unavoidable clashes regarding race that will surely take place in a post-Castro Cuba.

Many other societies have had these clashes. Whether violent or just political; change in the area of race has been hard-fought. Consider the upheavals for the US during the 1960’s. (See Photo below). Cuba did not benefit from this American civil rights movement; they did not sow, so they have not reaped. They were fresh into their own political revolution with the embrace of communism, alienation of American society and mass exodus of so many citizens.

This is the assertion of a prominent Cuban-American politician in Miami, Florida – a strong-bed for the Cuban Diaspora and Cuban-American communities. See his editorial here:

Title: Blacks in Cuba are poised to make gains
By: Ricardo Gonzalez

For the first time in more than a century, black Cubans might have a real opportunity to gain the enfranchisement and equality for which our ancestors fought so hard — and were on the verge of winning — only to see their hopes and aspirations frustrated when a U.S. naval ship was blown to pieces in the port of Havana in 1898.

The blood and sweat of our forefathers in the overwhelmingly Black Mambi army was shed for naught as our nation and the 20th century were born. Since Cuba’s inception in 1902, its black citizens never truly gained equal footing in that troubled country. Despite their decisive role in the struggle for independence from colonialism, blacks were almost totally excluded from all levels of power and denied full participation in the everyday life in the fledgling nation.

Unhappy with their exclusion and seeking a better compact, black Cubans were once again prevented from gaining the equality they thought they had earned in the battlefield when their nascent racial movement seeking social justice was violently decapitated — literally, in some cases — a decade later. What followed was a long, hard procession of years of drudgery — sprinkled with a few, incremental gains — under the suffocating hardships of Cuba’s tropical version of Jim Crow.

In 1959, the Cuban Revolution artfully gained control of every aspect of Cuban life and promised to eradicate all vestiges of racial injustice in the island. Shortly thereafter, la Revolución, loudly, proudly and unilaterally, proclaimed victory in its self-declared fight against racism and promptly proceeded to label anyone who dared bring up the topic of racial inequality as a counter-revolutionary and applied “revolutionary” punishment and penalties to those who dared to transgress.

More than half a century later, however, whether by government intent or simply as a result of misguided policies, black Cuba is immersed in its most difficult juncture; at a disadvantage economically (reduced access to foreign currencies), politically (little to no representation in government) and sociologically (i.e., marginalized, racially profiled, disproportionally incarcerated, etc.).

Truth be told, throughout its history, Cuba has never been kind to its darker citizens, regardless of who has been in power or his political ideology. It is time for that elephant in the room to be both acknowledged and dealt with.

Now the catastrophic dynasty that has afflicted our nation for almost 60 years finally appears to be near its end — Father Time and biology proving to be our only true and reliable friends. Add the surprising announcement of an attempt to normalize relations between Cuba and United States, and Cubans — black, mulatto and white — might soon have the opportunity to “reboot,” to recreate a new, more inclusive nation; a nation “with all and for the wellbeing of all,” as dreamed by Jose Marti.

Skeptics will say that nothing will change, that the Castro clan will never relinquish power, or that the generals and/or other parasites will cling to their perquisites by any means necessary. But the fact is that in the not-too-distant future, we can envision both brothers leaving the scene, either in a pine box or to convalesce at a well-appointed home for retired dictators.

With those two out of the picture, and with whatever new relationship that evolves from the recent rapprochement with the United States, there is little doubt that our nation is headed to a new dawn, a different way of doing business.

Black Cubans, who by all measurable accounts have borne the brunt of the damage wreaked by the regime, are well positioned to finally savor their rightful — and so far elusive — share. By essentially heaping misery and squalor on the entire population and thus somewhat “leveling the playing field,” the Cuban Revolution has given Cubans of color, for the first time, the ability to compete academically, culturally and socially with their white compatriots. It is not an accident that a good percentage of the most prominent dissidents in the island are people of color.

And let us not forget that, contrary to the Cuban government’s official numbers, Afro-Cubans are no longer the minority. Malcolm X once said: “The future belongs to those who prepare for it today.” I will simply follow the advice of an old wise man who once said to me; “Stick always with the optimists, because life is hard even if they are right.”
Miami Herald Editorial – South Florida Daily Newspaper – Posted 03/07/2015; retrieved 03/10/2015:
http://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/op-ed/article12875840.html

The Cuban revolution occurred in 1959 and the political intrigue (Cold War, Missile Crisis, Bay of Pigs, Embargo, Pedro Pan Exodus, etc.) was heightened all during the 1960’s. While the US and many other Western countries confronted their racial past and effected change accordingly, Cuba was on the sidelines. So now that Cuba may soon be graduating from alienation to participation in the world’s economic order, a lot of the changes that their society would have to assimilate are really questions at this time:

Did Cuban society formally end their pre-revolution segregation policies voluntarily or were they forced into compliance by the Communists Military Might?
Will Cuba immediately accept the new human/civil rights standards for race and gender equality that is the best-practice in Western society (North America and Europe)?
Will the Cuban Diaspora still long for the days of a Cuba segregated by the races or has the transformation of Western society really taken root?
Will the still-present US practice of colorism (see below) in the Black community – very much prominent in the Latin world – be even more heightened in a new Cuba?

These are valid and appropriate questions. Everywhere else when Communism fell, sectarian divisions and violence erupted; many times fueled by the same prejudices that predated the Communist revolutions; (think ethnic cleansing in the former Yugoslavia: Slovenia, Serbia, Croatia, Kosovo, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Macedonia). There will truly be a need for earnest reconciliation in Cuba.

The issues of race reconciliation and Cuban reconciliation collide in this commentary. These have been frequently detailed in these Go Lean blogs. Consider these previous entries:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=4487	Historical Black College most effective with Social Mobility
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=4447	Probe of Ferguson-Missouri finds bias from cops, courts
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=3662	Migrant flow into US from Caribbean (i.e. Cuba) spikes
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=3455	Restoration of Diplomatic Relations with Cuba
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=3354	CARICOM Chair calls for an end to US embargo on Cuba
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=2547	Miami’s Success versus Caribbean Failure
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=1609	Cuba mulls economy in Parliament session
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=2222	Sports Role Model – Playing For Racial Pride … And More
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=1918	Philadelphia Freedom – Community Model for Forging Change
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=1773	Miami’s Caribbean Marketplace Re-opens as a Welcome Mat
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=1531	A Lesson in History: 100 Years Ago Today – World War I
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=1020	Sports Revolutionary Issues Re: Racism against Black Athletes
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=789	America’s War on the Caribbean

The book Go Lean…Caribbean serves as a roadmap for the introduction and implementation of the Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU); an initiative to bring change and empowerment to the Caribbean region, including Cuba. Since Cuba is the largest country – land-wide and population – in the Caribbean region, any changes there will have an impact on the rest of the region. The goal of this roadmap is to anticipate the change, forge the change and guide the changes in our society for positive outcomes. We want to make the Caribbean region a better homeland to live, work and play for every island, every language group; just everyone. There is some degree of urgency and imminence to this cause as Cuba’s current President, Raul Castro has announced that he will retire in 2017. At that point, there will be no more “Castros” at the helm of Cuba.

To accomplish this audacious goal, this Go Lean roadmap has the following 3 prime directives:

Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion & create 2.2 million new jobs.
Establishment of a security apparatus to protect the resultant economic engines.
Improve Caribbean governance to support these engines.

The book describes the CU as a technocratic administration with many missions to elevate the Caribbean homeland. The underlying goal is stated early in the book with this pronouncement in the opening Declaration of Interdependence (Page 12):

xii. Whereas the legacy in recent times in individual states may be that of ineffectual governance with no redress to higher authority, the accedence of this Federation will ensure accountability and escalation of the human and civil rights of the people for good governance, justice assurances, due process and the rule of law…

xiii. Whereas the legacy of dissensions in many member-states (for example: Haiti and Cuba) will require a concerted effort to integrate the exile community’s repatriation, the Federation must arrange for Reconciliation Commissions to satiate a demand for justice.

Change has come to the Caribbean. But as depicted in the subsequent VIDEO, this same change came to the US, and yet strong feelings about skin color persist. The Go Lean book declares that permanent change is possible, but to foster success, a community must first adopt new ethos, the national spirit that drives the character and identity of its people. The community ethos of sharing, tolerance, equality and the Greater Good were missing from pre-revolution Cuba. It is a mission of the Go Lean movement to ensure these inclusions for the new Cuba. The Go Lean roadmap was constructed with these community ethos in mind, plus the execution of strategies, tactics, implementation and advocacies to forge the identified permanent change in the region. The following is a sample of these specific details from the book:

Community Ethos – Deferred Gratification	Page 21
Community Ethos – Economic Principles – People Choose	Page 21
Community Ethos – Economic Principles – All Choices Involve Costs	Page 21
Community Ethos – Economic Principles – People Respond to Incentives in Predictable Ways	Page 21
Community Ethos – Economic Principles – Economic Systems Influence Individual Choices	Page 21
Community Ethos – Economic Principles – The Consequences of Choices Lie in the Future	Page 21
Community Ethos – Security Principles – Anti-Bullying and Mitigation	Page 23
Community Ethos – Governing Principles – Minority Equalization	Page 24
Community Ethos – Governing Principles – Lean Operations	Page 24
Community Ethos – Ways to Impact the Future	Page 26
Community Ethos – Ways to Manage Reconciliations	Page 34
Community Ethos – Ways to Improve Sharing	Page 35
Community Ethos – Ways to Promote Happiness	Page 36
Community Ethos – Ways to Impact the Greater Good	Page 37
Anecdote – LCD versus an Entrepreneurial Ethos	Page 39
Strategy – Vision – Confederation of the 30 Caribbean Member-States into a Single Market	Page 45
Strategy – Mission – Celebrate the Music, Sports, Art, People and Culture of the Caribbean	Page 46
Tactical – Confederating a Permanent Union	Page 63
Tactical – Fostering a Technocracy	Page 64
Tactical – Separation of Powers: Federal Administration versus Member-States Governance	Page 71
Implementation – Ways to Pay for Change	Page 101
Implementation – Ways to Deliver	Page 109
Planning – 10 Big Ideas for the Caribbean Region	Page 127
Planning – Ways to Make the Caribbean Better	Page 131
Planning – Ways to Better Manage Image – On guard against defamations	Page 133
Advocacy – Ways to Grow the Economy	Page 151
Advocacy – Ways to Create Jobs	Page 152
Advocacy – Ways to Improve Education	Page 159
Advocacy – Ways to Improve Governance in the Caribbean Region	Page 168
Advocacy – Ways to Better Manage the Social Contract	Page 170
Advocacy – Ways to Mitigate Terrorism	Page 181
Advocacy – Ways to Improve Communications – To message for change	Page 186
Advocacy – Ways Impact the Diaspora	Page 217
Advocacy – Ways to Preserve Caribbean Heritage	Page 218
Advocacy – Ways to Re-boot Cuba	Page 236

The lessons in race relations and colorism are not perfected in the rest of the Caribbean. In fact, there are many human rights and civil rights abuses in the region. There is not one regional sentinel to be on guard against bad developments in race relations and work towards mitigating the effects. This is the charge of the CU. Nor, can the Caribbean region expect the US to lead in words or action for this serious issue. This VIDEO here demonstrates many negative traits that still exist in the American homeland, and by extension, the rest of the Western Hemisphere:

VIDEO: Colorism – https://youtu.be/xD2WYJTG8ig

BlkGrlOnline
December 11, 2011 – I know you all have heard of the whole “Light Skin vs. Dark Skin” debate. Tyra Banks has discussed this and associated topics on her talk show, The Tyra Show. What do you think about this subject? And more importantly, why is this still an issue TODAY?
Note: I do not own or claim rights to the featured material.

There is still clash-and-conflict in the African-American communities, dating back to the days of Booker T Washington versus the W.E.B. Du Bois. Some modern labeling may be “Old-School versus Nu School”, “Hip-Hop versus Bourgeois”, even “Thugs versus ‘Acting White'”; the underlying conflict often times is a reflection of colorism in the Black Community. While these are all informal divisions, the formal (legal) institutions in America also have hardened lines involving Black-White race relations. Despite the presence of the country’s first Black President, Barack Obama, there is hardened opposition of any efforts he tries to make; consider the reality of the Tea Party opposition to Obama’s initiatives (like his signature ObamaCare Universal Health Program) just because they are his originations. Many times, this opposition is willing to sacrifice the Greater Good with the Federal Budget and Foreign Policy just to be contrarian.

Many question whether in the deep trenches of their hearts if many Americans have not really matured from the racial mindsets of the America of 1908, or 1958 (the era before Cuba’s revolution). We have our own problems in the Caribbean to contend with, many which we are failing at. But our biggest crisis stem from the fact that so many of our citizens have fled their Caribbean homelands for foreign (including American) shores. Therefore the quest for change must come from us in the Caribbean, by us and for us. We are inconsequential to the American decision-makers, so the US should not be the panacea of Caribbean hopes and dreams.

The Go Lean movement seeks to be better than even our American counterparts. We must be vigilant. We have seen post-Communist evolution before. It’s a “familiar movie”, we know how it ends.

We welcome the imminent change in Cuba, but we are on guard for emergence of new negative community ethos … or a return to old ones. 🙂

Download the book Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

Share this post:

Cuba, History, Image, Model, Transform

[Top]

Black Image – Pluralism is the Goal

Posted on July 25, 2020 in Ethos, Planning, Social

Go Lean Commentary

Believe it or not, there are people who object to the notion that Black Lives Matter (BLM) …

… no, they are not White Supremacist who believe that “Black” is “Less Than”, but rather those that believe BLM is saying “Only Black Lives Matter”.

Let’s clear the air – once and for all:

All Lives Matter … only after Black Lives Matter!

This is the reality of governance: One size does not fit all. Some people have greater and lesser needs for empowerment efforts by their government. Every society have both Strong and Weak constituents. There have always been the Haves and the Have-Nots. Lastly, the legacy of racial disenfranchisement and oppression is not to be dismissed or ignored.

This has always been the assertion of the movement behind the 2013 book Go Lean…Caribbean. This is a relevant statement among the opening Declarations of Interdependence (Page 13):

xviii. Whereas all citizens in the Federation member-states may not have the same physical abilities, reasonable accommodations must be made so that individuals with physical and mental disabilities can still access public and governmental services so as to foster a satisfactory pursuit of life’s liberties and opportunities for happiness.

So, the goal for Good Governance must be to promote equity … as opposed to equality. This is the explanation from a previous Go Lean commentary:

Yes, in the Caribbean, we can have Gender Equity without a ‘Battle of the Sexes’. Notice, we want equity, more so than equality! We recognize that there is and will always be differences between men and women – think maternity. Each gender have different needs, the solution is not the “same” for everyone, but rather the relevant empowerments, so that everyone can “be all they can be”.

Despite the actuality of 29-of-30 member-states in the political Caribbean having a majority Black population, our goal in the Go Lean movement is not Black Nationalism, rather the goal is pluralism:

… the recognition and affirmation of diversity within a political body, which permits the peaceful coexistence of different interests, convictions and lifestyles.^[1] While not all political pluralists advocate for a pluralist democracy, this is most common as democracy is often viewed as the most fair and effective way to moderate between the discrete values.^[2] – Wikipedia retrieved October 19, 2017.

The stewards of the new Caribbean wants to foster a pluralistic democracy. We will improve Black Image with elevating the image of all peoples in our society, not just some, but all.

We are not seeking Black superiority nor White superiority. We are seeking a society where all men, because they are created equal, have equal opportunities for protection and prosperity.

That is our whole quest: jobs and justice for all.

This is the continuation of this Teaching Series for July 2020; this is entry 2-of-6, on Black Image. The Go Lean movement presents a series every month on issues germane to Caribbean life and prospects. The commentary asserts that while the majority demographic in the region is Black (descended from Africans), we have many different minority groups that need to always be empowered – and never repressed. The full catalog on Black Image is presented as follows:

Black Image: Corporate Reboots
Black Image: Pluralism is the Goal
Black Image: Colorism – The Stain of Whiteness – Encore
Black Image: Slavery in History – Lessons from the Bible
Black Image: 1884 Berlin Conference – Beyond Slavery
Black Image: The N-Word 101

What exactly would pluralism look like in our Caribbean region?

Imagine a confederacy where no one colonial legacy lauds over another. We have 5 different colonial legacies in the region: American, British, Dutch, French and Spanish.

None favored over another.

The language used in the region would be: Dutch, English, French, Spanish and any Creole variations spoken by a mass of people; think Haiti. The focus of the Caribbean Image is not to conform to any European orthodoxy, but rather to communicate with all of the people in the homeland.

We have 5 different racial ethnicities: African, Amer-Indian, European, Chinese and East Indian. None should be favored over another.

A pluralistic democracy is the quest of the Go Lean movement, embedded in the introduction and implementation of the Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU). This is one of the 10 Big Ideas for the Caribbean region (Page 127):

1	Lean-in for the Caribbean Single Market & Economy Initiative
2	Currency Union / Single Currency
3	Defense / Homeland Security Pact
4	Confederation Without Sovereignty
5	Four Languages in Unison Dutch, English, French, and Spanish in parallel treks for all government and CU communications. This applies to printed communiqué and electronic media output. Therefore, the public/private websites in the region should publish in all 4 languages and TV-film productions broadcast with SAP-like options.
6	Self-Governing Entities (SGE)
7	Virtual “Turnpike” Operations
8	Cyber Caribbean
9	e-Learning – Versus – Studying Abroad
10	Cuba & Haiti

Having a pluralistic democracy is the Caribbean Image we want to project. Pluralism is more than just a plurality of languages; it also encompasses races, religions, national origin, gender, sexual orientation and other demographic attributes. We “widen out the tent” to bring more in.

We are not there yet; we still have inclusion and diversity issues for our Indo-Caribbean – see Appendix VIDEO – and Chinese-descended (or Sino-Caribbean) people.

This focus, diversity and inclusion, has always been a motivation for this Go Lean movement. In fact, the points of fostering a pluralistic democracy is a familiar topic for this commentary. There are many previous blog-commentaries that elaborated on this subject; consider this sample here:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=19217	Brain Drain – ‘Live and Let Live’: Introducing Localism
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=18963	Happy Chinese New Year – Honoring Sino people worldwide
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=18749	Good Example of Diversity and a ‘Great Place to Work’: Mercedes-Benz
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=18410	Refuse to Lose – Remediating ‘Columbus Day’ to not honor “Conquerors”
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=17820	Caribbean ‘Pride’ – “Can we all just get along”
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=16803	Barbados Ready for Pluralism and ‘Free Movement’ of People
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=16102	Diwali 2018 – A Glimpse of our Pluralistic Democracy
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15664	Good Example of Pluralism – Naomi Osaka: Caribbean Meld
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15567	Caribbean Unity Needs French Antilles
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=13321	Making a ‘Pluralistic Democracy’ – Multilingual Realities
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=13319	Making a ‘Pluralistic Democracy’ – Freedom of Movement
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=9552	Indo-Caribbean Heritage – A Long Legacy Adds to Regional Image
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=9550	Sino-Caribbean Heritage – A Long Legacy Adds to Regional Image

The United States of America is battling with the basic concept that Black Lives Matter.

But here in the Caribbean we are beyond that, we are trying to ensure that All Lives Matter. We are not trying to be like America; we are trying to Be Better.

While we promote a liberal acceptance of religion, despite the plurality, we are hereby doubling-down on these Judeo-Christian concepts:

Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets. – Matthew 7:12
³⁴ Then Peter began to speak: “I now truly understand that God does not show favoritism, ³⁵ but welcomes those from every nation who fear Him and do what is right. – Acts 10: 34-35

Say it loud: “I am Black and I’m Proud”!

But here in the Caribbean all the other races can be proud too.

This is what Caribbean Image means Black Image, White Image, Indo-Caribbean Image and Sino-Caribbean Image … all working together in harmony and unity to make our homeland a better place to live, work and play.

We hereby urge all stakeholders in the region to lean-in to this roadmap to empower and elevate the people of the Caribbean. Yes, we can!

It is conceivable, believable and achievable! 🙂

Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion & create 2.2 million new jobs.
Establishment of a security apparatus to ensure public safety and protect the resultant economic engines.
Improve Caribbean governance to support these engines, including a separation-of-powers between the member-states and CU federal agencies.

Download the free e-Book of Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

xi. Whereas all men are entitled to the benefits of good governance in a free society, “new guards” must be enacted to dissuade the emergence of incompetence, corruption, nepotism and cronyism at the peril of the people’s best interest. The Federation must guarantee the executions of a social contract between government and the governed.

xxi. Whereas the preparation of our labor force can foster opportunities and dictate economic progress for current and future generations, the Federation must ensure that educational and job training opportunities are fully optimized for all residents of all member-states, with no partiality towards any gender or ethnic group. …

xxii. Whereas the heritage of our lands share the distinction of cultural tutelage from European and American imperialists that forged their tongues upon our consciousness, it is imperative to form a society that is neutral and tolerant of the mother tongue influences of our people to foster efficient and effective communications among our citizens.

xxiv. Whereas a free market economy can be induced and spurred for continuous progress, the Federation must install the controls to better manage aspects of the economy: jobs, inflation, savings rate, investments and other economic principles. Thereby attracting direct foreign investment because of the stability and vibrancy of our economy.

Sign the petition to lean-in for this roadmap for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation.

———————–

Appendix VIDEO – You’re Never Indian or Caribbean Enough (BBC News) – https://youtu.be/3eKd70M8SKg

Matthew Williams
Posted Sep 10, 2019 – Indian people have been living in the Caribbean for more than 180 years, but Chandani Persaud, founder of Indo-Caribbean London, says that their contribution to the West Indies is overlooked, and they are often excluded by the Asian community. Fearing that young British Indo-Caribbeans are turning away from their culture, she is single-handedly organising the UK’s first Indo-Caribbean festival.

Share this post:

Civil Rights, Image, Model, Transform

[Top]

Black Image – Learning from ‘Corporate Reboots’

Posted on July 23, 2020 in Economics, Ethos, Industries, Planning, Social

Go Lean Commentary

All lives matter …

For those of you in the Caribbean, your initial response to this statement may be “Duhh!!!” This is due to the fact that most Caribbean countries have a majority Black population.

But for those in the Diaspora who live, work and play in the US, Canada and Western Europe, you know that this “simple 3-word” statement cannot be taken for granted. This is due to the actuality of this recent movement, which has become a new Civil Rights struggle:

Black Lives Matter.

This is a timely discussion to have today. There are a number of Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests that have taken place … in the US and in other countries around the world. So this is not just an American issue. This is a global issue for Black Image. The need for this message – and movement – is that many times, Black Lives have NOT mattered. The disenfranchisement, repression, oppression and suppression cannot be ignored. Many non-Black people are engaged in this struggle.

Many companies – corporate institutions – have engaged too. There are a lot of lessons we can learn from this actuality.

Yes, Big Companies – think Corporate America – can help to impact Black Image. This process has commenced; this is just another example of corporate vigilantism, but this is a good thing. In the last few months – especially after the atrocious death of the Black Man George Floyd by the hands of a White Police Officer – corporate entities have stepped-in, stepped up and stepped forward. We have these published examples of Corporate Reboots:

Aunt Jemima brand to change name, remove image that Quaker says is ‘based on a racial stereotype’
The 130-year-old brand features a Black woman named Aunt Jemima, who was originally dressed as a minstrel character.
The picture has changed over time, and in recent years Quaker removed the “mammy” kerchief from the character to blunt growing criticism that the brand perpetuated a racist stereotype that dated to the days of slavery. Quaker, a subsidiary of PepsiCo, said removing the image and name is part of an effort by the company “to make progress toward racial equality.” …
Aunt Jemima has come under renewed criticism recently amid protests across the nation and around the world sparked by the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody. – Source: NBC News posted June 17, 2020; retrieved July 20, 2020.
———–
See the VIDEO in the Appendix below.
Uncle Ben’s is a brand name for parboiled rice and other related food products. The brand was introduced by Converted Rice Inc., which was later bought by Mars, Inc. It is based in Houston, Texas. Uncle Ben’s rice was first marketed in 1943 and was the top-selling rice in the United States from 1950 until the 1990s.^[1] Today, Uncle Ben’s products are sold worldwide. …
On June 17, 2020, Mars, Inc. announced that they would be “evolving” the brand’s identity, including the brand’s logo. The move followed just hours after Quaker/PepsiCo acknowledged its Aunt Jemima brand is based on a racial stereotype and it will change the name and logo.^[16][17]
DSW
Designer Brands Inc. is an American company that sells designer and name brand shoes and fashion accessories. It owns the Designer Shoe Warehouse (DSW) store chain, and operates over 500 stores in the United States and an e-commerce website.^[5] The company also owns private-label footwear brands including Audrey Brooke, Kelly & Katie, Lulu Townsend, and Poppie Jones.
On June 6, 2020, the company published these statements: “We believe Black lives matter. But words are not enough. Now is the time for action. Here’s what we’re doing to help create meaningful change, in our nation and in our company.” – Source: Retrieved July 20, 2020 from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Designer_Brands.

Wells Fargo
CEO Charlie Scharf announced on Tuesday (July 14, 2020) a series of commitments to ensure the company’s ongoing diversity and inclusion efforts result in meaningful change. [He stated]:
“‘Black Lives Matter’ is a statement that the inequality and discrimination that has been so clearly exposed is terribly real, though it is not new, and must not continue,” Scharf said in a letter to employees. “The pain and frustration with the lack of progress within both our country and Wells Fargo is clear. I personally, and we as a senior team, are working to develop actions that will meaningfully contribute to the change that is necessary. This time must be different.” – Source: WellsFargo.com retrieved July 20, 2020.

The movement behind the 2013 book Go Lean…Caribbean produces a Teaching Series every month on issues germane to Caribbean life and prospects. The commentary this month presents this 6-part series on Black Image; considering that this is the majority demographic for 29 of the 30 countries and territories that constitute the political Caribbean. This first entry, 1 of 6 in this July 2020 series considers corporate entities that have stepped up to engage this discussion. This is vigilantism; these companies may not have currently been asked for these empowerments but they have responded to the need to elevate Black Image. The full catalog of the series is listed as follows:

Black Image: Corporate Reboots
Black Image: Pluralism is the Goal
Black Image: Colorism – The Stain of Whiteness – Encore
Black Image: Slavery in History – Lessons from the Bible
Black Image: 1884 Berlin Conference – Beyond Slavery
Black Image: The N-Word 101

All of these commentaries relate to “how” the stewards for a new Caribbean can elevate image for the people and institutions of the region. We can and must reboot. But this first entry, the foregoing, conveys an American drama, not Caribbean. Alas, this is the actuality of Black Image: success or failure of one group of Black people in one part of the world have a direct bearing on the image of Black people in other parts of the world.

This was the assertion in the Go Lean book – Page 133 – as it provides this tidbit on Black Image:

The Bottom Line on Martin, Malcolm, Mandela, Muhammad and Marley
The majority of the Caribbean population descends from an African ancestry – a legacy of slavery from previous centuries. Despite the differences in nationality, culture and language, the image of the African Diaspora is all linked hand-in-hand. And thus, when Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Nelson Mandela, Muhammad Ali and Bob Marley impacted the world with their contributions, the reverberations were felt globally, not just in their homelands. It is hard for one segment of the black world to advance when other segments have a negative global image. This is exemplified with the election of Barack Obama as US President; his election was viewed as an ascent for the entire Black race. ^[²⁰⁵^]

Over 100 years ago, the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) came to understand the power and influence of the then new medium of film ^[201] and added the mandate to their charter to confront the misuse of media to influence negative public attitudes toward race. As early as 1915, the group organized a nationwide protest against the negative portrayals of African Americans in the early film, “Birth of A Nation”. Today, the NAACP Hollywood Bureau continues to monitor the industry for offensive and defamatory images in film and television. It also sponsors the Image Awards Show to honor outstanding people of color in film, television, music, and literature, as well as those individuals or groups who promote social justice through their creative endeavors. A landmark Memorandum of Understanding was signed in 1999 between the NAACP and the major movie studios and TV networks that greatly advanced the cause of diversity in the entertainment industry and created a milestone by which to measure future progress in Hollywood.

We must be concerned about Black Image and Caribbean Image, independently and collectively. This is not new for this Caribbean effort; we had been advocating for image promotion long before the Black Man George Floyd was killed in Minnesota USA in May 2020. The timing of this death was heightened by the reflections afforded by the societal shutdowns from the Coronavirus COVID-19 crisis. But we have had this need from before this pandemic; we have the need now and we will continue to have this need after this pandemic.

There are no Ands, Ifs or Buts; we need to reboot Caribbean image, the same as those companies need to reboot their corporate image:

Aunt Jemima has always been a bad stereotype of Black Image (female).
Uncle Ben has always been a bad stereotype of Black Image (male).

Those companies did not just up and correct their bad stereotypes at the first request from the affected groups or the general public. No, it was a long-drawn struggle over many decades. In fact, “only after a long train of abuse” is usually the roadmap for minorities to get toleration, acceptance, equality and finally equity from their adjoining majority groups. So there are lessons that we can learn and apply here in the Caribbean from this historicity. Among the lessons:

the strategies, tactics and implementations that can accelerate change in society, change among the minority groups and the majority groups.

The Go Lean book, as a roadmap for the introduction of the Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU), presents an actual advocacy to present the strategies, tactic and implementation to Better Manage Caribbean Image. See here some of the specific plans, excerpts and headlines from Page 133, entitled:

10 Ways to Better Manage Image

1	Lean-in for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU). This will allow for the unification of the region into one market of 42 million people across 30 member-states, with a GDP of $800 Billion (according to 2010 figures). In addition, the treaty calls for collective bargaining with foreign countries and industry representatives for causes of significance to the Caribbean community. There are many times when the media portray a “negative” depiction of Caribbean life, culture and people. The CU will have the scale to effectuate negotiations to better manage the region’s image, and the means by which to enforce the tenets.
2	Media Industrial Complex The Caribbean Central Bank will settle electronic payments transactions; this will allow electronic commerce to flourish in the region. With the payment mechanisms in place, music, movies, TV shows and other media (domestic and foreign) can be paid for and downloaded legally. For a population base of 42 million, this brings a huge economic clout.
3	Respect for Intellectual Property
4	Sentinel in Hollywood Like the NAACP, the CU will facilitate a Hollywood Bureau. It will monitor the industry for offensive and defamatory images in film, television, video games, internet content and the written word. Though the Hollywood Bureau is based in California-USA, their focus will be global, covering the media machinery of Europe, Asia (Bollywood) and elsewhere.
5	Anti-Defamation League This Pro-Jewish organization provides a great model for marshalling against negative stereotypes that can belittle a race. ^[200] The CU will study, copy, and model a lot of the successes of the Anti-Defamation League. This organization can also be consulted with to coach the CU’s efforts. (Consider the example of Uptown Yardies Rasta Gang in the game Grand Theft Auto ^[206]).
6	Power of the Boycott
7	Freedom of the Press
8	Libel and Slander Litigation and Enforcement
9	Public Relations and Press Releases
10	Image Award Medals and Recognition Following the model of the NAACP Image Awards ^[²⁰²^], the CU will recognize and give accolades for individual and institutions that portray a positive “image” of Caribbean life and CU initiatives. This would be similar to the Presidential Medal of … / Congressional Medal of …

The points of fostering best-practices in Image Management is a familiar topic for the Go Lean movement. There are many previous blog-commentaries that elaborated on this subject; consider this sample here:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=16944	Women Empowerment – Accepting Black Women ‘As Is’
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15858	A Caribbean Network to Better Manage our Image
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=18566	Lessons Learned – JPMorganChase Rebooting to make ‘Change’ happen
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=11420	‘Black British’ and ‘Less Than’
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=10532	Learning from Stereotypes – Good and Bad
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=8099	Caribbean Image: ‘Less Than’?
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=6434	‘Good Hair’ and the Strong Black Woman
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5088	Immigrants account for 1 in 11 Blacks in USA
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=4058	Bad Image: New York Times Maledictions on The Bahamas
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=2547	Bad Image: Miami’s Success Due to Caribbean Failure
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=2251	Bad Image of Ethnic Sounding Names
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=2025	Image of the Caribbean Diaspora – Butt of the Joke
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=857	Lesser Image of Caribbean “Dreadlock hairstyles”

The motivation of For-Profit companies have always been to make a profit. The foregoing corporate examples demonstrate good corporate vigilantism to change society, while not abandoning the profit goal. These companies, and the Go Lean movement, accept that both goals can be pursued simultaneously … with gusto.

Recognizing the merits of this strategy is not new; (this was conveyed in the 2013 Go Lean book); it is the universal execution that is new! Yippee! Let’s keep this going!

Now it the time to double-down on improving Black Image around the world.

Now is the time to exert the effort on improving Caribbean Image around the world. (They are not mutually exclusive).

Yes, we can …

This is the heavy-lifting that we must do. This is how we will make our homeland a better place to live, work and play. 🙂

Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion & create 2.2 million new jobs.
Establishment of a security apparatus to ensure public safety and protect the resultant economic engines.
Improve Caribbean governance to support these engines, including a separation-of-powers between the member-states and CU federal agencies.

Download the free e-Book of Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

xi. Whereas all men are entitled to the benefits of good governance in a free society, “new guards” must be enacted to dissuade the emergence of incompetence, corruption, nepotism and cronyism at the peril of the people’s best interest. The Federation must guarantee the executions of a social contract between government and the governed.

xvi. Whereas security of our homeland is inextricably linked to prosperity of the homeland, the economic and security interest of the region needs to be aligned under the same governance. Since economic crimes … can imperil the functioning of the wheels of commerce for all the citizenry, the accedence of this Federation must equip the security apparatus with the tools and techniques for predictive and proactive interdictions.

xxiv. Whereas a free market economy can be induced and spurred for continuous progress, the Federation must install the controls to better manage aspects of the economy: jobs, inflation, savings rate, investments and other economic principles. Thereby attracting direct foreign investment because of the stability and vibrancy of our economy.

Sign the petition to lean-in for this roadmap for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation.

——————————————

Appendix VIDEO – Aunt Jemima Image To Be Removed And Brand Will Be Renamed, Quaker Oats Announces | TODAY – https://youtu.be/BdH3tmf0tGs

TODAY
Quaker Oats has announced that the image of Aunt Jemima will be removed from all packaging and the brand’s name will be changed. The move comes amid rapid cultural change in the wake of nationwide protests. TODAY’s Sheinelle Jones reports. » Subscribe to TODAY: http://on.today.com/SubscribeToTODAY

» Watch the latest from TODAY: http://bit.ly/LatestTODAY

About: TODAY brings you the latest headlines and expert tips on money, health and parenting. We wake up every morning to give you and your family all you need to start your day. If it matters to you, it matters to us. We are in the people business. Subscribe to our channel for exclusive TODAY archival footage & our original web series.

Connect with TODAY Online!

Visit TODAY’s Website: http://on.today.com/ReadTODAY

Find TODAY on Facebook: http://on.today.com/LikeTODAY

Follow TODAY on Twitter: http://on.today.com/FollowTODAY

Follow TODAY on Instagram: http://on.today.com/InstaTODAY

Follow TODAY on Pinterest: http://on.today.com/PinTODAY

#QuakerOats #AuntJemima #TodayShow

Share this post:

Civil Rights, Image, Model, Transform

[Top]

Hamilton – Comes to the Masses – Encore

Posted on July 15, 2020 in Ethos, Government, Industries, Social

“Not throwing away my shot … young, scrappy and hungry” – Hit song from Broadway musical Hamilton; see link here.

This expensive Broadway play ($450 for two tickets for me) has now come down in price – but only in this new medium of streaming video – the masses can now consume it for $6.99 … for the entire household.

According to a recent Forbes Magazine (June 8, 2020) article:

After opening on Broadway in 2015, competition for a seat became so hot that scalpers at one point were reportedly getting close to $11,000 in the aftermarket. In anticipation of Broadway re-opening on Sept. 8, face-value tickets start at $149 but go for as much as $2,200 a seat in the resale market.

This is the reality of the economics of Supply-and-Demand.

Despite the drop in prices, the production quality is still valued and the producers will make even more money.

Size does matter when it comes to Hollywood.

Hamilton: $1 Billion Franchise
And it did so far faster than other Broadway phenoms. The top three grossing musicals are all more than 16 years old. Hamilton, which turns 5 this year, was on track this year to surpass another smash hit, The Book of Mormon, before Covid-19 forced Broadway’s theaters to close. – Source: Forbes.June 8, 2020

Truly, the stakeholders for Hamilton have not “thrown away their shot’. See this conveyed in this related story here, about the Hamilton blockbuster movie – visualizing the stage play – that was just released to the streaming-media site DisneyPlus:

Title: Why the ‘Hamilton’ Film Works — and Joel Schumacher’s ‘Phantom’ Didn’t
By: Marina Watts

Turning a Broadway musical into a movie is no easy task. Bringing the excitement that was onstage to the silver screen is a challenge, from sets and songs to simply making sure the musical translates to the screen. West Side Story (1961), My Fair Lady (1964) and Cabaret (1972) were all successful shows that were adapted for the silver screen with similar success.

Filmed Broadway shows such as Peter Pan (1955), She Loves Me (2016) and Newsies (2017) were also massive hits which opted to shoot a staged performance. So was Hamilton (you may have heard of it).

Hamilton, which premiered on Disney+ on July 3, has been an absolute hit. Between the acting, singing, dancing and songwriting, the filmed version of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Tony Award-winning show has many viewers obsessed. Disney+ even saw a 74% spike in streaming subscriptions the weekend it premiered, as per Forbes.

What also makes this film adaptation of the staged show work is how it was made. Director Thomas Kail recently revealed exactly how he filmed and edited Hamilton. He used 30 cameras to shoot the musical in three days in 2016 (June 26, 27 and 28, Sunday through Tuesday) and spent three years piecing it together. On the 26th and 28th, Kail shot straight through with an audience. On the 27, he had no audience, allowing him to focus on closer shots of the show.

“I had six cameras that were shooting on the Sunday with different operators and then three fixed cameras or nine total,” Kail explained to Inquirer.net. “Then, I changed all the positions for the fixed cameras for the Tuesday so the multiple gets high really fast, but that’s how we made it.”

This movie musical was an incredible example of converting a stage musical to screens with only three days of footage, unlike Joel Schumacher’s 2004 adaptation of Phantom of the Opera whichtook four months to film.

The big-budget adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Weber’s musical was a cinematographic mess, despite the fact that it had been in development since 1989. Schumacher’s focus on making other films and Weber’s divorce were just two events which added to the delays.

Schumaker starred Emmy Rossum, Patrick Wilson, Minnie Driver and Gerard Butler as the Phantom, and was nominated for three Academy Awards. But those noms didn’t translate to critical acclaim.

According to Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a 33% approval rating. “The music of the night has hit something of a sour note: critics are calling the screen adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s popular musical, histrionic boring and lacking in both romance and danger,” the consensus read. Although critics didn’t like the movie, audiences loved it.

What threw critics appeared to be the movie’s…cinematography and direction. Shots failed to make the sound stages of Phantom look cinematic. The scenes felt like an overstuffed painting, and though that type of spectacle would have translated well onstage for the suspension of disbelief, it felt exhausting onscreen and lacked dimension. The sweeping camera shots and long takes didn’t add anything either, especially when showing off the mostly computer generated sets.

The film’s color schemes were also deemed dull. In the “Masquerade” scene, for example, many colors and bright images are mentioned throughout the song. However, the main colors of the costumes were black and white, a stark contrast to the lyrics.

The set of Hamilton, meanwhile, was simple yet effective. Since they were also using the costumes and the set directly from the show, nothing got lost in translation as far as spectacle went.

Weber was granted full artistic control. When it came to his intentions of adapting Phantom, he said, “We did not want to do a film version of the stage show,” as per Playbill. “We wanted to make a film in its own right.”

Kail, meanwhile, wanted to recreate the theater experience for viewers at home. “I was just interested in trying to create an experience with the film of Hamilton that would let you know what it felt like to be in the theater in June of 2016 in New York City at the Richard Rodgers Theatre. That was the intent,” he explained.

Kail explained that they way they shot the staged musical, they were able to get as close as possible to the actors for an immersive and intimate experience. These close-up shots gave viewers the best seat in the house, unlike Phantom.

“So much of our storytelling is done in the physical vocabulary,” he noted. “If I’m going to close up, it means I’m not on that dance step. It’s very hard to do both those things. So, it was a real balance of making sure that I wanted to give intimacy and proximity, which you have in cinema.”

Additionally, throughout Phantom of the Opera, many of the actors’ mouths don’t appear to match up with the music. There are also many continuity issues, from moments where the Phantom takes off his cloak, to candles being lit and unlit, and masks disappearing and reappearing during the “Masquerade” number, just to name a few errors. These tiny details made a huge difference, and audiences felt like it was sloppy.

Since Hamilton was performed and filmed live without any dubbing, these continuity issues didn’t occur.

That being said, filming the staged musical was not a simple task. “It is a little more challenging in the theater,” Kail noted, “You must also get the stage picture and make sure that the storytelling of the entire group was represented.”

Kail also mentioned how he and Miranda wanted to preserve this particular performance with the original cast of Hamilton. “Theater always disappears. It goes away as soon as the lights come down, whereas cinema, film and television can live on.”

Maybe Phantom of the Opera should be the next musical to get the Hamilton treatment.

Hamilton is available to stream on Disney+. Phantom of the Opera is available to stream on Amazon Prime.

REQUEST REPRINT & LICENSING, SUBMIT CORRECTION OR VIEW EDITORIAL GUIDELINES

Source: Posted Newsweek Magazine July 13, 2020; retrieved July 15, 2020 from: https://www.newsweek.com/why-hamilton-film-works-joel-schumachers-phantom-didnt-1517030

Yet still, this is not a commentary about Broadway or New York; no, this is about the Caribbean. Hamilton was born and raised in the Caribbean (St Croix and Nevis respectively); writer-producer-actor Lin-Manual Miranda is of Caribbean (Puerto Rico) heritage and a lot of the cast and crew hail from the Caribbean homeland. Hamilton is about more than history, culture and politics; no, it is relevant for an economic discussion as well.

This was the theme of a previous blog-commentary from the movement behind the 2013 book Go Lean…Caribbean. That submission was on January 2, 2019 and it asserted that the arts can truly empower a community – “that a community rallies around art creating a unique energy; and art ‘dynamises’ the community, in a very unique way”. Economic opportunities are the natural progression from organizing the arts and artists. While we cannot be Broadway in the Caribbean, we can better harness (and monetize) the natural talents and genius-qualifiers in our region.

This is where the money and the jobs are …

It is only apropos to Encore that previous commentary, from January 2, 2019, here and now:

—————-

Go Lean Commentary – Hamilton – “History has its eyes on you”

This is a memorable line from the hot Broadway play Hamilton:

Immigrants, we get things done!

This is what all the rave is about with this fascinating play; it tells the story of America’s founding fathers through the eyes of the immigrant experience. (This writer saw Hamilton on December 28, 2018 at the Broward Performing Arts Center in Ft Lauderdale, FL).

As was true with all these founding fathers, Alexander Hamilton was White; (“Bastard son of a Scotsman”); Aaron Burr was White; so too George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and others portrayed in this song-and-dance production. But all the participating actors – in the Broadway edition, plus all the other touring companies – are Black-and-Brown minorities – many of them immigrants themselves.

The theme of Hamilton – historic immigrants thriving in America – aligns with the 2013 book Go Lean…Caribbean. The book was written and published by members of the Caribbean Diaspora living and thriving in America. There is a full acceptance that Caribbean immigrants can thrive in the US, as did Hamilton in his historical context. But many more immigrants arrive everyday, and there is now less tolerance for them, especially for those of the Black-and-Brown populations from the Caribbean. In fact, the current President of the US, Donald Trump, even derisively referred to Haitians as coming from a “shit-hole” country.

So while we can thrive, the question – by the movement behind the Go Lean book – is whether we should. The Hamilton play makes this point, as was related in a previous Go Lean blog-commentary:

When the word got around, they said “this kid is insane, man”
Took up a collection just to send “him” to the mainland
“Get your education, don’t forget from whence you came”
And the world gonna know your name …

It is an established fact that any difficult topic can be more easily communicated if backed-up by a catchy melody and rhyming words. An underlying theme of Hamilton is that nobody does it alone, there must always be community help and support; its like a community investment. There should also be a return on the investment. This point was communicated brilliantly in this news-commentary by a Social Justice Advocate; she stated that “self-made men are never independent of others’ help”. See the full article here:

Title: History Has Its Eyes On Us: Lessons from Hamilton the Musical
By: Courtney Kidd LCSW
Obsession. That’s the only way to describe the feelings of Hamilton followers, and once you’ve seen the show you’d understand why. Hamilton is a punch in the face, spellbinding transport through the life of one of the least well-known founding fathers, but by far one of the most interesting. And the best part? It’s done through the lens of hip-hop music and a cast of almost exclusively non-white actors-including our own dear Alexander Hamilton. While this caused confusion for some, who began to question their 8^th grade history memory, it stands as one of the most powerful examples of today’s racial divide and the movements to correct it.

I’ll admit, I was skeptical going into the play. My friend and I had gotten tickets when they first went on sale almost 9 months before opening night. We saw it in its first month on Broadway after the success off-Broadway. I remember sitting in my chair prior to the curtain rise, uncertain of whether I’d like a modern take on a history. Could it reach across the aisle of race? Could it hold attention of a subject most forget about? Would I get it? Did I really wait 9 months and spend hundreds of dollars for something that might just be weird? It took exactly 1 minute until those questions left my mind and instead I was entrapped, enamored, enthralled with this play that lives up to one of the numbers “non-stop.” It was a non-stop journey, filled with humor, and anguish, and longing. I was converted. I was in love.

I went to see it a second time a few months, later, unable to wait until the soundtrack was finally released, I bought a resale ticket at far too high of an amount for my poor social work status. But I had to go, the play had brought about a plague within me; this wasn’t just a good show, it was something far beyond. Much like its creator Lin-Manuel Miranda, I began what has still been obsessive task of reading book after book on Hamilton, and the rest of those influential individuals who shaped the country. I wake up with the music in my head, and despite my best efforts, can’t stop listening to the songs. And then it hit me. This isn’t just a great musical and it’s not just because it is new and different, it’s because despite almost 300 hundred years since this man stood with the revolution, its relevant. And not in the way you think.

Over the past few years we have seen a second wave of the civil rights movement in America. Sadly, Despite the year, minorities, immigrants, and even women are still seen and treated differently than the white male counterpoint. Feelings and reactions peak and overspill in areas like Ferguson and Baltimore. Huge movements such as Black Lives Matter rise up demanding justice in the country that fought and promised a land of freedom and equality. Hamilton isn’t just play to see, it’s a needed reminder. Alexander Hamilton was an immigrant who fought for the revolution, becoming one of Washington’s most trusted aides, rising to one of the highest positions in our military and later our government. From a remarkably young age, he was an abolitionist in a time when that word would be as shocking as to claim you’re an alien. He never allowed his birth and his circumstances to define him, and instead fought his entire life for the beliefs he had, including a strong central government and financial plan that allowed America to be self-sufficient and play with the “big boys” for trade and commerce. Hamilton saw first-hand the potential risks of weak governments while dealing with the military forces. He understood even then that we had to be the United States in order to succeed in this revolutionary experiment. And he wanted those rights for every individual who was here.

Hamilton was a true American Dream hero, but despite what a lot of modern people claim, self-made men are never independent of others’ help. Many wish to believe that they rose to where they are because only due to their remarkable abilities, and for some that is true, but much more often than not there was help along the way. Our founding father is no exception. Although known as a uniquely bright youth on the island of Nevis where he was orphaned at a young age, Hamilton might never have risen to the station he once held without the help of many. Yes, he showed himself to be a studious and adept learner when put in charge of the local trading company-and may have stayed on as a success employee had the Hurricane not hit Nevis with a colossal force. Hamilton, always a writer, penned a poem of what he witnessed, and a local man who believed Hamilton had the capacity for more forwarded it to the influential of the island. Despite the devastation they made an investment in one of their own, raising enough to send our future Secretary of Treasury and war hero to the colonies(America) to pursue a real education. To sum up, if those with means didn’t decide to put forward an investment for an orphan with potential Alexander Hamilton would have mostly likely lived his life and died having never left a small, impoverished island. For a poor, orphan of questionable birth and heritage, that would not have left many surprised, and yet the island rose together to support him.

We’re looking at a similar issue in today’s world. Do we invest in the future, on education, on sustainability for those who can go on to do greatness despite the circumstances of their birth, or do we claim that we got to where we were without assistance from anyone? Hundreds of years after Hamilton discussed the need for equality we are still in the midst of revolutions to save the ideals of our nation. Each person is shaped by those around them, and it is of no surprise that the haves are able to gain a lot more opportunity than the have-nots. For this reason, many assume it is laziness that prevent people from working their way up. Hamilton was the antithesis of lazy, but if it wasn’t for one influential patronage who connected him to the elite, our country may never have gained the footing it needed to be a competitive economy.

We have a responsibility to those around us and who come next to shape the world into a better place for us all, not just for ourselves. We saw yesterday what happens if we don’t stand against those who would spread hatred, and instead hold onto love. As Mr. Manuel so eloquently put:

“…We chase the melodies that seem to find us until they’re finished songs and start to play when senseless acts of tragedy remind us that nothing here is promised, not one day. This show is proof that history remembers. We live through times when hate and fear seem stronger. We rise and fall, and light from dying embers, remembrances that hope and love last longer and love is love is love is love is love is love is love is love cannot be killed or swept aside…”

And if you need more convincing, join me in line for some tickets to Hamilton, you won’t be disappointed(seriously if you know how to get reasonable tickets you know how to contact me).

“I consider civil liberty, in a genuine unadulterated sense, as the greatest of terrestrial blessings. I am convinced, that the whole human race is intitled(entitled) to it; and, that it can be wrested from no part of them, without the blackest and most aggravated guilt.”- Alexander Hamilton

*Authors note*- Should Mr. Miranda see this, congrats on the Grammy, call me for unlimited praise and begging for interviews. Your PR man is too good at polite declines.

**Update- And your UNREAL number of Tony nominations and wins!! [See Appendix below].

Source: Social Justice Solution Online Site – posted February 23, 2016; retrieved December 30, 2018 from: http://www.socialjusticesolutions.org/2016/02/23/history-has-its-eyes-on-us-lessons-from-hamilton-the-musical/

————

VIDEO – 70th Annual Tony Awards ‘Hamilton’ History has its eyes and Yorktown – https://youtu.be/5upLudfimso

Undercover Celebs
Published on Nov 4, 2016 – 70th Annual Tony Awards ‘Hamilton’ History has its eyes and Yorktown by the cast of Hamilton at the 2016 Tony Awards where the musical won 11 awards.

Category: People & Blogs

Music in this video: Learn more; Listen ad-free with YouTube Premium

Song: Yorktown (The World Turned Upside Down)

Artist: Original Broadway Cast of Hamilton

Album: Hamilton (Original Broadway Cast Recording) Licensed to YouTube by: WMG (on behalf of Atlantic Records); UBEM, ASCAP, Warner Chappell, CMRRA, PEDL, and 3 Music Rights Societies

The prime directive of the Go Lean book is to empower, elevate and facilitate a better Caribbean society. We want to be able to thrive right here at home – to prosper where planted – thus lowering the motivations to emigrate. In fact, the declarative statements of the prime directive are as follows:

Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion & create 2.2 million jobs.
Establishment of a security apparatus to ensure public safety and protect the resultant economic engines.
Improve Caribbean governance to support these engines.

Puerto Rican descendant Lin-Manuel Miranda, the creator, writer and original cast member as Alexander Hamilton is well-known for his advocacy for the Caribbean region in general and Puerto Rico in particular. He accomplishes his mission to effect change in the American eco-system through music/song and entertainment. The book Go Lean…Caribbean strives to accomplish its mission with the introduction and implementation of the technocratic Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU). Lin-Manuel Miranda is hereby recognized as a role model that the Caribbean can emulate. He has provided a successful track record of forging change, overcoming incredible odds, managing crises to successful conclusions and rebooting failing institutions. See these previous blog-commentaries that detailed his accomplishments:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=14101

Wait, ‘We Are The World’
In September 2017, Hurricane Maria devastated several Caribbean member-states; Puerto Rico was gravely impacted. In the mode of ‘We Are The World‘, many artists – led by Lin-Manuel Miranda – assembled and recorded a song to aid Puerto Rico, entitled ‘Almost Like Praying‘ by Artists for Puerto Rico.

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=7963

‘Like a Good Neighbor’ – Being there for Puerto Rico
The US Territory of Puerto Rico needs a Good Neighbor right now. They do not need State Farm; they need the US Government to change the laws to allow them to re-structure their heavy debt “load”. In effect, this community is in crisis, facing financial disaster and needs a helping hand. Lin-Manuel Miranda was on a mission to help Puerto Rico by getting Congress to change Bankruptcy Laws to apply to PR again.

Mr. Miranda has now retired from performing in Hamilton …

… but atlas, he will reprise his role for the highly acclaimed Puerto Rico run in January 2019. See more on that story here:

Title: Puerto Rico Engagement of Hamilton, Starring Lin-Manuel Miranda, Will Sell $10 Tickets Through Lottery and Rush

Sub-title: Over 10,000 tickets will be released through the popular #Ham4Ham initiative, exclusively to island residents.

The upcoming Puerto Rico premiere of Hamilton, in which Tony- and Pulitzer-winning creator Lin-Manuel Miranda will reprise his performance in the title role, will offer island residents a chance to purchase tickets priced at ten dollars.

As previously reported, the blockbuster musical will play San Juan’s Teatro UPR at the University of Puerto Rico (Río Piedras Campus) January 8 through January 27, 2019, before the company (sans Miranda) embarks on a third national tour. Additional casting will be announced at a later date.

A total of 10,000 tickets will be sold at the low price in Puerto Rico as an extension of the blockbuster musical’s popular #Ham4Ham initiative, with 1,000 going to college students (with valid ID) for the January 9 matinee. All remaining tickets for that performance and two subsequent Wednesday matinees will be sold for $10 via digital lottery. Over 200 tickets will be sold to residents via lotto for all other performances.

“Bringing [Hamilton] to Puerto Rico is a dream that I’ve had since we first opened at The Public Theater in 2015,” Miranda said at the time of the initial announcement. “When I last visited the island, a few weeks before Hurricane Maria, I had made a commitment to not only bring the show to Puerto Rico, but also return again to the title role. In the aftermath of Maria we decided to expedite the announcement of the project to send a bold message that Puerto Rico will recover and be back in business, stronger than ever.”

Source: PlayBill Magazine – Posted August 28, 2018; retrieved January 2, 2018 from http://www.playbill.com/article/puerto-rico-engagement-of-hamilton-starring-lin-manuel-miranda-will-sell-10-tickets-through-lottery-and-rush

In the CU/Go Lean roadmap to change the Caribbean, music and theater gets it’s due respect. This point is detailed in the Declaration of Interdependence at the outset of the book, pronouncing this need for regional solutions (Page 14):

xxxii. Whereas the cultural arts and music of the region are germane to the quality of Caribbean life, and the international appreciation of Caribbean life, the Federation must implement the support systems to teach, encourage, incentivize, monetize and promote the related industries for arts and music in domestic and foreign markets. These endeavors will make the Caribbean a better place to live, work and play.

We are looking forward to more art-based accomplishments: the arts can truly empower the community – “the community rallies around art creating a unique energy; and art ‘dynamises’ the community, in a very unique way”. What more can the stewards of the Caribbean do to effect change in the region using the arts and music? The Go Lean book provides a lot more details on Page 230 under the title “10 Ways to Improve the Arts“; see one detail here:

#1: Lean-in for the Emergence of the Caribbean Union
Embrace the advent of the CariCom Single Market Initiative and the Caribbean Union Trade Federation. This will allow for the unification of the region into a Single Market of 42 million people. This size supports the proliferation of ‘art’ (visual/fine, music, performance & film) as an industry. The CU will promote the art exhibition eco-system – allowing marketplaces for artists to congregate and monetize their talents. Structures will also be deployed for media companies to monetize film & performance art. The CU will facilitate the marketing of travelling exhibitions, and touring companies of stage productions. For the region, art can be a business enabler, and expressions for civic pride and national identity.

“History Has Its Eyes On Us” is the title of a song in the Hamilton Play – see Appendix VIDEO – and also a truism. There are lessons we must learn from the history of Alexander Hamilton. We must, like he did, fight for change and progress; as conveyed in the foregoing article:

From a remarkably young age, he was an abolitionist in a time when that word would be as shocking as to claim you’re an alien. He never allowed his birth and his circumstances to define him, and instead fought his entire life for the beliefs he had, including a strong central government and financial plan that allowed America to be self-sufficient and play with the “big boys” for trade and commerce. Hamilton saw first-hand the potential risks of weak governments …

The Go Lean roadmap accepts that the burden is too big for any one Caribbean member-state alone to effect change, thusly it advocates for a collaboration among all member-states. The strategy is to confederate all the 30 member-states of the Caribbean despite their language and legacy, into an integrated Single Market. The Go Lean/CU roadmap details all the strategies, tactics and implementation to forge the Single Market solutions. With these efforts and investments, the returns will be undeniable. We can dissuade our people from leaving in the first place – Alexander Hamilton never returned to British-controlled Nevis after leaving for college. (He did revolt against the British).

We want change in the Caribbean without a revolt. This was proclaimed from the outset of the Go Lean book:

This movement was bred from the frustrations of the Diaspora, longing to go home, to lands of opportunities. But this is not a call for a revolt against the governments, agencies or institutions of the Caribbean region, but rather a petition for a peaceful transition and optimization of the economic, security and governing engines in the region. – Go Lean book Page 8.

The Go Lean roadmap has a simple quest: make the Caribbean a better place to live, work and play. One man, or woman, can make a difference in this quest. Thank you for that model Hamilton. Thank you for that model Lin-Manuel Miranda. Now to foster the next generation of movers-and-shakers, whether it is politically, economically or in “song-and-dance”. We can impact our homeland with many fields of endeavor.

We urge all Caribbean stakeholders – artists and patrons alike – to lean-in to this roadmap to elevate Caribbean society. Yes, we can! Our quest is conceivable, believable and achievable. 🙂

Download the free e-Book of Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

Sign the petition to lean-in for this roadmap for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation.

————–

Appendix VIDEO – Why History Has Its Eyes On Hamilton’s Diversity | TIME – https://youtu.be/xWrRP6vRGhQ

TIME
Published on Dec 15, 2015 – In 2015, Lin-Manuel Miranda, a man once not known to many outside his circle of Broadway legions, shed light on another man once not known to many outside a circle of knowledgeable historians. But Miranda took one of America’s founding fathers and turned him “and thus, himself” into a star. The Broadway show Hamilton uses rap and hip-hop to tell the story of Alexander Hamilton’s rise to power during the American Revolution. The show broke multiple records for its cast recording and notched record-breaking sales of $32 million before it even hit Broadway. But the cast makes history in different ways, too, with men and women of color playing characters who were all white. There’s an African-American Vice President Aaron Burr, a biracial George Washington and a Chinese-American Mrs. Alexander Hamilton. Subscribe to TIME ►► http://po.st/SubscribeTIME

Category: News & Politics

————–

Appendix – 70th Tony Awards

The 70th Annual Tony Awards were held on June 12, 2016, to recognize achievement in Broadway productions during the 2015–16 season. The ceremony temporarily returned to the Beacon Theatre in New York City after three years at Radio City Music Hall and was broadcast live by CBS.^[1] James Corden served as host.^[2]

Hamilton received a record-setting 16 nominations in 13 categories, ultimately winning 11 total.^[3] The revival of The Color Purple won two awards. The Humans won four awards, and the revival productions of plays Long Day’s Journey into Night and A View from the Bridge each won two awards.

…

Source: Retrieved December 31, 2018 from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/70th_Tony_Awards

Share this post:

Arts, Jobs, Model, Music

[Top]

Rise from the Ashes – Learning from the ‘Great Depression’

Posted on July 11, 2020 in Economics, Government, Planning

Go Lean Commentary

This is Summer 2020, the whole world is reeling from the effects of the Coronavirus COVID-19 crisis. There are health and economic repercussions – systemic threats – as the world has never seen.

Or has it?

Have we been here before, where the economic systems completely imploded and there was the need to reboot, rebuild and re-start the economic engines in the global economy?

Yes, indeed. There was the Great Depression.

How bad was the Great Depression?

The Great Depression was the worst economic downturn in the history of the industrialized world, lasting from 1929 to 1939. … By 1933, when the Great Depression reached its lowest point, some 15 million Americans were unemployed and nearly half the country’s banks had failed. – Source: History.com.

Traders rush, 1929, October in Wall Street as New York Stock Exchange crashed sparking a run on banks that spread accross the country. – October 1929 was the beginning of the 1929 Stock Market Crash. Within the first few hours the stock market was open, prices fell so far as to wipe out all the gains that had been made in the previous year. The Dow Jones Industrial Index closed at 230. Since the stock market was viewed as the chief indicator of the American economy, public confidence was shattered. Between October 29 and November 13 (when stock prices hit their lowest point) over 30 billion USD disappeared from the American economy. It took nearly twenty-five years for many stocks to recover. (Photo by – / AFP) (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)

Considering the years 1929 to 1939 means that most of us were not alive to remember this crisis. Fortunately, there are lots of media material to consume, consult and contemplate about that crisis’s origin, duration and resolution. In effect, there are lots of Lessons to learn from the Great Depression.

These desperate times calls for us to open “every cupboard” for knowledge and wisdom to survive this crisis.

There is this urgency for the Caribbean member-states to reform and transform. The 2013 book Go Lean…Caribbean had previously asserted that “a crisis is a terrible thing to waste” – referring to the 2007 – 2009 Great Recession. This urging is even more acute now, with this Coronavirus COVID-19 crisis. We must forge permanent change on our Caribbean society, if we want to survive in the near future – otherwise, our citizens will abandon us further. Despite how monumental a task this sounds, it is conceivable, believable and achievable. We can Rise from the Ashes of this crisis and build a better society from the ashes.

We just completed a 6-part series in June on Rising from the Ashes where we considered these dimensions:

Rising from the Ashes – The Phoenix rises from the Pandemic
Rising from the Ashes – One person – Dead or Alive – can make a difference
Rising from the Ashes – Natural Disasters – The Price of Paradise
Rising from the Ashes – Political Revolutions – Calling ‘Balls and Strikes’
Rising from the Ashes – War – “What is it good for?”
Rising from the Ashes – Wrong Ethos could also rise – Cautionary tale of patriotic German Jews

Now for this continuation, a 7^th edition, we consider the lessons from the Great Depression. Let consider this excellent media production:

Title: Looking Back To The 1930s: Lessons From The Great Depression

Looking back to 1930, the year after the start of the Great Depression. What lessons did we learn about how best to move forward with a suffering economy? We look at our current crisis now through the lens of American history.

Guests [for this show]:

David Kennedy, professor emeritus of history at Stanford University. Founder and former director of the Bill Lane Center for the American West. Author of “Freedom from Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929-1945.”

Jack Beatty, On Point news analyst. (@JackBeattyNPR)

From The Reading List

Futurity: “The Great Depression proved we need government in a crisis” — “As the world reckons with an economic crisis that the International Monetary Fund anticipates to be the worst recession since the Great Depression, what can we learn from history? How are these two events similar, and how are they different?”

NPR: “‘A Lot To Be Hopeful For’: Crisis Seen As Historic, Not Another Great Depression” — “With the U.S. economy in free-fall, a lot of forecasters have been digging deep into the history books, looking for a guideposts of what to expect. Often, they’ve turned to the chapter on the 1930s.”

Bloomberg: “How Bad Might It Get? Think the Great Depression” — “As the economic carnage from the coronavirus pandemic continues, a long-forbidden word is starting to creep onto people’s lips: ‘depression.'”

The New York Times: “The New Great Depression Is Coming. Will There Be a New New Deal?” — “Until very recently, Andrew Yang thought that the need for a universal basic income would be a big issue in the 2024 election, as ‘many of the trends that I campaigned on were going to become completely clear to more and more Americans’ over the next four years. He was arguing, for example, that between now and then, ’30 percent of our stores and malls were going to close because of Amazon.’ After more than a month of coronavirus lockdowns, Yang’s prediction looks quaintly optimistic.”

Vox: “Will the worst downturn since the Great Depression last as long?” — “Weeks of record job losses have left the United States with an unemployment rate that’s widely estimated to be higher than at any time since the Great Depression. That shocking reality naturally invites analogies and raises what is perhaps the most important economic question of our time: How long will the bad times last?”

The Philadelphia Inquirer: “Mounting job losses. Fear of the unknown. We’ve seen this before during the Great Depression. Here are some lessons learned.” — “The blunt headlines that appeared sporadically in The Inquirer throughout 1929 hinted at the dark menace of long-term unemployment, a condition that would worsen as the Great Depression unfurled over the next 12 years. ‘Jobless man ends life.’ ‘Man, ill and jobless, is suicide.’ ‘Jobless Darby man a suicide.'”

CNN: “We’ve overcome hard times before: What Americans who beat the Great Depression can teach us today.” — “A sudden crisis turns the world upside down. Millions are thrown out of work. People despair and dread the future. That was the grim scenario many Americans faced almost a century ago after the 1929 stock market crash triggered the Great Depression. And many people are experiencing it today as the coronavirus pandemic ravages the US and the rest of the world.”

Related:

On Point: What The 1918 Flu Pandemic Teaches Us About The Coronavirus Outbreak

Here & Now: ‘Keep Your Chin Up’: Lessons From Someone Born During The Great Depression

Here & Now: Looking At President Hoover’s Decision Against Government Intervention During The Great Depression

On Point: How To Rebuild The Coronavirus Economy

One For The History Books: 14.7% Unemployment, 20.5 Million Jobs Wiped Away

Source: On Point Posted May 18, 2020; retrieved July 11, 2020 from: https://www.wbur.org/onpoint/2020/05/18/great-depression-how-did-we-recover

———-

AUDIO-PODCast – Looking Back To The 1930s: Lessons From The Great Depression – https://dcs.megaphone.fm/BUR6433954311.mp3?key=dae7f9a0936e0993c31cff98fdd7b44e

Looking back to 1930, the year after the start of the Great Depression. What lessons did we learn about how best to move forward with a suffering economy? We look at our current crisis now through the lens of American history. David Kennedy and Jack Beatty join Meghna Chakrabarti.

Alternative PODCast Broadcast on July 3, 2020: https://dcs.megaphone.fm/BUR6433954311.mp3?key=dae7f9a0936e0993c31cff98fdd7b44e

What was the resolution for the United States for the Great Depression?

The New Deal … (Truly, a reboot, “arising from the ashes” of the “Old Deal“).

See full details here …

Lessons from the New Deal. It wasn’t one big package wrapped in political consensus. We look at the real, messy process that pulled the U.S. out of the Great Depression.

What exactly are the lessons for the Caribbean?

We need efficient and effective governance.
We need economic security provisions – “Safety Nets”.
We need to protect the “Weak from being Abused by the Strong”.

Economics, Security and Governance – Yep; these are the 3 societal engines that have been the focus of the movement behind the Go Lean book. As related repeatedly, we must first have a plan …

Know where we are
Where we want to go
How to get there

Rather than a “plan” the Go Lean book call this approach a roadmap; step-by-step directions for taking the whole region – the political Caribbean of 30 member-states – to a destination: a better place to live, work and play.

This theme of organizing the region for a technocratic response – establishing New Guards – has been elaborated upon in a number of previous Go Lean commentaries, before and during this pandemic. Consider this sample list below; but first do realize that this is not just an American retrospective for “Learning from Economic Crises”. No, lessons abound from other countries as well. For example, there are good lessons and bad lessons from a number of European countries in their historicity of managing their recent crises:

——–

Iceland did the heavy-lifting to rebuilding their society and Rising from the Ashes of the Greet Recession. They did not put out the fire; they let it burn:

Lessons from Iceland – Model of Recovery; posted September 23, 2015
During the bad days of the Great Recession – at the precipice of disaster – the country deviated from other troubled regions …

“Iceland let its banks fail in 2008 because they proved too big to save.”

How does it relate to the Caribbean? The Caribbean is at the precipice … now; many of the member-states are near Failed-State status, while others are still hoping to recover from the devastating Great Recession of 2008. Turn-around should not take this long – 7 years. Strategies, tactics and implementations of best-practices to effect a turn-around must be pursued now.

Iceland has now recovered, and complaining about a 2% unemployment rate. What did they do that was so radically different than other locations? For one, they changed course regarding economics, security and governing policies. An ultra-capitalist movement had taken hold of the country and business communities; they pursued an aggressive “boom-or-bust” strategy, that ultimately “busted”, rather than continue on that road, the country – all aspects of society – altered course and returned to a path of sound fundamentals.

——–

Greece, on the other hand, did a poor job of managing their crisis, and suffered as a result:

Pressed by Debt Crisis, Doctors Leave Greece in Droves; posted July 1, 2015
Poor economic conditions are forcing a brain drain among a country’s professionals. Yes, we understand all too well.

This is the crisis for Greece! This is the crisis for the Caribbean, as well!

This is a consistent theme in the book Go Lean…Caribbean. The book posits that the events in Greece are relevant for the Caribbean, North America and the world economy as a whole. What’s worse is that many Caribbean member-states are in the same situation.

Greece is the weak link in the Eurozone; it is inching closer to defaulting on its debt. The country has been in a long standoff with its European creditors on the terms of a multibillion-dollar bailout. If the country goes bankrupt or decides to leave the 19-nation Eurozone, the Greek debt crisis could create instability in the region and reverberate around the globe.

——–

Other previous blog-commentaries referring to the New Guards for the Caribbean specifically are catalogued here as follows:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=19409	Coronavirus: Ready for the ‘Clear & Present’ Economic Threat/Danger
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=17358	Marshall Plan – A Lesson in History
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15996	Good Governance: Stepping Up in an Emergency
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=13999	First Steps for Caribbean Security – Deputize ‘Me’, says the Caribbean Union
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=11759	Understand the Market, Plan the … Reboot and Recovery
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=10566	Funding the Caribbean Security Pact – Yes, we can!
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=10043	Integration Plan for Greater Caribbean Prosperity
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=9038	Caribbean Charity Management: Grow Up Already & Be Responsible
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=7896	The Logistics of Disaster Relief
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5002	Managing a ‘Clear and Present Danger’

Yes, a New Guard, for Caribbean economic security is vital for our regional survival – we cannot survive on our beauty alone.

We must do the heavy-lifting to reform and transform. We must let the roof on our broken “House of Cards” burn down and then we must build a new stronger house from the ashes on a firmer foundation. Only then will we be able to promise (and fulfill) a viable future of progress and prosperity to our young people.

Yes, COVID-19 was not the first crisis for our region – we can learn so much from the Great Depression – and may not be the last one. So, we must have the New Guards in place to protect our people against systemic threats.

We urged all Caribbean stakeholders to lean-in to this Go Lean roadmap to elevate our regional society. This is how we will make our homeland a better place to live, work and play. 🙂

Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion & create 2.2 million new jobs.
Establishment of a security apparatus to ensure public safety and protect the resultant economic engines.
Improve Caribbean governance to support these engines, including a separation-of-powers between the member-states and CU federal agencies.

Download the free e-Book of Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

Who We Are
The movement behind the Go Lean book – a non-partisan, apolitical, religiously-neutral Community Development Foundation chartered for the purpose of empowering and re-booting economic engines – stresses that reforming and transforming the Caribbean societal engines must be a regional pursuit. This was an early motivation for the roadmap, as pronounced in the opening Declaration of Interdependence (Pages 12 – 13):

x. Whereas we are surrounded and allied to nations of larger proportions in land mass, populations, and treasuries, elements in their societies may have ill-intent in their pursuits, at the expense of the safety and security of our citizens. We must therefore appoint “new guards” to ensure our public safety and threats against our society, both domestic and foreign. ….

xi. Whereas all men are entitled to the benefits of good governance in a free society, “new guards” must be enacted to dissuade the emergence of incompetence, corruption, nepotism and cronyism at the peril of the people’s best interest. The Federation must guarantee the executions of a social contract between government and the governed.

xvi. Whereas security of our homeland is inextricably linked to prosperity of the homeland, the economic and security interest of the region needs to be aligned under the same governance. Since economic crimes … can imperil the functioning of the wheels of commerce for all the citizenry, the accedence of this Federation must equip the security apparatus with the tools and techniques for predictive and proactive interdictions.

xxiv. Whereas a free market economy can be induced and spurred for continuous progress, the Federation must install the controls to better manage aspects of the economy: jobs, inflation, savings rate, investments and other economic principles. Thereby attracting direct foreign investment because of the stability and vibrancy of our economy.

xxv. Whereas the legacy of international democracies had been imperiled due to a global financial crisis, the structure of the Federation must allow for financial stability and assurance of the Federation’s institutions. To mandate the economic vibrancy of the region, monetary and fiscal controls and policies must be incorporated as proactive and reactive measures. These measures must address threats against the financial integrity of the Federation and of the member-states.

Sign the petition to lean-in for this roadmap for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation.

Share this post:

History, Model, Transform

[Top]