By AZARD ALI
September 15, 2015 – newsday.co.tt
A British-based attorney yesterday, said the Opposition United National Congress’ (UNC) election petition could cut both ways, as the ruling People’s National Movement (PNM) could claim it also lost votes due to the extension of voting time in the election held two Mondays ago.
Attorney Anand Beharrylal, who specialises in constituional law, however supported the UNC’s petition on the basis that the courts need to lay down the law on the powers of the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) relating to extending the time for voting, without consulting political parties.
Trinidad-born Beharrylal was asked to comment on the UNC’s petition, which seeks to challenge the EBC’s decision to extend voting in Monday’s general election by an hour, due to heavy rains, especially across the East-west Corridor.
The UNC contends that it was in the lead in certain marginal constituencies by 6 pm.
Beharrylal told Newsday that Rule 56 of the Representation of the People’s Act, provides that the only circumstance that would permit the presiding officer to suspend or adjourn voting, is if it is interrupted by riot or open violence.
Beharrylal said the EBC’s media release in which it purports to rely on Section 71 of the Constitution that does not make the EBC subject to any person or authority, is insufficient grounds to extend the voting from 6 pm to 7 pm.
“This does not exempt the EBC from acting within the law laid down by the Act,” Beharrylal said.
He explained that extending voting due to rain, is inconsistent with the only other instance in Trinidad and Tobago’s history, when on December 4, 1961, voting was extended due to problems with the voting machines.
Notably, this was only done after an emergency session of the then PNM Cabinet.” On the issue of a court hearing, such a petition, Beharrylal said it is his view, the UNC has serious evidential challenges to overcome, pointing out that the court would have to determine which party candidate was likely to win the particular seat or seats, by determining which party voters voted for, during the extended period from 6 pm to 7 pm.
Asking such a question of the voter, Beharrylal added, is prohibited.
The attorney went on to state that while Section 35 of the Act, requires an election to be conducted in accordance with election rules, it also makes it clear that no election shall be declared invalid, even if there is a breach of election rules. Beharrylal questioned why the UNC did not raise its objection at the time when the EBC made the decision to extend the voting time.
Despite these and other hurdles, the British-based attorney said whatever evidence is adduced, the UNC’s petition is not frivolous or vexatious, because where there is a situation in which the EBC can be deemed to have not abided by the election rules, a challenge of such action is in the public interest, to ensure that it does not happen again.
He maintained the EBC ought to have consulted with political parties before extending the time of voting.
He concluded, “If they have defied any requirement to consult with the political parties, it is in our interest for this to be determined by our courts to ensure it does not happen again.”
Reading these makes one want to live alone in a faraway land, and work in a solitary occupation, where, perhaps, I will be seen as an inferior brown monkey, but nothing more insidious or threatening.
More than half of my closest associates at work are African, and I had believed that we worked in an atmosphere of mutual trust.
Feel like calling in sick tomorrow.
There is the widely held perception that the Hindu religion is inherently racist to its core, and that this has played a huge role in the political, economic and social marginalization of Trinidadians and Tobagonians of African descent.
As upsetting as this may be to you, consider this: for years, after deliberately quoting Dr. Eric Williams out of context in his infamous “recalcitrant minority speech,” succeeding generations of Trinidadians and Tobagonians of African descent have been made to feel very guilty on Dr. Williams’ behalf. Here is an interesting commentary on the speech:
“These were important and commendable principles but the road to their achievement was sometimes quite rocky. Angered by the opposition of some Indians to the formation of the West Indies Federation and their support for the opposition party in the federal election of 1958, Williams denounced these dissenters as “a hostile and recalcitrant minority.” This intemperate outburst was only directed at the chief minister’s opponents but in its telling and retelling it came to mean for many people, a signifier of his racial ideology, and practice. It was a rhetorical misstep but given Williams’s record, any racially abusive comment would have meant a repudiation of all that he had stood for throughout his life. His words represented a harsh indictment of those with whom he disagreed, not an indictment of an entire ethnic group. After all, many Indians supported the federal idea and the designated leader of the opposition in the Federal Parliament was Ashford Sinanan, a prominent and distinguished Trinidadian of Indian descent.”
http://www.trinidadandtobagonews.com/blog/?p=5729
As the link above shows, Dr. Williams did not direct his full ire at all Indo-Trinbagonians. However, there were mischievous elements within the Indo-Trinbagonian leadership that imputed racist motives to Dr. Williams’ speech and this narrative has persisted like a cancer, ever since.
Thus, you find yourself in a similar predicament. There is the narrative that Hindu ideology (not necessarily representative of all Indo-Trinbagonians) is fundamentally opposed to any notions of harmony among all ethnic groups.
Hence, it seems as if the burden is on the Hindu community to (re)gain the trust of the rest of the non-Hindu population in our beloved twin island republic.
See how it feels to be misunderstood?
There is no merit in this election petition. A first year law student or indeed one who has flunked out of law school can see the inherent flimsiness of this case.
There is no way for the UNC to determine who was ahead in the election at 6:00pm on the evening of 7 September, 2015. If indeed it was privy to such information, then it will be opening itself up to an extremely troubling line of inquiry. I will not insult the collective intelligence of the posters on this blog by having to elaborate on this point.
Also, Mrs. Persad-Bissessar has been greatly diminished in her stature as a leader as a result of this farcical petition. First, she concedes on election night, then in an apparent about-turn, announces her intention to have courts rule the results of the election null and void. Six days later (09/13/15), she congratulates Dr. Keith Rowley in an apparent acceptance of the election results. Yet, the very next day launches the petition. The contradicting statements and actions are giving me a headache! Do you accept the current government or not?
I am beginning to wonder if there are elements within the UNC that are deliberately trying to undermine her and make her a laughing stock in the eyes of the Trinidad and Tobago public.
Unless the UNC team can prove that the extra hour of voting favoured only the PNM voters in the marginal constituencies, the UNC’s case should be thrown out quickly and the plaintiff should be made to pay the legal expenses of the Electoral and Boundaries Commission.
I think Kamla is politically dead. Surprised that no-one called her Kammy Winehouse! “They tried to make me go to rehab, I said no, no no!”
See where it got you.
Rehab time, Kammy!
OK, I don’t have your intellectual firepower, but my main point was that, as far as I know, some Indo-Trinis aren’t racist (you’re free to dispute that) but are being doubly silenced by vocal Indian racists and by African anti-racists.
You just aren’t listening…i never said that all indians are racist but reject the propaganda that most aren’t racist. i said the vast majority are buttttt we must for scientific purposes define what racism is so we are on the same page or else it’s pointless…e.g. indians who smile and socialize with africans in public but train their kids to be afraid to bring home african lovers are even more racist than those who are publicly antisocial and racist…
if they took 1/10th of that energy to plan to trick africans into believing they like them they could have easily did…that’s my view but many africans seem content to call people like that friends…what desperation! I don’t want friends like that…
And that’s a big problem many people have different notions and parameters for what racism is….i like to keep it simple and a very ‘inclusive’ definition of racist so when i say someone isn’t racist i could trust them to teach my kids.
Many africans don’t understand the psychological damage that a racist teacher or fake friend can do…children are observant and intelligent they pick up on and are confused by racist fake friends…children grow up with inferiority complexes…probably like njac…their black power stops at the boat brahmins’ feet…
For the record I grew up with mixed African and Indian cousins, and went to temple and church maybe once a year each, maybe I have a skewed perspective.
With regard to closet racists:
If racist A harbours racist feelings in his heart but does not acknowlege or apply them publicly, and racist B preaches racism openly and encourages others, A is the bigger hypocrite, but B may be the bigger threat.
Silencing racists may not cure their racism but could help prevent them from infecting others.
Listen, i want to tell you, i really do,…what you are saying is actually very racist, but for a different angle…racists aren’t a race of people who take part in specific activities deemed racial and vice versa is true….having family members who don’t look like you doesn’t exempt you from being racist…to be fair, many people say this and mean it but are actually saying that being of a certain genetic makeup exempts you from being racists…some mean well when they say it some are facetious but both are indirectly promoting a racist ideology…now if you say that as a result of socializing with the growing up you learned from your parents to not hate or scorn people because of how they look fine…i may not believe it to be true but i can’t deny that possibility butttttt…in reality for example there are many non africans i.e. indian , chinese, white even mulattos etc who claim not to be racist as evident by a family member marrying an african buttttt in many cases these same people who use that as a shield were probably the head of a large cabal in the family who berated the family member for ‘bringing home’ a ‘nigger’?..alyuh hear lie? Dat is LIE …
now that is a very common scenario and so deceitful…orrr this is the funny one…a non african says “i’m not racist…look my daughter or sister has an african/black boyfriend”….buttttt when you see the guy he looks like mariano browne or let’s say colin powell or shaggy…and we’re supposed to not notice that the person isn’t your typical, average black or more importantly doesn’t have the elements of blackness which are hated….thick kinky hair, dark skin and african features…
in other words they’re trying to deceive you…racism ultimately especially nowadays has very little with from which continent you are originated but how light your skin is, how straight or soft your hair is and how european your face is as opposed to/relevant to the population.
I remember an immigrant from the dominican republic whom i know (canada) and she started telling me about this guy she had and it’s her first ‘african american’….so unknown to her, i was intimately familiar with how bakwardly, viciously racist her culture is and was suspicious (especially as she seemed to want to announce it) so anyway when i finally met him….LOL he looked like a male version of mariah carey…lol…see?
Instinctively many racist now try to convince others that they aren’t. She would never have dated someone who looked like Dr. Rowley …never…but she needed me to think otherwise
FYI I lived in the household of the black African branch of my family for a while.
I can never know your people’s struggles.
I agree with your calling out the Indo/Hindu racists, there are too many of them, I can’t stand them either.
Just want to move on to the constructive suggestions on how to deal with the issue in a way that encourages Indos to turn on the racists in their midst and become part of the solution instead of part of the problem.
Being honest– the points you made are very powerful and left me feeling embarrassed to be an Indo and desperate to be part of some solution.
Sadly triniamerican…unlike what many africans believe…that story is not why indians don’t like the pnm. That is just an excuse to rationalize their narrow minded voting patterns…in fact think about it..they had a choice between the illiterate, infamously corrupt, openly racist bully and organized crime boss badhase sagan-maharaj and Dr. Williams who had a doctorate which was very rare back then and a well known intellectual and idealist who was pushing for unity against colonization…guess who the vast majority of indians chose? He used to rip up all the state’s infrastructure like electrical wire etc and resell it on the black market…but he was a brahmin…his contribution to the political meeting besides singing hindu religious songs was the liberal use of the word “nigger” and they all rewarded him with votes…
raffique shah wrote earlier this year that bhadase used to refer to africans as niggers openly and boldly at his meetings and his numerous african henchmen used to happily and loyally protect him. Badhase and his party used to campaign against Dr. Williams’ push for the american base in chaguaramas to leave…do u think it was a coincidence that badhase was enriched when the americans were leaving. They sold him all their machinery and scap iron for next to nothing….??? The hostile and recalcitrant misinformation is a crutch that indians use to rationalize their hatred for the pnm…many are still bitter that pnm (dem rawan an dem) got to usher in independence…they are bitterrrrrrrr about THAT…they would have done like in mauritious…same type of history descendants slaves were there hundreds of years before indians came but those ex slaveowners swamped the population with more indians so guess what…since independence the descendents of slaves have NEVER seen political office.
it is actually a hindu family (ramgoolam’s) political dynasty…hindus never voted for the african descendents they came and met there…but they gave a white political party a chance…
in kenya the whites allowed indians to settle near them in nairobi…but scorned the indigenous africans…get this joke…the indians got representation in parliament before the indigenous africans and they and the whites voted against indigenous kenyans getting parliamentary representation…
of course that was decades ago but you see the mindset?
Did eric williams and the pnm call the hostile and recalcitrant in mauritius and kenya too?
What about uganda …you’ve all heard how idi amin was so bad and he kicked indians out of kenya….
why didn’t he kick out the chinese or arabs….ever wonder why indians always mention how bad amin was and what he did but you never once hear speculation on WHY???
The ugandans were subject to the same nasty racist behaviour all other africans complained about…their loyalties were not to uganda but to Brahmin supremacy…brahminism a.k.a. hinduism a.k.a. varna shrama dharma…your duty given to you on earth by god based on your skin colour/race. Allegedly it was gadaffi who advised idi amin to give them the boot…because he knew the result of the hindu mindset on a society…ugandans still talk about that time period rembering the burning issues…indians were telling their children not to marry ugandans (indigenous ones) and were very sectarian and scornful to them in their own damn country…what do u think will happen if there is no intermarrying but they want you to work for them in low level position still.
they support the colonialists over you and refuse to unite…amin realized that they were being groomed for slavery….but to hindus treating africans like that is their ‘right’ and should not be criticized.
So i told you about mauritius and uganda what about fiji….same damn thing that’s why they have unrest over there….same exact complaints and history…indigenous fijians are like indigenous hawaiians and indigenous australians they are african black skin woolly hair…
the british under colonization brought in the indians…ethnic/indigenous fijians didn’t have a say and were there thousands of years before…british show favouritism to the indians (straight hair coalition) and the indians also scorn the ethnic fijians and were refusing to learn the fijian tongue but want to make hindi the language in fiji…give me a break they prey on ‘tolerance’. Oh i’ll talk about racist mohandas in another post …they are openly racist, narrow-minded and sectarian…and the europeans buy into the propaganda that in the unrest, the indians as victims and is a dominant theme in the discussions over there butttttt google John Davies a nova scotian (canadian) professor who is married to an ethnic fijian for decades…
he says that indians (he’s white eh ) are openly racist and sectarian in their treatment of the fijians especially when the indians got into government and that the chauvinism and hostility now seen by ethnic fijians is merely a backlash and scramble to protect their heritage….
listen…could you imagine going to india and scornfully and obnoxiously not caring to learn an indian dialect but trying to get an african dialect for everybody to learn as the national dialect….disgusting….it is a persistent mindset.
Yes, there are Indo racists around, in sufficient numbers to be an issue for the country. No, they’re not the only racists. But, as an Indo-Trini, the existence of Indo racists irks me, both for personal reasons (being lumped together with them and blamed), but, more importantly, because of the detrimental effects that ethnic or sectarian division can have on a country (be it India, Syria or Northern Ireland).
In Uganda, Indos were driven out en masse.
In Jamaica, they were, for the most part, gradually assimilated.
If you’re looking at the former strategy, given the ethnic composition of the country, the scale of the project could be extremely destructive (expelling or exterminating 40% of the population is likely to have disruptive effects on institutions, the economy etc, as well as causing severe trauma to the 20+% of mixed families.
If one chooses the less disruptive assimilation route, it might not be ideal to view Indos as a bloc. Attacking them as a bloc will strengthen the hands of the racists among them.
Rather, one could take a page from the British “divide and rule” playbook and co-opt non-racist Indos, isolate irredeemably racist ones, and give partially racist ones a shove in the right direction.
Just a thought, I’m no sociologist.
BM, it is unlikely for that to happen but this is a beef with me. Our practice of oaths for high office allows office holders to use the bible, quoran or bhagavad gita as their holy oaths of commitment to the population. Kamla is on record as emphasizing the fact of her belief in the gita.
That being so and judging by all her misdeeds and complacency towards African people can we assume that she was faithful to her oath? I believe that she was very faithful to her oath of office because she did not swear to Almighty God. She swore to a belief system that discriminates by class, color, race and other forms of divisions. So, in this respect, I believe that Kamla was true to her oath of office. Emanating from this topic, how should I take comfort in the knowledge that such a person is representing me in parliament? From a christian perspective, we have seen the very worst ever government in the the form of the Kamla administration, yet no one questioned all the obnoxious behavior of those people. Why?
Kamla was and continues to be a stranger to the truth. The people she holds true to her heart are equally as devious, yet we tolerated her for five years. Anyway, I do believe that the oath of office should have nothing to do with religion. An oath is a sacred commitment which should not be taken lightly. If one’s behavior runs contrary to his/her oath of office, they should be help accountable for such misrepresentation before the eyes of God. Simple!
Get this…a couple years ago a russian judge banned the hindu ‘holy’ book ‘baghavad Gita” and listen to what this white, russian judge said as the reason for banning it…because it created an intolerant racist mindset….imagine that a white, russian judge said that…but what happened next is also instructive…of course some politics came into play and she rescinded the order…but of course we don’t care…cat already out de bag…look up that incident..
In my opinion, an oath of office is binding before God, regardless of any flippancy of the oath-taker due to no or wrong religious belief. Even atheists will be held to account before God on the day they come up for judgment. Their belief or lack in no way constrains God.
The problem rests with us. Why trust one to uphold an oath that is inconsistent with the oath-taker’s religious belief?
Shalom.
If I use “them” and “us” in a confused manner in the previous post, please excuse me. I am an Indo-Trini but not a UNC.
Check the latest statistical beareakdown…”20% mixed” does not refer to indian african mixed alone in fact the percentage of indan african mixed is like 7 %…this is a unc ethnic confidence trick…
there are more people of african descent in trinidad than indian descent..however because of self hate many of them who are mulatto, chinese and african, etc. or just plained light skinned like to associate with “mixed” and are being called mixed…this is political not genetic reality..
for instance people will call Dr. Rowley african and Robin montano as white both of them are a combination of african and european (genetically) but phenotypically (skin, hair, facial features) they are both afrcican descendents and can both be called ‘mixed’ but not mixed with indian…so in reality if you put a list of who is african descended with no indian and who is indian descended with no african (although all indians are descended from ethiopians, east africa) there are more african descendents vs. Indian descendents so the percentages you are referencing are an illusion! Let me give you a hard truth for many indians…you see those people that come from latin america…(venezuela, colombia etc.) The vast majority probably 99% of them are mulattoes…there have been and are numerous dna analyses of latin americans from mexico, puerto rico, all the way to brazil, paraguay etc….they are all a combination of spaniard, indigenous and west african…specifically the female indigenous gene because the men were targeted for genocide…
do u think it strange that the body type and rounded of latinos are like africans? They are all descendent of slaves…but because of ignorance, because their hair is straight and their skin light people call them a race…look at the music and dance colombia, venezuela, brazil, even peru…do u think these things just got in threre by Osmosis??..
even mexico has a stong african presence in their dna (slave trade)..phenotype is misleading…look at barrack and his mom…so because indians are so militant about transcending their blackness through marriage of lighter skinned groups, you see alot of indians claiming latin immigrants as their prize for decades now , thinking they weren’t black and in the case of indian men the children come out with hindu names and straight hair….all of these are black…descendents of african…e.g. gopeesingh’s son who was caught i the video, aleong…gopeesigh thought his mom was pure chinese but she is african chinese like loui lee singh but not as apparent african in phenotype.., these are just a few examples to make my point.
Guess I couldn’t draw you out on the expel/cleanse/decimate vs. re-educate/assimilate/integrate question.
Hope it’s the second one 🙂
I’m sorry sally….which basdeo panday are you referring to that put country first and was a statesman..? Is he from france? Not the basdeo panday that i know of…just recently he didn’t go to A.N.R. Robinson’s funeral because of that very decision robinson took that you speak of…was it not the very said basdeo panday who made the now infamous speech “we will make the country ungovernable” also in that election unc got more votes but robinson chose manning over panday because he was perceived to because of moral and spiritual values Buttttt…in 1995 how did basdeo panday become the first indian prime minister?
Both pnm headed by patrick manning and unc headed by basdeo panday had 18 seats butttt the pnm had more VOTES!…but A.N.R. robinson gave Basdeo Panday his two tobago seats which gave trinidad it’s first indian prime minister …yepp that was all robbie’s doing…BUTTTTT the PNM had MORE votes than the 18 seats unc had and the two tobago seats robinson had! Little known fact….so UNC should not and could not have won office in 1995…but they did…and the indian community showed him no gratitude (robinson) by branding him racist because he didn’t give them the government AGAIN!
Also you missed a critical point…psychologically the unc is trying to delegitimise the pnm government in the minds of the electorate.
that is to leave a stain on the minds of the population that the pnm “eh win, dey cheat we” just like in 2002 to now…it’s psychological warfare.
They’re delegitimising themselves with the petition. Nobody can stand a sore loser. In the unlikely event that they manage to get a re-vote, they would likely lose Mayaro, Cumuto/Manzanilla and Naparima among others.
I wonder if the CSO has any details on the “mixed” population?
For whatever it’s worth, I know many Indian people who tend to find mixed Indian/African people more attractive than straight Indian…………..
“Also you missed a critical point…psychologically the unc is trying to delegitimise the pnm government in the minds of the electorate.
that is to leave a stain on the minds of the population that the pnm “eh win, dey cheat we” just like in 2002 to now…it’s psychological warfare.” Alyssa
You know something Alyssa? You may be onto something here. I have heard someone else (I am not sure who) raise this point but did not ponder it too much at the time.
I think if I were to think consider the idea of election results de-legitimization through to its natural conclusion, the real focus of the partnership would be to galvanize and mobilize its base around the idea that the PNM “stole” the election from the PP. Absurd and patently illogical as this idea seems, it may be quite as effective, because I get the feeling that the PP (or is it really the UNC?) supporters are looking for any reason, justified or not, to further cement the PNM’s position as the “Other,” the despicable foe.
The success of this strategy of course depends on the numbers of PNM voters that it can attract into the PP fold (presumably, the COP will be restored to its Dookeran era-strength), with this cynical strategy if indeed this is the Opposition’s intention.
Also, the recent statement by the Opposition Leader about a “shadow cabinet” is also another insidious element of psychological warfare meant to unsettle the current PNM government.
I will pray that the nation remains on the high alert for these tactics.
In sum, the big picture is that any return of the United National Congress, regardless of form, will spell doom for this country.
Shadow cabinets are common worldwide.
And yes, it is a psychologically soothing strategy to hold the base together. The UNC is fully aware that this is a distraction….the games politicians play.
Man I was feeling so lonely on this blog, and you came and just brought down the fire in a kind of eloquence that I admire. All of those key areas of importance, Indian\African interaction in places like Mauritius, Fiji, Kenya, but let us not forget Guyana. Because that is also one of the places where Indian racism is contributing to deep divisions in the society.
BM and alyssa is the same person (sewlyn Cudjoe), working in tandem to spread hate, propaganda, divisiveness and revisionism to discredit Indians everywhere.
Alyssa’s posts are never ending rants and acerbic accusations without creditable supporting evidence, providing only a multitude of anecdotes or a one-sided view of history.
One wonders if this is a worthwhile goal in 2015 in the context of Africans and Indians having to coexist in the same societies.
Let us assume and accept alyssa’s (cudjoe’s) view of Indians.What solutions does she/he propose as we move forward? You have wasted enough ink repeating the same thesis again and again.
Hahahah lol…you know this takes the cake…you have no idea how much you expose yourself and validate my points. You think i’m Dr. Cudjoe because he is one of the only people who wrote columns challenging indian and u c racism and u hate him for breaking the status quo…
but do u really think he is the only person who could write against fake brahmin racists? No….but the last 5 years have shaken many africans out of the politically correct slumber…if you think i’m bad….lolllll better you stop reading…you got so accustomed to africans staying quiet en masse that as soon as others come out and expose you…”she’s really selwyn cudjoe”….but think about it…
i love Dr. Cudjoe’s articles, but he is still too politically correct and polite in my opinion…google “trinidad race debate” and compare the things i will CONTINUE to say and how he deals with satnarine…
i will never sit down and giggle with him and call him a friend…NEVER..i want the young ones to see how to talk to people like him…i would have exposed so many things about his beliefs and the illegitimacy of his brahmin status that for sure he would have hired some negroes to put me to sleep…you know how it is tman…whenever us africans step out of line you pay those self hating cannibalistic ghetto gangsters to take us out…not so? yesss yesss i am familiar with the tactics….
Fact, there is a hindu organization in T&T that when someone is accepted to b e a pundit, they are told to legally change their surname to Maharaj…i won’t say which one…take a guess…remember in hinduism a surname is handed down thousands of years and a badge of honour as who is superior and who is inferior..brahmin or non brahmin in infinite gradations…why would you change your surname to become a pundit unless your surname isn’t brahmin (ancestors were dalits) and therefore you are a fraud…
Also,…and this is dangerous ..you would be surprised which hindu organizations these ones are affiliated with in india…at least one of them is associated with the RSS…he’s on tv alot…then there’s others associated with the BJP…remember the singer who moonilal brought during the by election to endorse the uncoppa? He is an official card carrying member of the BJP…RSS & BJP are extremist organizations in india that preach hindutva, hindu nationalism i.e. changing the history of india to suit their hindu political agenda…sound familiar?
E.g. the hindu ‘holy scriptures’ for thousands of years talked about their history how the noble, divine, light skinned people came to india and had to defeat and civilize the black skin devils (original african inhabitants)…and they were always proud of that and teaching that history proudly…but then especially after independence with the whole global anti racist posture (at least politically) and the dalits hearing about african struggles in america, caribbean and uk…dalits began a consciousness spearheaded by Dr. Bhimrao Babasaheb Ambedkar (dalit scholar who the british in their wisdom commissioned to author the indian constitution)he motivated one million dalits to convert to buddhism to escape caste and promote equality.
he said that any religion or god that promotes untouchability can’t be supported and apart from this bad publicity for hinduism to this day the largest amount of converts to christianity is india…so around the 80’s hindus started pushing for the idea that it was alllll a misunderstanding and that the scriptures were misinterpreted (hogwash) and that get this….the light skin invaders weren’t invaders but original inhabitants with white, right wing racist backing up this…this is what hindu nationalism entails…changing history to suit their ego and objectives….i.e psychological bragging rights to india’s ancestry…because it isn’t fun anymore to boast about taking over another ethnic group’s society and enslaving and torturing them….it isn’t politically viable, so they simple lie about everything that sounds bad politically…”racism…oh nooo hindus love black skin look..shiva’s black etc”
everyone internationally knows about hindu racism except guess who? Hindu nationalists…and the oppressive mindset really shines when you talk about these things…they try to shut you up with all sorts of tactics…threats, deception, seemingly against racism too but trying to guide the conversation away from hinduism…hehehehe that’s my personal favourite…
Rama and Shiva are spoken of in the Bible as sons of Kush, the first son of Ham:
“And the sons of Cush; Seba, and Havilah, and Sabtah, and Raamah, and Sabtechah: and the sons of Raamah; Sheba, and Dedan.” (Genesis 10:7)
The spelling is different of course, but spelling rules are not cast in stone. Raamah = Rama, and Sheba = Shiva.
This confirms the idea of Indus-Kush or Eastern Ethiopia (Ethiopia being Greek for Kush; = “burnt face” literally in the Greek, with “burnt” connoting black as charcoal). The inhabitants of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are such descendants of Kush, and are probably the darkest people on the planet. Therefore, to imagine how dark was the skin colour of Rama and Shiva, take a look at the Andamanese. The original religion of India is the religion of Hamites everywhere; it is ancestor worship. Just as Indus-Kush deified Rama and Shiva, Mizraim (ancient Egypt) deified Osiris and others. The Canaanites and etc. likewise. In general, the traditional “gods of Africa” follow the same pattern of ancestor worship. Shango, Ogun, Oshun, Orunmila etc. — the orisha of the Yoruba and other tribes — likewise are deified erstwhile ancestors. When the Indo-Aryans came into India, they came with their self-identity as (Edomite) sons of Abraham. But in the face of the widespread practice of ancestor worship, the eventual Brahmins would have found it expedient to fit in to that scheme by deifying Abraham and Sarah. Then they would have spun their twisted tales of karma and dharma in support of the caste system they were evidently powerful enough to introduce. That would explain the apparent contradiction of caste/varna/colour putting black skinned people at the bottom, at the same time black-skinned deities like Rama, Shiva, Kali etc. are highly revered.
Shalom.
Criticism of racism is hatred for indians? Which is divisive? Criticising racism and racists? Or Racist actions & racist speech? You are religiously and culturally incapable of understanding the anti-racism movement in the last 60 years…what is racism? You don’t even know and are too biased (hate and scorn is your comfort zone) to actually decipher what is? Sad.
I am NOT Alyssa nor Prof. Cudjoe, I am a flesh and blood Indo-Trini (well 15/16 if you are splitting ethnic hairs).
I agree, however, that we should move on to proposing solutions.
TMan,
You are making this Cudjoe claim and I really do not know if there is any substance to it. I doubt Dr. Cudjoe is that informed on Hinduism… I would be thoroughly surprised if he is. Anyhow, instead of trying to drag his name into these discussions why not just stick to the content and develop the arguments. I hope you can do better than trying to distract.
Agreed. Now provide some solutions. Expelling Indians from T&T is not an alternative; it worked for Idi Amin but is not a practical solution, considering that the Indians were recalled when the Ugandan economy tanked.
Also worth noting that the numbers were much smaller and the percentage of the population was much smaller.
Also, many or most were merchants and traders, whereas here we have substantial number of manual workers, clerks, technicians etc.
Of course expulsion is more humane than certain alternative ways of dramatically reducing a human population in a short time, but those alternatives, unfortuately, exist.
And I’m not yet even sure that that isn’t what Alyssa is driving at (shudder).
I am not a fan of quickly rushing to solutions especially when we are not in agreement on the problems.
If there are any other perspectives that people think are credible, then they should to be shared to help develop the discussions.
A good place to start would be if more Africans, Indians and other races publicly engage these discussions in Trinidad and Tobago (Radio, Television etc.) with no silencing of views like what Alyssa is sharing.
I thoroughly appreciate what has been shared recently, most of which can be researched online. Alyssa’s comments should not be considered mere speculations or subjective opinions.
TMan, after thousands of discussions on this topic I am surprised that you still do not get it. Contrary to what you are thinking, no one is suggesting extermination of the Indian. Indians have a pivotal role to play in the development of Trinidad and Tobago but apartheid like policies will never work. Indian thinking have to be operatively inclusive. We are not thinking numerator equity, it has to be qualitatively equal. Item #4 of BM’s blog is a starting point that can eventually lead to self realizations that you never thought of. We do not have to import other models to form such a society. In the field of arts, chutney naturally emerged as a national product. We certainly don’t need hindutva as practiced by Kamla to fast track development. Remember, in development every one must get a sense of partnership. Uganda was a British experiment without consulting the Africans, so I am not surprised about the results. Partnership demands knowledge of each other with compromises on the details. Reverting to item #1 of BM blog only prolongs the inevitable.
Thanks.
Not kidding, just thanks for pointing this out.
No kian noooooooo, check your shoes you’re stepped in puddle of “BM” doo that he wanted one of us to mash…he knows fully well nobody is promoting violence but it’s how his parents and grandparents to “ketch dem africans”..it’s reverse psychology…see how you diverted precious time and psychological defenses to say….ohhh noòoo “indians have a developmental role to play and…” STOP IT!
Turn around…look by that tree there next to the bushes…you see that funny looking guy there in a rice paddy squat position giggling manically with a bottle of puncheon in his hand??? That’s “BM” laughing at you!!!..
Watch where you walk…he hasn’t been potty trained…
Lol indians were not recalled because the economy tanked…there was an entire reconciliation lobby that lasted for years and with the right political & social climate they were invited back….who suggested expelling indians child ? Did your Mommy and Daddy tell you that? Sad.
Whether we accept it, let assume Alyssa’s view regarding a problem with racism in Trinidad and Tobago, an issue with many of the racists being of East Indian origin, and this reflecting similar issues elsewhere, this would seem to leave us with four main options:
(1) Let the problem fester
(2) Decimate,/ ethnically cleanse East Indians
(3) Isolate/marginalize/internally exile East Indians
(4) Educate, assimilate and integrate East Indians, or at least a large portion, leaving the racists in a tiny, isolated, impotent minority.
The last option would seem to be the most palatable one from a 21st-century human rights perspective, but I’m not the judge.
Again, I’m not a sociologist– suggestions please!!!!
Before we examine any of these solutions, how can we get Africans to accept that they too practice racism?
Yes, Africans do practice racism but the largest recipient of African racism is Africans themselves. That is the legacy of slavery, colonialism with its racism, colorism and African cultural deprivation that have conditioned many Africans to treat dark skin African phenotypical features as inferior and to value ‘others’ more. So the biggest discussion that Africans must have about racism is how they view and treat themselves.
Exactly, justright is exactly what your intellectual pooridge tastes like…the sad reality is that indians view themselves as inferior to europeans (phenotype) and superior to africans but africans look at indians as phenotypically superior (culturally no)..so psychologically as a group many africans especially men (following their penises) want to please and be accepted by indians (even at the cost of or a lack of personal dignity i.e. because the racism from the family and towards the kids) this is why there is no united front against external racism…
many african men (a result of african american pop culture especially which preaches self hate) just want a straight haired woman whatever the cost and will not want to jeopardize the possibility of being accepted by and having access to these women so they stay quiet “illusion of inclusion” remember brent sancho? Do u think it is a coincidence that he joined on after it was well established that the government was racist against people who look like him? But when he goes home at night he doesn’t have to look at a fellow african and play on his conscience…did u see his wife? White of course..not that it is immoral or wrong buttttt there seems to be correlation between the sexual phenotypical preferences of men and what they stand for or and whom they ultimately care about….
what about the pp’s first national security minister sandy? Remember how he proudly defended the locking up of all those africans in the SOE by saying “the people who doing the crimes, they look like me…” now, honestly if you heard a an african saying that, as a clinical psychologist what would you derive from that…? Firstly, he didn’t say they were africans but “they look like me!”…which says he probably isn’t too please or proud of what he “looks like” also…as fate would have it…his wife is indian…coincidence…you decide…
so it seems like and also from personal experience that african men who marry non africans deliberately emasculate themselves (ethnic consciousness) in order to be accepted by the family of the other ethnic group i.e. they become functionaries/drones of the other side…
please google the article titles “Honour Tassa Just Like Pan”…PP candidate and former Nar Wendell Eversley is quoted in the newspaper article as being the president of the tassa association and he (eversly) believed that tassa should be the national instrument INSTEAD OF The Steelpan, because the tassa is made from materials from trinidad, but the steelpan isn’t even a trinidadian instrument because the oil drum didn’t “come from” trinidad…!”(Nigger what?) Do YOU think it is a coincidence that the president of the tassa association at the time this thrust was made is an african? And this same african went up as a candidate for elections not one month ago for the PP (UNCOPP a hindu/indian party) see how dangerous self hate is to the african community which brings me to a theory of mine based on observations such as this…
many women love control to the extent that they would marry a man not that they necessarily are overly in love with but who can give them what they want (complete dominance) follow me with this….we know that the indian community frowns on indian women marrying dark skinned africans it is scorned and poked down upon…so unless it’s a rare love what would motivate indian and other non african ethnic groups to still go with an african man..?…raw unbridled POWER over them….e.g. kanye west…
why does kim kardashian like black men besides supposed attraction? Black/african men are so thrilled to be accepted and obtain a straight haired chick they become out of regular cultural character and do any and everything for the wife…a super husband and father if you will…now in the context of african/hindu dynamic and politics…this man would become a fierce, loyal agent of his racist in laws, always trying to please them and get accepted by the wider indian community…i.e. using whatever power or resource he has for their political party…and he will delude himself under the “illusion of inclusion”…tame it or leave it that my belief..
I would like to know because it is african racism (directed solely against other africans) that is enabling indian racism…which is directed at dark skinned african people.
Lol…there is no “we” here we are discussing racism and you are one of the racists…so when we you invited to tell us what needs to be done to eradicate racism…that’s like involving ali baba and his 49 thieves to discuss bank security….his and your motives for being involved in the discussions have the same objective and its counterproductive…go discuss this with NJAC.. i’m sure they’d accept you
Touché!
OK, as a (presumed) racist: I will remain silent for the rest of the year and await constructive suggestions from you and the others.
If there is any such thing as a non-racist Indo, or at least a redeemable or repentant racist Indo, he/she/they may benefit from such recommendatiions.
Adiós!
Actually just right he is…read his articles but he still too politically correct. He’s subtle…like if you know the subject matter you”ll know he’s jabbing
google “the new barbarians and dr. Cudjoe” the light skinned aryans in hinu history (brahmins) were bababrians from central asia…iran, iraq also…they were nomads and didn’t stay in one place like genghis khan etc….
they made a life raiding other societies and they had horses like what the mongolians are famous for a crossbreed between a bull and a horse… so the legs are shorter and able to turn quicker at moments’ notice..also it has the built of a bull which can carry more weight and has a more devastating charge…
contrast this to the early indians…they were farmers and builders…this is all anthropological perspective eh…no sugar coating…so when he said “the ‘new’ barbarians ” he was referring in my opinion, based on the article…the then pp government’s hindu cabal…in that they had the same mindset and tactics…actually the article was either “The new Aryans” or “The New Barbarians” by Dr. Cudjoe…like i said he’s a stated pnm and a teacher etc… so he’s diplomatic…but my point is that this ‘diplomacy’ and “civility” stance makes us weak in T&T’s the arena…
it like a boxing match where one side shakes gloves when entering and bows and says hello and stays above waist when the other side (unc/indian community) smears faces on the gloves, spits, throws pepper in the eyes kicks the shin…and the “referee” i.e. voters/general public is like ..”both of them breaking the rules” and the indian community cheers them in and the unc wins…..no no NO… i don’t believe in THAT..either we all play by the rules so to speak or to hell with rules….you can’t tie one person’s hands and not the other but…brahminical logic is so inclined…remember Chandradesh Sharma and what he told his girlfriend…”Aye…yuh hittin a Brahhmin Boy!!” Remember the same sharma years ago with the teacup incident they tried to smear Dr, Rowley..and gillian lucky who they wanted to lie for them said uh uh i can’t do that…
remember Dhansam Dhansook…? Didn’t he get eric williams and franklyn khan shamed and fired for allegedly bribing? Now it turns out he say it wasn’t true and he was mislead by another hindu pp honcho? but the damage was done already wasn’t it ..false allegations of bribery from a member of a party (hindu) on behalf of another hindu in a completely different, opposing party…so the religious kinship comes before party….
I hear you about Dr. Cudjoe but I disagree. Political correctness or not, that whole era where he was ‘befriending’ Sat Maharaj was a low point indeed. Although he would be aware of Hinduism to some extent, I do not believe he is sufficiently informed. I am yet to be convinced about him. Anyhow, I am not dissing him..
i agree..but i read an article where he delved into specificity of hinduism and warned jack and morgan job of their future with people of that mindset…but you see he is of the cultured upwardly mobile class that needs to be civil in these situations…
my problem is that certain persons prey on that and exploit it…so i say to hell with that…just talk plain…also he’s pnm so he wants to be diplomatic…but it sends mixed messages to the young ones…satnarine maharaj is your FRIEND? I don’t want friends like that real or make believe…it’s psychologically draining to play those games…because that is what it is…
Of course, one could argue that, as a community, it would just prove the moral unworthiness of East Indians if they try to make excuses, bargain, and try to fit in, rather than looking death in the face and accepting we have brought it on ourselves.
So—-
If the conclusions are that:
-East Indians are sickening, abusive racists who are unfit to live..
-East Indians are an existential threat to Africans therefore self-defence applies…
DO IT.
Kill us.
I’m not going to beg my killer for mercy.
Wow…you are truly a sick person…all this because you’re caste/varna right to be hateful and scornful of african people is criticized? I guess i shouldn’t be surprised…as we speak there are brahmins in india dousing themselves with gasoline and burning themselves alive in publec, as PROTEST to guess what everybody….they believe that affirmative actions (upward mobility) for the black devils (dalits) is ruinous to the spirituality of hindus….imagine that…they believe in institutionalized racism as a spiritually enlightening practice that is sacred to their beliefs…research it don’t take my word for it..
so criticizing racism is offensive to hindus like BM…his gods tell him that black skinned african people are supposed to be joyful, loving and obedient slaves to him and his boat brahmin counterparts so he “BM” should launch a crusade against the criticism of racism not the racism itself no no no…it (racism) must be promoted and protected at all costs
I did not make any statements about my religious views, they’re not orthodox but that’s not relevant to the discussion, so that particular “ad hominem” argument doesn’t have legs.
The criticism seemed to be running to the “unfit to live” level, without any window opened as to how Indo-Trinis including Hindus could turn their back on that particular strain of racism and become useful citizens capable of serving all.
As an Indo-Trini who is aware of the racists in that community (among others) I have been reading your powerful posts with the requisite amount of pain and embarrassment.
One can’t read your posts without thinking that something must be done about it.
So, that must mean that something must be done either by indos, to indos or both.
As you have analysed this situation in detail, I would like some constructive suggestions about how an individual Indo-Trini can look for and fix unconscious racism in himself/herself, or effectively address the racists in their communities.
And you’re assuming that I don’t do anything against racism.
I have confronted Hindu racism and casteism in an up close and personal fashion on several occasions, in one case successfully blocking an attempt at breaking up a wedding, but that isn’t the point.
I know the religious, psychological link, but i just can’t see adolf hitler accusing jews of being racist and violent for trying to criticize his racism and violence against them…i just can’t see it…hey “BM” do you think he would have been THAT evil? You know,.. like the way you are??
Wow…this post really brings out your skill, creativity and commitment to your craft (varna shrama dharma ) i know you would have qualified for certain key positions in kamla’s ‘cabinet’…i pledge a vote for either foreign affairs….um hmmm or…attorney general…yul definitely orrr hmmmm communications, works and transport, wasa…hell ANY significant, strategic post that allows you to really work and ‘expand ’ your craft…if they (UNCOPP) ever get back in to office (armageddon) , i promise to support your bid on principle…
I want to add my word of welcome to Alyssa. She has brought an eloquence and fire to the group that few can match. In a way it reminds me of the Windies cricket team of the 80s. Pace like fire! Who not out, retired hurt! She is a four-prong pace attack rolled into one. During my years working in international development, I remember waking up one morning in Bangladesh, to see a headline in one of the Calcutta (Kolkata now) dailies: “Marshall law declared in India!”, the reference there being to Malcolm Marshall, who had run through the India side like the proverbial dose of salts. Alyssa is doing the same on this group, leaving me for one a little slack-jawed. I am enjoying the spectacle, but duty requires me to get back into the fray.
The phenomenon of Brahminism as it intersects with racism and colourism is a fascinating one. I addressed it in a series of posts not that long ago, from a biblical perspective. Alyssa does a good job as to the empiricism of the matter — historical, sociological, and psycho-sociological. She is able to draw the obvious parallels between what we face here in T&T, and what obtains elsewhere where the phenomenon has manifested itself, notably Fiji, Mauritius, Uganda, Kenya, South Africa, Guyana, even the southern U.S.
Butttt… while agreeing with all the empirics Alyssa has brought to bear, I have to insist on a biblical take on the phenomenon. It was all prophesied, although not in a way as might have been immediately recognized. At the risk of over-simplifying, what we have in all these diverse manifestations of the same phenomenon, is a clash between two brothers, Jacob and Esau, who were warring from the womb. We the “Negro” are Jacob, aka Israel. The Brahminists are Esau aka Edom.
“And Yahweh said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder (Esau) shall serve the younger (Jacob).” (Genesis 25:23)
Jacob and Esau are two different manner of people, although twins from the same womb (Rebekah). Esau is Jacob’s principal enemy.
“Keep not thou silence, O God: hold not thy peace, and be not still, O God. For, lo, thine enemies make a tumult: and they that hate thee have lifted up the head. They have taken crafty counsel against thy people, and consulted against thy hidden ones. They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance. For they have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee: The tabernacles of Edom, and the Ishmaelites; of Moab, and the Hagarenes… ” (Psalm 83:1-6)
We have been at war with each other for centuries, as simple as that. But Jacob, as the holy seed, the chosen of God, has attracted the envy and hate of the other nations round about, who have joined in a conspiracy to “cut us off from being a nation”, just as Joseph, because of a certain prophetic dream that he dreamt, attracted the envy and hate of his Israelite brothers, and he ended up being sold into slavery in Egypt. In a way, the other sons of Jacob have been paying for that ever since, and is part of the deep historical context underlying our most recent enslavement here in the Americas.
The spiritual task for us is to overcome evil with good.
That is no easy task. It is easy to hate in the face of evil. But Yahweh’s word remains constant, the same yesterday, today and tomorrow, and He says clearly:
“Thou shalt not abhor an Edomite; for he is thy brother: thou shalt not abhor an Egyptian (African); because thou wast a stranger in his land.” (Deuteronomy 23:7)
Aside: I visited Elmina Castle in Ghana, and saw the “door of no return”. I also saw, and it was pointed out, that the guns of the fort faced outward toward the sea. None pointed inland, from where came the kidnapped and enslaved “Negroes”. We were more correctly called Yahoodee (sons of the kingdom of Judah), as we called ourselves, and as the Ishmaelites (Arabs) who controlled the slave trade inland, together with some local African (Hamitic) tribes, also called us. We also came to be called “Negro”, obviously, as well as “Bantu”. The self-designation, “African” or “Afrikan”, is strictly speaking incorrect. But I digress…
The point is that we are not allowed to hate Esau, our brother, despite his implacable enmity, nor to hate the ancient Egyptian (African) who held us in bondage, nor such latterly Egyptian tribes such as the Wolof of Senegal (Cheikh Anta Diop proved the ancient Egyptian origins of the Wolof), who also were implicated in our enslavement. At Goree Island off Senegal, there too the slave fort had its guns pointed outward. There was no threat from the landward side. Prof. Nantambu should take note.
Note that the enemies’ list of the sons of Jacob is not designated by skin colour, nor is it designated by landmass. The Edomites today come in many shades of skin colour, and many variations of phenotype. The Indian Brahmins are a branch of Edom and by their self-designation are sons of Abraham (Brahman) and Sarah (Saraswati), as are we. But there are also the “Boston Brahmins”, another way of referencing the “white Anglo-Saxon Protestant” (WASP) establishment elite of the U.S., and their cousins across the Atlantic in Britain and Europe. But there is a tribe in Nigeria today called the Idoma, who are Edomite of seedline. And the Ashanti of today Ghana have formally apologized for their role in the trans-Atlantic slave trade, and are at least in part an Edomite people. The Edomites therefore, today, may come in all shades.
The same applies to the sons of Jacob. We the Yahoodee, or “Negro”, obviously are black-skinned and woolly-haired, as Scripture plainly lets us know was Yeshua (Christ) also; Revelation 1:14-15, Daniel 7:9, 10:6. But some of our brethren are now white, certainly the sons of Gehazi, who was turned white pursuant to a curse; 2 Kings 5:27; and that whiteness of skin was made a heritable condition, i.e. changed the DNA itself. Some of our white brethren we perceive today to be our enemies, e.g. the rednecks, hillbillies, crakkas, etc. of the U.S. They became cannon fodder troops of Pax Americana, and before that of Pax Brittanica. There is a long story there to tell at another time, and perhaps a different forum. Some of our brethren made it to the far South Pacific, e.g. the native Fijians, and the native Hawaiians. Some made it over to the Americas long before Columbus, e.g. the Seminole “Indians” of South Florida, who also were in the Bahamas when Columbus came. They are a brown-skinned people. In fact the whole Caribbean sea was an Israelite sea long before Columbus came. Others of our brethren are the so-called “American Indians” of the Eastern and South-eastern part of the U.S., for example the Mosewatuset people (from which we get “Massachussetts”), and the Washitaw people of the southern U.S., who are today called “African-American” though their forebears never set foot in Africa after the Exodus out of Egypt, and did not come over under the trans-Atlantic slave trade. In New Orleans, the “Mardi Gras Indians” commemorate that heritage every year at the Mardi Gras. So the sons of Jacob today also come in all skin colours and phenotypes.
There are some Edomites that will look very much like “Negro” brethren, but are not. They are a different manner of people. This applies to some mulattoes, e.g. the mulattoes of Haiti before and after the Revolution. They formed a separate class, a ruling elite. Their fathers were Edomite, their mothers Israelite. Biblical law lets us know that their destiny is determined by the father. So they were effectively a branch of Edomite, and bore rule in Haiti, until Duvalier came along, offering possibility for a “Negro” Israelite middle-class to emerge. After one generation, Baby Doc married into the mulatto elite, and Haiti’s large Israelite under-class is hardly better off.
What is my point? It is that as we come into an understanding of the phenomenon of Brahminist conflict with “Africans”, the proper categories of thought that need to be brought to bear are rather the categories given to us by Scripture. The conflict is between Esau and Jacob. It comes in many guises.
For example, in the southern U.S., the Israelite hillbillies etc. are in a very similar conflict vis-a-vis the WASP establishment (Boston Brahmins if you will), which is why they are called, and often self-identify as “poor white trash”. They are also coming into a similar conflict situation with the Brahminist Hindus who for some reason have gravitated to the U.S. South. See the movie, “Mississippi Masala”, for some empirical insight. There is a further irony in that movie, in that the Brahminists in question fled Amin’s Uganda, to end up continuing with ingrained behaviours with another set of Israelites in the U.S., both black and white. The matter is indeed involved.
The Edomites, such as Tman on this blog, think they have already won the war. He who owns the land, owns the country. He cares not who forms the Government. It echoes a sentiment famously expressed by Nathan Rothschild: “give me control of the currency, and I care not who makes the laws”, or words somewhat to that effect.
But the truth is that they have already lost. If God will hear my cry, I care not who owns the land, nor who makes the laws. God taught us that lesson when against Pharaoh’s objection, He brought us up out of Egypt. God assured us from the beginning that if we obeyed His law, He would set us on high above all other nations; Exodus 19:5; but that if we disobeyed His law, even the stranger in our midst would rise high above us; Deuteronomy 28:43. That btw is the fundamental empiric that we must face. The game that they’re playing is not the game that we must play. Our game is to keep the law of the Covenant.
“And for this cause Hezekiah the king, and the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz, prayed and cried to heaven. And Yahweh sent an angel, which cut off all the mighty men of valour, and the leaders and captains in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he returned with shame of face to his own land. And when he was come into the house of his god, they that came forth of his own bowels slew him there with the sword. Thus Yahweh saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib the king of Assyria, and from the hand of all other, and guided them on every side. And many brought gifts unto Yahweh to Jerusalem, and presents to Hezekiah king of Judah: so that he was magnified in the sight of all nations from thenceforth.” (2 Chronicles 32:20-23)
My point? It is that we must put our faith in the Most High. He answers our prayers and cries. But when, like Duvalier in Haiti, we fall into idolatry and unrighteousness, He removes His grace from us. When we remain steadfast, and “do the right thing, because it is the right thing to do”, it is He who will fight our battles and give us the victory. In any case, Yeshua has already prophesied to the Yahoodee that believe on Him: “Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32). We have already been awakened as a people, it is now only a matter of being raised back up. The only strategy we need to follow in our war against the implacable enmity of our brother Esau, is to call on God, and to keep His Covenant.
For many of us, steeped in this or other form of idolatry, the most insidious of which is the atheism of so-called Science, that will require a change of heart and attitude. It will also require us to turn from pointing fingers, when it is our own disobedience to God that put us in trouble in the first place.
Be that as it may: “But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever.” (Daniel 7:18)
Shalom.
“Wherefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by shewing mercy to the poor; if it may be a lengthening of thy tranquillity.” (Daniel 4:27)
Yesssz yesss lol…and tman was sent here to spread love and forgiveness , even harmony for all….i’m sure right now he’s grooming his sister to love dark skinned men unconditionally…i even heard reports of tman denouncing the racism in hinduism and indian culture deep in the indian jungle…keep up the good work tman…..but watch out they might try to frighten you into stop criticizing them…i’ve heard cases where they accused you of being jaishima leladharsingh…and sometimes janice thomas a.k.a. sasha mohammed…they might even accuse you (could you imagine that..? You?) Of being racist…
Any discussion on finality and ultimate solutions are a waste of time…i want africans to educate themselves on the subject of racism and what it is with a historical perspective inclusive of and focusing on the enslavement and brainwashing of our ancestors and in particular the true nature of hindu/indian caste/varna racism and why they need to look out for the new aspirant slavemasters.
Africans must fortify themselves psychologically to accept that this type of racism and the struggle will never go away…and the propaganda about eric williams and pnm starting and creating racism in T&T is a nasty, stink LIE!
…And a lie with an insidious agenda…guilt-tripping you/us into psychologically bending over and ‘spreading eagle’ for brahminism and “father” India….NEVER!!
Some of the most devious, maniacal racists of the indian community are WELL educated or more specifically “literate” with degrees in money making fields medicine, law, engineering, business (legal and illegal)
If you dismiss Holy Writ, I would say you are profoundly mistaken. Let me suggest it would do you no harm to pick up the Book and read, and I guarantee it will do you much good.
That is exactly what the Book will give you, and without the nonsense of category that is the term, “african”, when used to discuss slavery in particular, and racism more generally. The Book will allow you to distinguish carefully all the seedlines present in Africa. It will allow you to see clearly that black Hebrew Edomites, black Hebrew Ishmaelites, and sundry black Hamitic tribes were all implicated in the enslavement of black Hebrew Israelites aka Yahoodee, Bantu, Negro, etc. If you will not distinguish the African enslaver from the African enslaved, you are not seriously after a search for historical Truth. When you use the catch-all term, “africans”, you are lumping in enslaver with enslaved, leaving you hopelessly unable to unravel the phenomenon of slavery. Holy Writ makes no such mistake, and uses terms of category with a precision that modern so-called Science would do well to emulate.
Quite so, and in this I can only agree. But it is the Book that will let you know who they are. In particular, they are a branch of the Edomite family tree. The so-called Indo-Aryan are a branch of that same Edomite family tree. Their religion of karma and dharma (nod to Dr. Annamalai) I recognize instantly as a distortion of Holy Scripture, developed with the self-serving intent of taking advantage of other people. But God hates oppression. That He makes clear throughout Scripture. Therefore, it is a twisting of Scripture to use some of its precepts to such evil purpose.
Aside: the story I have given about the origin of the Indo-Aryans as a mixed breed (Edomite fathers, Israelite mothers) that developed no earlier than the Babylonian Empire (modern-day Iraq), and continuing and finding itss way into India under the Medo-Persian Empire (modern-day Iran), and continuing further with the incursion into India of the Greek Empire will yield at least two data points that may be scientifically tested: first as to the earliest origin of Brahminism: it will not be older than 2,620 years; second, the Y-DNA will show some relation to the Hebrew Edomite strain, although some scientific preconceptions may need to be set aside in terms of the ordering of the phylo-genetic branches. I will leave that to the relevant scientists. The association of the Indo-Aryan with fair skin may come about from a Central Asian infusion of DNA, both maternal and paternal, first through the Medes, a Japhethic line that went into alliance with the Elamite Persians, and then later through the Greeks, another Japhethic line. People always want to mix seed with those deemed to have high social prestige, so the Medes and Greeks both, would have lightened the Aryan, and the term Aryan itself, would have come to connote as much a class as a genetic seedline. In T&T, something similar has happened to the term “French Creole”, which now embraces a mixture of seedlines including French, English, Scottish, German, Chinese, Syrian, Lebanese, and even some “Negro”. Just as the French Creole is a high-prestige social grouping in T&T — some even given them the obscure description, “validating elites” — so the Indo-Aryan became a high-prestige social grouping in India about 2,000 years ago. That prestige became associated with lighter skin colour, though it started out differently. In similar way, Cleopatra was lighter in skin colour than the original very black Egyptians that the Greeks conquered, due to the mixing of the white Greek Ptolemaic line with the local Egyptian royalty. By and by the Greek Ptolemaic line would have looked “Mediterranean”, a vague term that embraces the middle ground between white and black.
But Scripture is clear that it is the seed of the father that counts, at least in so far as the fulfilment of prophecy is concerned. Not skin colour. That is another reason why an analysis of slavery and racism based solely on skin colour will at some point be confounded. For example, who and what today are the “black nobility” of Europe? From where comes the term “blue blood”? If Charles II was the “black-boy” king of England, from where came his black blood? I remember meeting a hereditary Lord-of-the-Realm Englishman who came to my office on some development matter which my job required me to attend to. I remember thinking, but wait!, this fellow, though what we call “white”, clearly has a touch of the tar-brush! And as that recognition flashed through my eyes, I could see that he saw the recognition in my eyes, and for a brief moment it was like one black man recognizing and acknowledging another black man. But his behavious was that of an Edomite, not that of an Israelite: he was looking to see what companies he could buy up cheap in one of the countries I was working on… So no, my sister, when we seek to understand slavery and racism, we must see beyond skin colour. The phenomenon is definitely more than skin deep. And the Book will school you as to its real fundaments.
Entirely agree. As a matter of fact, I would go so far as to suggest that it is because of Williams’ legacy — together we aspire etc., here ev’ry creed and race etc., discipline production and tolerance, the idea of a national movement transcending race, creed, colour and class, the ethos he articulated of doing right by all regardless of race, class and etc. — that T&T is as blessed as we are today. Given the two brothers warring from the womb — Jacob and Esau, now as Afro and Indo — we have done remarkably well, unlike Uganda, Fiji, Mauritius, Guyana, Kenya, and etc.
When you understand Holy Writ you will understand that the game being played by Indo-Esau here in T&T, and Esau globally, is a game that the Most High hates, and woe has already been pronounced upon him.
“And the house of Jacob shall be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau for stubble, and they shall kindle in them, and devour them; and there shall not be any remaining of the house of Esau; for Yahweh hath spoken it.” (Obadiah 18)
That is not what I say. That is Holy Writ. And:
“And thou, Asia, that art partaker of the hope of Babylon, and art the glory of her person: Woe be unto thee, thou wretch, because thou hast made thyself like unto her…” (2 Esdras 15:46-47)
Asian Esau is partaker of the hope of Babylon. This is nothing other than seeking after material gain and lusts, and taking advantage of others — using oppression — in a systemic way to advance such greed.
At the same time, the Most High issues this stern warning to the children of Israel, and all who would follow His righteous law:
“Come out of her (Babylon) my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and receive not of her plagues” (Revelation 18:4).
Therefore, as we fight this perennial battle with Esau — whether white Esau, brown Esau, or black Esau, whether European Esau, African Esau, or Indian Esau — the ground we must fight on is this ground of righteousness. It will do no good in the sight of God to fight greed with greed, pride with pride, deceit with deceit, Babylon rat race with Babylon rat race. We fight it by returning to the law of God and keeping the Covenant that we have broken.
Anyway, the final outcome has already been written. The only question is who will be amongst the righteous remnant when the judgment comes down. That btw is the answer to BM’s question. It is not what we, Jacob, must do. Here in T&T, the new PNM Government is constrained by oath before God to do right by all, regardless of race or seedline. If it fails to do so, woe be upon all those who further the evil. The question for the Indo is, will he “come out of her, My people”, and declare thereby for righteousness, and for redemption along with His children.
Btw, many Indos, here and in India, are indeed Israelites of the seed also. As a seedline, God said He would scatter us into all kingdoms of the earth. Here is the thing. Yeshua said to some Edomite Jews, “ye cannot hear my word, because “ye are of your father the devil” (ca. John 8:40-44). He might as well have been speaking to some Brahminist Indos such as “money is power” Tman. Smh not lol. If BM is pricked at all in his conscience, it might well be because, unlike Tman, he is not of Esau’s seed, though Indo. Word to the wise.
May the Most High continue to expose the wicked in all these matters, and protect and school the innocent in the way to go. And may Yeshua guide those who believe on Him, with His very own eye.
Shalom.
It is my firm belief (God speaks to us in so many ways)that God has sent Pope Francis to warn us of our own perils; our fall from his grace in so many endless ways today. We know our sins. And He is a forgiving God as if not we would have been long gone. But nuff is enough nuff. I believe the time has come thou no one will ever know. But the USA is the heart of all the troubles in the world we are experiencing today as it is the drug consumption centre as well as sex (all kinds), alcohol, abuse, wars, discrimination etc. (evils of every kind possible). And Jesus loves the children and they are suffering be it from Syria, Iraq, Africa, South America etc. USA is a war monger and war is their greatest business. Hence this 2015 trip by Pope Francis is to me a warning that if we do not listen to His word, hell is going to consume us. We have ignored so many others including Mother Mary`s apparitions in the recent past. Now he has sent Jesus Christ`s representative and we all know what happens in the USA the entire world watches and takes note. So if we choose to ignore this message we will be cast down under. There are bible stories about the Land owner who went away and left his land in charge of others and he sent his son etc. and they killed him etc. My point is God gives is a free hand so that we can come to terms with our wrong doings and come back to Him to serve Him. At some point if we continue to fail we will meet our own peril. Pope Francis messages are sending a profound signal indeed. It is though his words are coming from Jesus Himself. Mother Mary would always say …do what He tells you to do. We now need to listen up.
Jerry,
I’m afraid I’m not a fan of Roman Catholicism, and therefore not well disposed to viewing the Pope as the “Vicar of Christ”.
One possibly small point I know, but: if the Pope cannot forthrightly condemn battymanism as an abomination unto God; Leviticus 18:22; I cannot see him as being the vicar of Christ. Yeshua clearly upheld the Law (of Moses) and the Prophets, and in toto: Matthew 5:17-19, also 7:21.
There is much else besides, and I could write a whole dissertation on the subject, but I’ll refrain myself. I’ll limit myself to: “O Yahweh, my strength, and my fortress, and my refuge in the day of affliction, the Gentiles shall come unto thee from the ends of the earth, and shall say, Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and things wherein there is no profit. Shall a man make gods unto himself, and they are no gods? ” (Jeremiah 16:19-20)
The Roman Catholic Church is a gentile institution, and Pope Francis is a gentile.
I rest my case.
Shalom.
“For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.” (Matthew 24:5)
Alyssa, money is power, a lesson Africans have failed to learn. Experience globally have already educated Africans on racism. Is it too late to change course? Africans have already embraced the White man’s customs, religion,culture and names, and they have already accepted and emulated Caucasian features as their standards of beauty.The evidence of this all encompassing take over of the African psyche is all around us globally.
I said it before, Indians is the least of your worries.It seems that you are much more comfortable bending over for the White man.The undisputed evidence is all around us globally.
Essentially the unc and its 18 seat supporters want to fight to keep their ill-gotten gains and racist hegemony while in government. All the hierarchy of the mandirs that were placed all over that state’s apparatus, brazenly, with the intention to squat there and promote narrow hindu indian business and political hegemony…and by business i mean inclusive of the drug trade…
the amount of votes they got proved that the indian community is by and large behind them no matter what they do so expect even deeper depths of depravity and wild animal behaviour…you see if the indian community had gone against their religious and culturally ingrained, predictable behaviour on election day…kamla and the rest would have been forced to veer of their current destructive path i.e. start acting with class and stop race baiting butttttt guess what ?? all the nasty things they did like section 34, emailgate etc…? It was given a stamp of approval on election day, so that they are empowered to do anything.!
Those election result…many don’t realize was the final nail in the coffin in trinidad’s race relations…whether they admit it or not africans feel very betrayed and disgusted at those results…the overt, racist position of the indian community and their endorsement of all the unprecedented nastiness in government was a line drawn in the sand…i expect civility to erode more and more until we get to Guyana status…
there was never any two sided unity in T&T, but what we did have, that was underrated by many was Civility and peace, promoted and fostered for the years that the pnm had power…imagine if the pnm had started to behave the way kamla did from as early as 1956?..but the behaviour especially in the
last 5 years and the election results…it seems that the indian political party with its vast support from the indian community is goading the african community…either be beaten into submission and accept inferior status or defend yourself.. (i.e. Politically, Intellectually & Economically) the fig leaf is no more…
i personally do not wish it or endorse the predicted future of T&T, but the writing is on the wall…
I think that Kamla turned off a lot of her former supporters with her refusal to go to the Rienzi Complex, another inebriated “concession speech” and her trip into cloud-cuckoo land with her sour-grapes, sore-loser “challenge” of the election results.
I, personally, am predicting major infighting in the former PP camp, starting with a UNC-COP split and finishing up with a bacchanalian internal election.
This will contrast with strong, assertive leadership from Dr. Rowley.
Expect some unhappy posts from T-Man and Mamoo as this plays out.
This is my actual opinion, though you may see it as a transparent and poor attempt to curry favor with you.
(Get it? Curry?)
Of course she turned them off…but not off of voting for her..
Following is an excerpt from a newspaper article reported on May 31 2015:
Sat Said …. May 31 2015
“there was no need to change an administration which had transformed the country.”
“If we have in place administrators who have transformed the country, then they should be given an opportunity to do even more. So you do not change for the sake of change.”
“And he described Education Minister Dr Tim Gopeesingh as a visionary man. Persad-Bissessar, Gopeesingh, Fyzabad MP Chandresh Sharma, and Oropouche West MP Stacy Roopnarine also attended the celebration.”
“Maharaj reminded East Indians about their ancestors who travelled to Trinidad to aquire and achieve.”
“he lamented that many years ago Hindus were forced to change if they wanted to become professionals.”
“Maharaj said it was time the capital city moved from Port of Spain as the education facilities were moving away from the city.”
“We have talked about it in the past, we must move the capital city of Port of Spain and put it elsewhere. It does not suit us anymore, the education capital has moved from Port of Spain. It is now in St Augustine and in five years it will be in Debe/Penal…that is change,” he said.
That’s 3¼ months before his reality check!
Sat Maharaj is a racist. He confuses strong advocacy for Hindus with control and power over others. He embraced Kamla’s multiculturalism as a rationalization for perpetuating his narrow views of culture and nationhood. This was for him to conveniently push the Hindu agenda within the Indian community. He misunderstood the entire concept, which was not defined properly by the government in the first place. He has succeeded in bringing back many Indians Presbyterians to Hinduism, while many others straddle the two religions for convenience and advantage.
The election results will not bother Sat. He receives all the government funding he needs from whoever is in power.
Ummmm two things
(1) multiculturalism WAS Sat’s idea in the first place…he didn’t embrace it…kamla got that from him
(2l I don’t agree with SINGLING OUT sat as a racist…he’s hindu…i would just say he is loyal to ‘the vedas’ & “Manu Smirti”….last time i checked there are a lot more than 1 hindus in T&T…its childish to play this game where everyone singles him out a the one lone racist in the indian community while pretending not to know that he has control over 150 schools. kamla, as PM of T&T, gave sat :
(1)A NATIONAL award, as soon as she got into office
(2)A Prime Ministerial endorsement on stage during indian
arrival day….”Talk sat talk….you speak for ‘us’ ”
(3)Implemented his ideas.. e.g. multiculturalism
(4) Money and land
So with regard to the joining the dumb chorus singling out sat to call a racist…how many members of the Maha Sabha are there? How many teachers are under his purview that go along with what sita gajadharsing-nanga spoke out on at the tunapuna hindu school?? Give me a break! I do not believe the “Lone Gunman Theory”