Editor,
The Bahamas, despite her size and geopolitical location, wields a great deal of influence and sway within the region. We have the third-largest per capita income in the Western Hemisphere. Regular tourists and business entrepreneurs flock to our shores, either seeking sand, sun, and sea or business opportunities. We also enjoy a well-established democracy and the rule of law, despite the occasional hiccups. Having said that, however, we must also realize that race, politics, and the economy, after almost 52 years of Independence, dominate our everyday life.
Our racial mix is diverse but is primarily composed of Black Bahamians, Black Haitians, and other Black Caribbean natives; ethnic and migrating Chinese and others of Asian descent; white/Conchy Joe Bahamians (the Abacos, Long Island, Eleuthera, Exuma, and Grand Bahama); and the rest may be lumped together as ‘mongrels’ with all due respect. How does this play out in retail politics and the economy?
Traditionally, Black Bahamians, especially those who may not be well-educated, along with a sizable portion of our Black Haitian brothers and sisters, are relegated to the very bottom of the economic totem pole as laborers or, to put it crudely, ‘beasts of burden’ or the heavy manual labor. With incomes hovering at the minimum wage levels, these classes will never be able to get off the treadmill of poverty and financial stress. Who really cares, however?
The next class is the educated and professional Black Bahamians, such as accountants, doctors, lawyers, and business entrepreneurs. These are the traditional paths for so-called middle and upper Black classes of Bahamians. We have done extremely well in bringing these people to the forefront of our economic and political development and maturity. The late great and deeply lamented Sir Lynden Oscar Pindling, et al., were products of this initiative, as I am also myself.
While we who are ‘fortunate’ to be in these classes, we wield no real political, much less economic, power. By and large, Black Bahamians make up the bulk of the electorate and are the determining factor in electoral outcomes. The landscape is now dominated by the PLP and the FNM. The fringe groups and perennial candidates will always be with us. In the 2017 general elections, they acted as ‘spoilers’ in a handful of seats, and this time around, no doubt, they will do the same. Those constituencies have tended to be lost to the FNM, not the iconic PLP, which, historically, is a cohesive and united party.
The White Bahamian and a selected cadre of Blacks/mulattos have long dominated the economic and metrics of the country. I do not see this abating anytime soon and may well be expanded. The majority of the larger business establishments are owned/dominated by these classes of Bahamians. The shopping malls, the banks and insurance companies, food stores (to which the traditional Black Bahamian has been shut out), and, of course, the gated communities. They and their offspring are entrenched economically and, I dare say, politically.
The chances of a White-dominated political party coming back to power is almost an impossibility, so what are the options for White Bahamians to play a meaningful role and influence in retail politics? Simple. They act through a series of political surrogates and entities. Their wealth, of course, plays an oversized part in their dominance and influence thereby. The FNM and the now-defunct United Bahamian Party (UBP) come readily to mind.
It is unfortunate that the creditworthiness of countless Black Bahamians is in the dumpster, while the Bahamian of a lighter hue, without being racist, is able to access funding for private and business purposes. This disparity would have come about due to any number of financial considerations. Banks and lending institutions, after all, are in the business of making money off their depositors and shareholders. They do not run a charity, as so many Black Bahamians, et al., seem to think.
With over 6 million tourists per year, the White foreign investors, some wealthy Conchy Joes, and one or two Black Bahamians seem to be directly benefiting from developments in resorts, marinas, gated communities, real estate development, and second homes for expatriates, and the beat goes on. The Black Bahamian, unfortunately, due to any number of reasons, is doomed to remain a salaried employee if he or she is fortunate enough to hold down a minimum-wage job.
These are some of the critical issues that the PLP will have to address if it is to secure a second consecutive term in office, as it is increasingly asking the people of this wonderful nation for. If that party were to lose the general elections, I am almost certain that we will witness ‘The Mother of All Witch Hunts’ and, possibly, multiple Commissions of Inquiry, Police investigations, and prosecutions. To God then, in all things, be the glory.
Ortland H. Bodie, Jr.
Business Consultant & Talk Show Host
