Stephen G. CobbMay, 1993

copyright

NEVER TRUST A HUNGRY DOG WITH A BONEBahamian Political/Social Critique Through Folktales and Stories

There is great need for social/political/cultural history andreflection from the Bahamian, especially the African Bahamianperspective. In particular, there is extremely little materialrelative to the Bahamian "family" or "out" islands. For example,in search of a contemporary book dealing with Eleuthera and HarbourIsland, the one most recommended and most available was EverildYoung, Eleuthera: The Island Called Freedom. This book was readilyavailable in stores operated by African Bahamians as well asothers, so one might reach the conclusion that it represented theirperceptions of their experiences.

Upon reading Young's book, however, it becomes quite clearthat it is not written from an African Bahamian perspective butrather from a white British "Colonial" perspective, to use aclassification discussed lucidly by Timothy McCartney, a Bahamianpsychologist. He writes that in the Bahamas, there are distinctdifferences in perspective, values, and status between "Colonials,""Conchy Joes," "High Yellows," "Exotic Browns," and "Blacks."Young's book reflects the stereotyped perspectives and values ofthe "Colonial."

While one could say this in itself is not unimportant, sinceit gives insights into the "Colonial" culture and lenses throughwhich African Bahamians were viewed, it is also an example ofculture boundedness. The reader receives a culturally biasedperspective of African Bahamians. What is lacking is how AfricanBahamians view themselves and their experiences.

The purpose of this paper is not to lambast nor debunk Young,but to illpotrate the need for African Bahamian materials and totake a modest step in that direction. It would be best if we couldfirst start with the indigenous Bahamian perspective. However, theLucayans, an Arawak population who occupied the Bahamas when theEuropeans arrived in their colonialistic drive for wealth andempire, were quickly decimated through disease, torture, and slavelabor.

The paper will briefly discuss a few of the stereotypes andmisperceptions in Young's book, and then move to the focus of thisconference, "Caribbean Public Policy: Preparing for a ChangingWorld." I hope the paper, in the spirit of the conference, will behelpful to policymakers. The stories, tales, parables, and otherreflections are from older African Bahamians from Eleuthera andHarbour Island. They speak for themselves, offering a correctiveto Young but also interesting, insightful, colorful perceptions and

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critiques of social/political/economic dynamics, past and present.One can see the dialectical relationship between stories, family,community, and the larger political/social context.

Concerning the research methodology, it was basicallyethnographic and ethnomethodological, designed to produce adescriptive work. Using participant observation and interviews, Isought the "definitions of the situation" of various AfricanBahamians, the lenses through which they view their world and makesense of their experiences. Too often individuals' modes of makingsense of their world are minimized or lost by overemphasis on howtheir responses and behaviors may or may not confirm or disprovesome preconceived analytic model. This paper, therefore, simplypresents how some African Bahamians have ordered their experiences,in the tradition of W. I. Thomas's well known principle that ifpeople define situations as real, they are real in terms of theirconsequences.

As suggested earlier, Everild Young's book, Eleuthera: The Island Called Freedom, manifests many stereotypes and other formsof culture-boundedness, primarily from the "Colonial" perspective,many of which continue to persist in the general public today. InTimothy McCartney's discussion of population classifications,COLONIALS are composed of British Colonial Administrators (at thetop of the socio-economic ladder) who kept to themselves whileleading the high class lifestyle and snubbing the "local whites;"as well as the "local whites" who were descendants of foreignwhites, including descendants of pirates, buccaneers, andLoyalists. The basic distinction is that "local whites" were bornin the Bahamas. (Whittier, p.63) Local-born whites were sensitiveabout their heritage and tried to maintain the "purity" of the raceby setting up rigid social-racial barriers. They and the Britishadministrators were the merchants and businessmen, members of theruling class. The COLONIAL lens appears to dominate Young'sperception of Bahamian culture.

CONCHY JOE refers to local whites or the fairest type of near-Caucasian featured mixed Bahamians (black-white), who identify morewith the white cultural lifestyle and reject anything suggesting"black," who think, act, and live "white." (Whittier, p.62)

HIGH YELLOW is sometimes classified as "red" or Conchy Joe,but is more "colored." They are the direct result of mixedmarriages or sexual intercourse between black and white. They areproud to acknowledge their white ancestry. (Whittier, p.63)

EXOTIC BROWNS are not too whitish and not too black. They arevery middle class. "The 'browns' never looked at themselves asNegro, African or black - just 'colored' - damn exotic!" (Whittier,p.64)

BLACKS referred to descendants of African slaves and otherimported blacks. (Whittier, p.64)

A contemporary resident of Harbour Island would seem toconfirm as well as explain "colonially slanted" writing such asYoung's. He also believes Harbour Island is a good place to studybecause it is a microcosm of Bahamian society.

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The indigenous Caucasians are very separatist here andthey refuse to integrate themselves into the community.They never participate in any of the national events,such as Independence, which belongs to everybody. Theycame from the Loyalists...Caucasians here are very tightknit, and they don't get into community activitieswhatsoever...The island could have a chance to becomehomogenous if they would allow their kids to sociallyinteract, but they don't, or very little. (doc.2, p.1,2)

After discussing traditional prejudices toward Catholics andblacks, he says "The upper class still have that old plantationmentality." (doc.2, p.5) His wife referred to the "hoity-toityfamilies" coming from this group. It would appear that Young'sbook reflects this spectrum of Bahamian society rather heavily. Infact, a young woman in Gregory Town, Eleuthera suggested that Youngdid place herself on a higher level and looked down on Bahamianculture.

While describing Bahamian culture through British coloniallenses, Young created and reinforced many stereotypes which,through African Bahamian lenses, are simply wrong. For example,throughout the book, Young mentions several vestiges of the slavementality which she claims are present in today's population due tobiological determinism:

There are strong traces, too, of the left-over slavementality. It can be noticed in the fecklessness thatis innate in many of the Eleuthera folk. A slave was notexpected to do anything beyond what he was told toundertake, there was no place for initiative in his make-up, and consequently his descendants have no desire tothink for themselves, or develop any individual skill inany direction. Until recent years, there was no ambition to cope with anything more than the barest self-preservation, and in any case, conditions on the islanddid not encourage ambitions of any kind (pp. 89-90;emphasis added).

The notion of the "white man's burden" helps explain elitismas well. In fact, elitism is the essence of the white man's burdento bring "civilization," "progress," and "development" to"uncivilized," "backwards," and "undeveloped" cultures. BecauseAfrican Bahamians did not tend to accumulate a lot of materialpossessions nor in other ways fit the colonial model, Youngconcluded that they suffered from slave mentality:

It is very noticeable that in places where there was onceslavery, a type of mentality persists long afterwardsthat is a direct legacy of that unhappy state of affairs.When a race is denied the privilege of thinking foritself its mental capabilities slow down, and life islived from day to day without foresight for the morrow

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(p.128).

A 74 year old African Bahamian from Eleuthera shared with mehis worries about "the morrow" which contradicts Young'sassumptions. When explaining the presence of the partially builthouses quite common in Eleuthera, he told me about the custom ofyoung men "building a nest before laying eggs." Rather than tryingto save money to build a home after the expenses of supporting afamily had begun, young men ideally prepared in advance so thatwhen the eggs began "hatching," they had a place to live. Helaments, however, that today's younger generation often lets "nestbuilding" give way to the immediacy of buying a car or otherpleasures. Thus, when a young man of the 1990's finds himself witha planned or unplanned family, he sometimes ends up going fromhouse to house as if he were "being blown by the wind." AnotherEleutheran elder pointed out that a family in this situation willprobably never have a house because the needs of the family (food,diapers,etc.) will use up all the available money.

Part of the Bahamian approach to time criticized by Young isa manifestation of the fact that history, values, and many otheraspects of culture (socialization) traditionally are transmittedfrom generation to generation through stories, tales, parables, andother forms of oral traditions. In a culture practicing such oraltraditions, an important use of time is conversations betweenchildren, young adults, parents, and their grandparents (or otherelders). Often, to the outsider such as Young, people sitting ontheir porches talking may be perceived as doing nothing but"wasting valuable time," when in reality the "loafers" are keepingtheir culture alive. Ironically, many of us caught in the rush of"developed" societies long for such family time! However, manyEleutheran cultural traditions are in jeopardy. One Gregory Townelder laments that he has many stories about Gregory Town's past hewould like to share with the young, but thanks to "progress," thenewest generation seems more interested in T.V. and cars than intheir cultural roots.

A few years ago, the Bahamian Ministry of Tourism created theGregory Town Pineapple Festival to attract tourists to Eleuthera.Operatively, it appears the festival serves as a homecoming fornative Gregory Town residents and relatives living in Nassau andother family islands; provides a chance to display local cooking,musical, athletic, art and craft skills; and gives a boost to thelocal economy. All ages are present, a most interesting age-groupbeing teenagers "gussied up" to "scope" each other out. TheFestival serves many of the same social functions as a U.S. countyor state fair. Many family islanders feel it would be good if thetourist industry would pick up. Others are not so sure, as ittends to hasten the loss of traditional culture and divertsattention from diversifying the economy.

The development of poultry farms and cattle ranches that werejust becoming profitable when Young wrote her book have withered ordied. Many of the older family islanders tell stories analyzingthe reasons for such, most not too flattering to government policy

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and behavior. It seems that when the Bahamas gained itsindependence in 1973, both new government policies andoverestimation of its ability to run the enterprises forced foreigndevelopers/owners out. The enterprises failed, and the only thingleft around Hatchet Bay and Gregory Town are rusted equipment,deserted buildings, and empty, shrub-filled silos.

Many older Bahamians feel such "ineptness" has decimated theEleutheran economy. Several non-Bahamians have explored thepossibility of resurrecting the defunct enterprises or beginningothers, but so far to no avail. There is also considerabledisenchantment over government policies and marketing of localproduce such as tomatoes, pineapples, and seafood. The governmentbuys produce from the farmers and markets it. Many locals feelfarmers are paid unfair prices for their produce which is thenstored, some of which spoils through inept marketing and otherwhich is sold profiting the government more than the farmers.Stories of government corruption, ineptness, greed, anddisattention to family island needs abound (doc.5,6). We shallreturn to these contemporary concerns soon.

Because the enterprises discussed above were in full swing asYoung wrote, her book is obviously outdated. She perceived theEleutheran economy to have a good future, and she praised thetransformation of "the wilderness of bush into spacious pasturesfor beef cattle" (p. 167). Now that this "development" liesdormant and the "wilderness" is littered by inactive tools of"progress," Eleutherans feel a need to replace the lost source ofincome. They differ as to whether tourism seems to be the bestoption. Practically every resident of the island is in some wayinvolved with tourism. Eleuthera has its share of clubs, pubs,tourist housing, and airports (three). These establishments employvarying numbers of Bahamians and Haitians in service jobs such ascook, waitress, maid, and groundskeeper. In addition, variousindividuals operate carry-outs, snack bars, gift shops, andvegetable and straw markets out of their homes. Still others runwater taxi services and carry baggage at the airports. Should theBahamas be so dependent upon tourism? On several occasions Youngrefers to Eleutherans in demeaning ways and describes herfrustrations with the inconveniences of living on Eleuthera as"novel and [having) its amusing side" (p.145).

We soon discovered that the chief thing that waslacking among the local inhabitants was skill. It wasextraordinary how little they could do with theirhands, but they would smile so disarmingly at their owninadequacy that it was impossible to be annoyed withthem for long (pp. 144-145).

(quote by Rosita Forbes): From a throng of gentlysmiling . . . browns and blacks Mr. Hughes selected twowhose heads contained maps of the countryside . . . Thelighter-skinned of our two henchmen, whose colouringblended admirably with his faded khaki shirt and broad

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brimmed felt [hat] . . .(p. 133).

The Eleutheran is a peaceable soul on the whole, andvisitors remark on the friendly, easy-going atmospherewith which they are greeted. In the remote settlementsan old-fashioned courtesy can still be found that is mostimpressive. There is a desire to please that usually farexceeds the performance of any request. As when it comesto practical matters the Eleutheran is often delightfullyvague. Promises almost grow on trees, but fulfillment isquite another matter. An entire lack of any sense ofresponsibility still remains as a remnant of the slavementality and the hustler in business will be met withevasions and excuses enough to drive him out of his mindunless he can slow down and acquiesce to the island tempo(p.175).

Well, it would seem obvious that such perceptions of AfricanBahamians are quite biased, culture bound, and simply wrong.African Bahamians need to speak for themselves.

Critique and Commentary Through Stories and Tales

Now that we have discussed weaknesses of available materialssuch as Young's, consider these reflections, these "making sense ofthe world" by contemporary African Bahamians.

One Harbour Island resident several times referred to the factthat "many of our people come from Nigeria" and other parts ofAfrica, and stated well the need for history and culturalreflection from the African Bahamian perspective.

When I was coming up...anything to do with the Africanculture was considered very negative and downplayed.This is what I think the Commonwealth of the Bahamas hasgot to do now. It has got to examine some things; it hasgot to go back and incorporate into the curriculum inschools what a village was like in Nigeria in 1400, 1600;what their socio-political structure was; what theircustoms were; because their customs are right here today.(doc.2,p.8)

Part of their customs involve the telling of stories and"parables," as older African Bahamians call them. These parableswere used for teaching purposes, socialization, to transmit andreinforce values and behavior the community felt important. Theolder folk lament that many young people today are not interestedin these parables, hence do not learn the important values andbehaviors latent therein and therefore do not plan well for life.This loss of traditional culture has taken its toll on the Bahamianyoung, physically as well as intellectually and morally, an older

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gentleman from Gregory Town suggests.

The generation of today, they so weak, if you lay a sodabiscuit down flat, they can't straighten them up on theedge to bite it. (doc.3)

As we sit talking on his front porch, he points to a birdlooking for materials to build a nest. He said birds don't go outand have their young first and then go try to build a nest. Theyfirst build the nest, make necessary plans, and then have littleones. But many young people today, they don't plan, they don'tbuild the nest first. They try to have little ones first, withouta nest, and they get in trouble. But they don't listen to us oldfolks. It's like the saying:

Fowls don't find worms everywhere she scratch.

Now one time, when a fellah from Long Island...he toldhis father, "I gonna get married." His father say, "Taketime, take time...listen, you don't know thesituation...you better wait." The son, sure he can geta job, say "no, I gonna get married." The father say,"well, listen, I'm gonna tell you this, fowls don't findworms everywhere she scratch. Sometimes she'll scratch,scratch, scratch, and she don't find, so she gotta goanother place, and scratch...she trying to scratch tomake ends meet." He meant that everything may lookalright, but he might not be able to make a living there.(doc.11,p.8)

Of course, the elder suggests, politicians should rememberthese sayings too, such as:

Any time a cow drag a rope too long, he don't know whereyou going to find him.

This parable is often used relative to political problems,such as corruption or abuse of power by government that is allowedto continue and fester rather than be dealt with when firstdiscovered.

Now, if something going on here, you know, and you stopit right away, finish. But you let it go one and on andon, then that's trouble

These stories inevitably lead to political discussions. Anolder man, Free National Movement (FNM) inclined, just before theAugust, 1993 elections, proceeded to criticize the rulingProgressive Liberal Party (PLP) of Prime Minister Lynden Pindling.He spoke of many years of corruption, missing monies, nepotism,patronage, incompetence, mismanagement, and neglect of thefamily/out islands. Harking back to the cattle, chicken, and other

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operations "going strong" before the PLP mismanaged them, hesuggested the mismanagement and corruption continues in otherforms, and particularly hurts the family islands. Politicians inNassau keep talking about tourism, but on many family islands,agriculture and fishing are bigger than tourism but continue tosuffer from mismanagement or poor policy.

The government, they make it unprofitable anddiscouraging for the farmers...Some of the farmers (onEleuthera for example) bring the pineapples in May, andthe end of July they ain't got no money yet...Thegovernment ain't sold the pineapples from May to June toJuly now. The government trying tell you to go farm.You doing it, then when it's time for you to get what youshould get, cuz now's the time you need the money (to payfor fertilizer, weed and insect spray, etc.), you don'tget it...some of them ain't got it from last year...The(government) doing that so to keep the people kneelingdown around them...He said there ain't no money there topay. Civil service ain't even been paid... They wouldeventually get it, I guess, before the election!(doc.12,p.31)

When asked how the people live, not being paid, he suggested,"I guess that's why there's so much crime!...I heard on the radioone time, one man was talking, and he say that Christmas is comingand no money; a man's mind takes funny turns, you know."(doc.12,p.31) He went on to add that though the government saysthere is no money to pay the farmers and civil service workers,there are millions of dollars unaccounted for. He said PrimeMinister Pindling was the minister of finances, and that Mr.Ingraham (FNM candidate for Prime Minister, elected in August,1993) raised the missing money issue and "said he ain't gonna stopuntil he gets all who are involved, connected with that...over$2,000,000." "Now they say there ain't no money to pay the people,there ain't no money to do no jobs here. You see me?"(doc.12,p.32)

An older Gregory Town gentleman criticized the various PLPministers for extravagant spending and salaries inspite of theBahamas' lack of resources.

And they ain't got no minerals, no ore, no copper andgold, nothing like that. And that cut on the poorpeople. They'll keep raising, raising taxes, taxes,taxes to get it to meet their price, you see me?...

The poor man suffers...They pulling the feathers off mywings, put on their wings, to make them fly higher.(doc.12,p.33)

Those who make their living from fishing are better off,but the farmer, "...they let him go. He can die, you

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know, they don't care." (doc.l2,p.33)

A few potent parables are cited to reenforce the politicalcritique of the then ruling PLP.

If you powerful, be merciful.

The government is a pack of gangsters, unmerciful. They ain'tgot no mercy. There's power and mercy; those two should gotogether...If you got power, be merciful, you know. (doc. 11,p. 21)

He compared this parable to the story of the lion and themouse.

The mouse, the little creature, they run and run and thelion laying down sleeping. He hear them, and shake hishead, and grab them...They say, "spare my life, and someday I'll do a good turn for you." Lion say he the kingof beasts, how can he need the help of little, lousythings like them. No way, no way. They pleadpitiful...He say go ahead, go ahead, I won't kill you.that's how he had little mercy on the mice...

Later, the lion goes out, and gets caught in a trap. Themice hear his roaring. The mice say, "I know that's myfriend, the lion." They went running. Tears wererunning down his face...the mice cut and cut, and get himout. You see now, you in trouble, you thought youweren't gonna need us, but we saved your life, see?

So, if you got power, be merciful, be merciful. Andthat's the way it is all through life. (doc.11,p.21)

This Gregory Town elder suggested that the PLP is powerful,and better be merciful, because like the lion, the time will comewhen they will need mercy. Perhaps now, with the election of theFNM and the hearings regarding PLP abuse of power and finances,that time has come.

There is another parable often used to address PLP corruptionand mismanagement. The PLP has been in power for 25 years.However, before that, the Bay Street Boys dominated Bahamianpolitics. Many of the PLP politicians had no experience inpolitics, managing money, making such important decisions.Therefore, when they came to power, the PLP was like a hungry dog."You trust them with money, they're going to take it, they're gonnaspend it. You see?" (doc.11,p.43)

Never trust a hungry dog with a bone, he'll eat it!

When the PLP take over 25 years ago...there was

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$17,000,000 in the revenue...Now they say there's nomoney...That's where the bone went. He eat the meat offthe bone, then eat the bone too. (doc.12,p.37)

There are parables that suggest that politicians, like thosein other professions, can lie, deceive, and corrupt for only solong before they cause their own un-doing. One such parable is:

Can a man hide fire in his bosom and his clothes notburn?

Of course, all African Bahamians in the family islands are notanti-PLP. There are those who recognize that mistakes have beenmade, and that corruption and incompetence are bad no matter whichparty is involved. However, PLP accomplishments should not beoverlooked. One woman very active in politics contrasted the twoparties, PLP and FNM, this way: "The FNM, they are the dollarpeople. The PLP, they are the people people." (doc.17,p.2)

The former government (PLP) was more concerned with humanbeings, putting people to work, even if it meant drainingthe treasury to make sure everybody had a job. Thepresent government (FNM) would say we only have X amountof dollars and we can put only so many people to work,so you are going to have to try to find something else todo over here...The PLP would put 8 people where 2 or 3people could have done the job, but we have to keep themworking, which was good and bad. It was bad because whenyou give 8 people what 3 people can do, then nobody doesanything because everyone is expecting the other ones todo it all. I do just a quarter of what I could do. Youunderstand? So they (the FNM) would become more rigid interms of making every dollar count. They are the dollarpeople. The others (PLP) were the people people.(doc.17,p.2)

(The PLP) paid out just to keep people in work. Theywould put 6 people where two people could have done thejob...For what its worth, that's what the administrationthought, people had to work. The new government (FNM) isfaced with a problem. They have to streamline it. Whereare they going to put the people who are not working?They are going to run into an unemployment problem.(doc.17,p.6)

The FNM would push for more people to find jobs or createjobs outside of government. They would make you do ityourself. The previous government (PLP) would say well,if there are no hotels opening, if there are nomanufacturing or canning plants available, we'll put yousomewhere in a government area. You understand me now?(doc.17,p.2)

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The present government (FNM) will deal more with themiddle class and the wealthy. For 25 years the formergovernment (PLP) was considered the government that dealtwith the grassroots, or the poorer blacks, and broughtthem from the 1 room to the 4 room house, from the wheelbuggy, the old jalopy, to the brand new car.(doc.17,p.1,2)

She explains that before the PLP came to power 25 years ago,the Bay Street Boys ruled, and they didn't care about theeducation, employment, or well-being of the common person. Theycreated good private education and private health care, forexample, for themselves and their children, but did very little forthe others. The PLP came in and spent a great amount of money forpublic schools, busses, national health care, etc.

They (PLP) set up a new health system in the Bahamas, andnobody paid for medication, nobody paid for doctor'sservices if you went to the public hospital or clinic.They built clinics all over the Bahamas...Each of themhad to have a doctor...so they got from Trinidad,wherever...But they wanted to bring the Bahamas up to alevel to say we have good medical facilities, goodeducational standards, we have this, we have that...andso we just imported doctors and teachers from everywhere,because Bahamians were not educated to teach etc. on alarge scale...They had to bring in modern technology.They had to recruit and bring people in...and pay themhuge fees, and put them up in large buildings. We hadnothing, and we wanted to move fast, and so we justimported everything. And what do you do when you importit? You pay for it!

We have good roads, good airports...the big dockingfacilities in Governor's Harbour, they haven't evencompleted it yet... they got so far and they found out thechannel wasn't deep enough, can't bring in big steamships. They need to spend another quarter of a millionto get that done...When will they get the money back?But each of these islands, especially the major ones,need these facilities if they are going to move withsociety. So, that's life. (doc.17,p.5)

The (PLP) decided to educate Bahamians...they built highschools that were never here. They connected with theUWI (University of the West Indies, Jamaica) so thatBahamians could go from the high school level that theywere able to provide into Jamaica to the college level.What the previous (UBP) government did, ... the Blackpopulation was backward, so to speak. So they (PLP) wentfull gear to make sure that they brought up theeducational standards in the shortest possible time, and

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they did not make Bahamians pay for it. That is where amajority of the money went. For instance, they did notcharge for these high schools, no fees at all.(doc.17,p.4)

Education and bussing were completely free under the PLP.Money was going out of the treasury, and nothing wascoming in. Maybe this was not a good idea financially,but it was good for the common Bahamian. Now, Bahamianshave become accustomed to all these free things and wouldresist paying.

So economically the new government (FNM) is having todeal with a system that was "drained," because everyonewas to work [and because of free education, bussing,etc.]...And how are they going to bring the money levelback up? Clinton [in the U.S.) is now worrying how he isgoing to bring the deficit down...we have a similarsituation. (doc.17,p.2)

I am not saying they (PLP) were not corrupt. I am notsaying they didn't pocket funds...But I am saying thatthe majority of them didn't use their administrativepowers for themselves. (doc.17,p.5)

There were grumblings from Harbour Island, however, that foryears, the government had talked of establishing a high school inNorth Eleuthera, and nothing ever came of it. There are differentopinions among Bahamians as to the degree family islands wereneglected. One PLP apologist said this:

...the little islands could never afford to pay therevenue to compensate for the infrastructure, facilities,and utilities that were put in there. They (PLPgovernment) would give them [populations of 200, 300people, for example] state of the art, just like all thebig towns, or big islands, that could afford it...Therewas no other revenue coming in, no other economicactivity, but they would give them state of the artcommunications and telephones...and so all of that takesa lot of money. And they are never going to get anythingback from them...So it is just like giving them aservice. I mean, that is what government is all about,but you got to be making it somewhere to put it there,right? With the present government (FNM), the differencewith them is they would say, "Hey, we are going toupgrade the system in Eleuthera, or Spanish Wells,because they take in a big amount of revenue there. Butthe little town over here will have to wait...but theprevious government (PLP) say everybody can have it.(doc.17,p.4)

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This politically astute Eleutheran addressed anothetdifficulty in the Bahamas, the transition to a new government. Inthe U.S., for example, there are a few months for preparing thetransition from one government to another.

But here in the Bahamas, if the election is over tonight,tomorrow morning you are out. Could you imagine thedevastation? I hope the new administration will thinkabout this for their own future. We have to make somechanges in the Bahamian constitution and at least givetwo weeks to the old administration to come out.(doc.17,p.1)

The FNM not only had to take over immediately after theelection, but had to deal with a major catastrophe just a few dayslater.

[This administration]...is 4 months old (at the time ofthe interview), it's a baby, I usually say in a pamper.They try to act grown up. They put their lipstick onwrong...

The new government has only gone in since August 19, andon August 21, they had the most devastating hurricane theBahamas has ever seen. (doc.17,p.2)

It is interesting how Bahamians "made sense" out of thissituation: the PLP in power for 25 years, and two days after itsdefeat by the FNM, there is the most devastating hurricane inBahamian history!! Of course, some die-hard PLP supporters said,"See, that's what you get for voting the PLP out! Even God is mad,and punishing us!" Die-hard FNM supporters would counter, "See,the FNM was tested right away, and passed with flying colors!" OneHarbour Island resident said, "Because of the election result, theysay we had two hurricanes, not one!" (doc.18,p.4)

In fact, most African Bahamians were quite impressed with howthe new government organized a quick, effective response, with thehelp of other nations such as England, Canada, and the U.S. MostBahamians felt they were given adequate warning, the NationalRelief Committee was organized and acted quickly, and relevantministers came right away. Barges of fresh water were sent to thehurricane damaged areas, as were massive ice-making machines. "Itwas like war time movies, people scrambling, afraid they wouldn'tget their share." (doc.18,p.4)

There was good response to the government's sending ofpsychologists, social workers, and others from SandilandsRehabilitation Centre in Nassau. In the immediacy of the hurricaneand its aftermath, people seemed to think "we were coping verywell, thank you!" Therefore, in October or November, when teamswere sent to help victims adjust, often only a few people showed upfor the sessions. Those attending discovered they were having morecoping problems than they thought. "As we talked, we discovered

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things we were holding back...it was quite helpful. Some people,especially children, whenever there is a high wind, they are afraidanother hurricane is coming...and need another dose of therapy."Children, particularly, continue to have nightmares.(doc.l8,p.4)

There were reports of scams, charges that some relief supplieswere "siphoned off." There was considerable criticism of somelocal community relief committees. It was charged that partisanpolitics and nepotism got involved in the distribution of reliefsupplies. It was also suggested that this is indicative of manyproblems to come as the FNM tries to implement its local governmentinitiatives. The FNM would like to implement a program where apercentage of locally raised revenues from customs, hotel, tourist,and other taxes, for example, rather than being sent to Nassauwould stay in local communities who would decide how and where tospend them. "We want to get away from the tribalism, polarization,and bring everyone into helping out...appointing people because ofability instead of partisan politics." (doc.18,p.5) Hopefully suchlocal initiatives would be more effective and efficient than havingthe decisions made in Nassau. Those persons who have complainedthat the family islands have been neglected by Nassau see hope insuch programs. One person, excited about more local initiative andresponsibility, quoted John F. Kennedy as advice for Bahamians:"Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do foryour country." (doc.16,p.15) Another said, "I feel localgovernments are very beneficial...others are not sure...but howwill we know if we don't try?...and if you are given the latitudeto run your affairs, and you mess it up, who can you blame?"(doc.16,p.16)

One of the local FNM chairpersons spoke of other FNM plans,such as encouraging cottage industries; individual, private, andsmall businesses; and processing plants for locally grown tomatoes,onions, pineapples, oranges, etc. as well as other relatedbusinesses. Internal marketing among the various Bahamian islandscould be developed, rather than focus solely on exports. "Whyshould we have to export those things, and then go back to the U.S.to buy pineapple and orange juice?" (doc.16,p.15)

Other FNM initiatives include reviving slumping tourism on thefamily islands as well as Nassau; development and diversificationof agriculture and fisheries; and population dispersement. AHarbour Islander felt that perhaps the development of family islandeconomies would encourage many who migrated to Nassau in search ofemployment to return home. This "migration reversal" would addressNassau's rapid growth "and related social problems...People wouldmove out of Nassau; lots of people would like to move back to thefamily islands if they could find a job there...now, there'snothing to do here..." (doc.18,p.5)

Some young Bahamians, who had gone to the U.S. and otherplaces for education and employment, have returned to the familyislands excited over the new government and the opportunity to beinvolved in setting new directions. However, there aredifficulties. Sometimes they are perceived as "up-starts" who want

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to "take control" and "change things over night." However, theyare getting involved in local party politics, school boards, reliefcommittees, and the development of local self-governmentcommittees. One such individual seemed particularly interested inthe new government pursuing more foreign investment in the Bahamas'diversification efforts. He felt some things that would help areless paper work, less delays, less "under-the-table" tactics, andrevised guidelines relative to the ratio of Bahamian to non-Bahamian stockholders.

Even those enthusiastic about the FNM's new directions raisecautions, however, such as this person from Harbour Island.

The new administration is more pro-free enterprise. Theyhave to do that in order to get things going. Now thefear is that they might, in their enthusiasm torevitalize the economy, make concessions to freeenterprise that sort of take away the rights of thecommon man. (doc.18,p.1)

For a more complete picture of FNM plans, readers areencouraged to read a pre-election brochure prepared by the FNM, itsManifesto.

Well, on to some other parables. There are many instanceswhere the same parable can be used for different situations. Forexample:

If you don't stink for me, I will not rotten for you.

The old people mean they could do more for you than youcan do for them, you know. I'll go as far as I can foryou and then you will do nothing for me? You know, youstink for me, I rotten for you...That's the old peopletalking, old people language. (doc.11,p.15)

This Gregory Town gentleman suggests the parable fitspoliticians as well. If politicians don't stink for us, we won'trotten for them! He suggested, just before the election, that thein-power folks were trying to get things in order, "just in case."After the PLP lost, some politicians were caught, he said, goingback to offices and trying to hide or take important documents.It's like another parable:

If you tie a goat with too long a rope, it get tangled.

If somebody do something, and you waiting to try to getthe answer, and they be long in coming, they say"something wrong, something wrong." It shouldn't takethat long to come with the answer, whatever it is. Nowwhat they say if you tie a goat with too long a rope is,the goat go out there, it stomps around, until it gettangled. See? Now that mean if you don't let it go on

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and on before you come with an answer, you won't gettangled. (doc.11,p.16)

Another parable makes a similar point:

While the grass growing, the horse starving.

The PLP has had 25 years to come up with the answer. That'smore than enough time, some elders suggest. They also assert,however, that not everyone in the PLP is crooked, but it's likeanother parable:

A tied goat don't know where the loose goat does feed.

Now, if one goat is tied, he stays there. The goats thatare loose, they go a mile away. The one that is tied, hedon't know what way they gone, so he don't know whatthey're doing...A tied goat don't know where the loosegoat does feed. But many times, those goats that go feedbring trouble to the one that is tied there. They go andfeed in somebody's field, and the people have dogs. Theyput the dogs on, and they come running right back here.And when they get here, the dog then, he don't know themfrom the one tied, you hear? They go off again, andleave him there...they gone and they brought trouble tothis one here, you see? (doc.11,p.17)

So, official inquiries into political wrong-doing committed bythe "wandering goats" are like dogs being put on them. Often theycan bring trouble to the goats that stayed home as well!

There is another parable with a similar message:

A loose goat don't know what hell a tied goat does catch. A tied goat don't know where the loose goat does feed.(doc.3,p.22-4)

The following parable suggests that when a political party hasbeen in power too long, it gets stagnant. New people bring freshideas and help break up the "good old boy" systems that develop:

Put some clean water in the dirty water and it will not smell.

This parable can also be used as advice to a merchant, to besure to keep adding new stock to the store. An older gentleman inGregory Town, who ran a store, said he was given this advice froman old fellah years ago. "You need new stuff to put in with theold, to freshen it up. So you got to keep adding fresh things.Otherwise, the water goes bad." (doc.11,p.40)

Politicians as well as the young people should not dismiss theolder folks too quickly. Old folks may lose some things along the

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way, but they also gain things, like wisdom and experience. Thereis a parable which reflects this thought:

I can still jump a low fence.

Well, the older I get, the more I get appreciated. Can'tjump as high as I used to, but I can still jump a lowfence, right? (doc.11,p.46)

Health care is an important issue in the Bahamas as elsewhere,not only for the older folk, but certainly particularly for them.One older Gregory Town resident had a serious stroke a few yearsago and nearly died. He survived, but the health care required inMiami showed weaknesses in the Bahamian national health careprogram.

I done give the doctor all the money I had. I didn'thave much, but what it was, he took it. I was in MercyHospital in Miami 2 weeks and 1 day. That cost $35,000.Two weeks and 1 day, $35,000. And since I've been home,I've been back there to Miami 18 times for checkups; 18times in 5 years...And you couldn't carry less than$2,000 or $3,000 when you go for the checkups. Thedoctor, the hotel, and all that. They leave me clean asa whistle; cleaned right out. And now I can't work,can't do nothing! I don't go there now, all the money'sgone. Gotta go to Nassau now...

Now, if you go to a private doctor, outside doctor, forwhich I go for my checkup, then you have to pay...InNassau [Princess Margaret Hospital], the services arefree...I shift from the doctor [specialist] in Miami; Ihave to go to Nassau now. (doc.16,p.3,4)

When the "national insurance scheme" came into being, manyolder self-employed African Bahamians resisted. One oldergentleman said after he reached age 65, he could draw $150 a monthfrom the home leave extension.

When they first introduced this national insurancescheme, people working for themselves, self-employed...wesaid we won't pay now and when we come to need, don'tgive none. That's what we said...They did say, however,if you don't pay, they put you in jail. I don't want togo to jail. So I pay. Now when we decide to pay...wehave to go to the root of the tree, go back two years agoand you have to pay from there where it started and comeright up to where it had been. You have to pay that.And I have to pay $2,800 and some...After you get 65, youdon't pay. Now all I do now is collect what I putthere...that ain't enough! (doc.16,p.3)

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Sometimes this Gregory Town gentleman gets down, discouraged,and in such times would use another saying:

Never fertilize a dead stump!

One gentleman in Gregory Town had a brother who was a memberof Parliament several years ago. He and seven other members ofParliament questioned how others wanted to use the authority oftheir positions. Some members said, "They done put us here, we cando what we like." These eight said, "no, you can't do that. Youpromised the people so and so, and the people are looking for that.For you to do different from that, you're betraying your trust...wedon't want our grandchildren saying their old grandfathers wasfools." So, the other members of Parliament "put them out of thecircle, you know." So, the elder says, the abuse, the betraying ofpower "that they started then is just coming out today."(doc.11,p.43) This "standing for right" by the eight Parliamentmembers is the kind of thing taught by another parable:

One man with courage makes him a majority.

"What the majority wants to do isn't always the rightthing to do." (doc.l1,p.43)

Another parable is applicable here, a warning to those whorise to prominent positions, politicians and others. The moreprominent, the more visible, then the more under scrutiny:

The higher a monkey climbs, the more he exposes himself.

The higher, they say, a monkey climbs, way up high whereeverybody got to look up for hem, they find out he ain'tgot on so much clothes. If he was down low, no one wouldsee that. That goes for the big fellahs, way up there inpower, you know. (doc.11,p.37)

Some people think the former Prime Minister had been trying tocorner great amounts of money, power, and popularity to make theBahamas a Republic with himself as the first president. He hadhoped, they say, to garner a large enough plurality from the lastelection to declare such. However, he fell short at the polls.They point also to the "palace" he had built for himself from, theysay, the peoples' money. "He built it out of the people's money,and now he wants to sell it back to the people again...But thepeople already own it...You see how shrewd he is?...He wants tosell it, let the government buy it...Hopefully they won't do that."(doc.12,p.40)

Similar comments were heard on various family islands, this onefrom Harbour Island.

He's (former Prime Minister Pindling) got it in his mind,

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I think, that he wants to come back and regain thethrone...There is a lot of talk...that if he could havegotten the majority in the Parliament that he wanted,because, see, in the Parliament you must have two-thirdsin the house in order to change the constitution...he wasgoing to change the constitution and make the Bahamas aRepublic. (doc.18,p.2)

There are those who recognize the financial problems thegovernment has, and that they are partially due to corruption andabuse of power. However, they also cite the many accomplishmentsof the PLP, as cited earlier. Leaders must provide programs toaddress social and political needs. They must be activist. Butthey must also be responsible, set realistic limits, and be honest.There is a parable offering such advice:

If crab don't walk, he won't get fed. If he walk toomuch, he get put in the pot.

There are many more interesting parables and stories.However, "socio-political" critique and reflection often wentbeyond the parables and stories being discussed. Some AfricanBahamian family islanders, for example, commented on how theBritish "Westminster system" was modified by African "tribalism."They pointed out how traditional inter-tribal conflicts becomemanifested in contemporary political party politics.

What we have here, instead of the parties being onstrictly philosophical or logical bases, is a sort of "usand them." My enemy was from party A so I go to party B,and the main goal of our party is to clobber your partyso that we can be in charge and get the goodies...Peopleare not interested in politics from the philosophical[perspective]. It is more of a personal thing. Harry'son team B; I don't like Harry. We are going to get you.We will chase you up the line so we can have the cows,the sheep, and the chickens, and the rights to the river,etc. (doc.2,p.9&11)

However, the local Caucasians have their own clannishness.The indigenous Caucasians here, they have a mentality.What I especially notice among them is very similar towhat you find up in the hills of Tennessee or Kentucky,that clannish business...the Hatfields and the Mc Coys.(doc.2,p.12)

One way the "in party" in this clannish context maintainscontrol is through dominating the media and the interpretation of"news."

We have a situation right now [where] we only have onemedia [one Bahamian TV station] here besides three

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newspapers. They shape the news by sometimes leaving outsome things here and there. You can convey a differentmeaning than what was originally intended. (doc.2,p.12)

Economics is of great concern to family islanders. They feelreal tension between protecting traditional ways of making a livingand adopting new ones. They are frustrated that oftentimes thechoice is out of their hands and beyond their control. Non-Bahamian investment is perceived as a mixed blessing. Is it worththe cost? How competent is the government to deal with thesecomplex situations? How often is the government the problem ratherthan the solution? Is the Bahamas' dependence on tourism, weighingthe costs and benefits and resultant "net balance," a good thing?

...One of the things you notice is when they [non-Bahamians] come ... the Americans...Canadians, asprinkling of French, German, and everyone else...theycome from a faster pace situation to here. Things thatthey want in the utilities or the bank or the stores, orwhatever, they expect to happen right away. Whereas thissociety is a little slower moving, you get this frictionsort of thing. Then another problem is the people heretend to feel, rightly or wrongly, that when they comeinto town, because they are bringing X amount of dollars,you should drop everything and pander to them and theirneeds...The people realize that this is a large part oftheir income. On the outside they have got this greatbig smile, but on the inside, they might be thinking orsaying something else to themselves. They becomeschizoid. The majority of the population here isschizoid. (doc.6,p.6)

Several family-islanders associated the increase of tourismwith the increase in crime. Not only does the "opportunity" forcrime increase simply because of the increase in the number oftourists, but tourism increases what sociologists cause "anomie,"a dysjunction between goals and access to legitimate means toachieve them. As a luxurious life style is dangled in front ofBahamians, many of whom perceive no "legitimate" means of everachieving, crime becomes a possible means of access. Various kindsof crime, including drug trafficking, often result.

Some family islanders feel the income from drug traffickinghad even become a key component of the Bahamian economy. Hence aserious reduction in drug trafficking would hurt the economy.

...For a number of years, the Bahamas' government wasoperating under a fool's economy. Funds were generatedmainly through drug trafficking. It is only since theDEA (U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency) and other agencieshave come in and have assisted the law enforcementoffices in the Bahamas, that they were able to break downthe amount of drug trafficking...There is still some of

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it here, but at least we are now operating on a more trueBahamian economy than we did 15 - 20 years ago...It wasa boon when we had drug trafficking. (doc.10,p.10).

Many family islanders insist that the Bahamas cannot depend ontourism too heavily. It is too fickle, uncertain. They would liketo see a more diversified economy.

Certainly more money should be generated for agricultureand fisheries...there is too much emphasis on tourism.They need to generate funds in other directions. Forexample, there are thousands of acres of good farm land.Why can't they [government] generate some funds intolarge scale farming? Fish farming...more money could beput into fish farming, and so on. (doc.10,p.12)

It was suggested, however, that the Bahamian government wouldhave to do a more effective job of marketing produce for exportthan it has done in the past or present. Experiences withmarketing pineapples and tomatoes, for example, have beendisastrous. Produce sometimes rots in storage; prices paid tofarmers are often perceived as too low compared to the profit ofthe distributors; and sometimes farmers are not paid at the timethey bring their produce (perhaps sometimes not at all) so theydon't have the necessary when needed to prepare fields for the nextcrop. (doc.10 & 3)

Well, this paper could go on and on, but since it is intendedas only a modest start, let's stop. Hopefully the major thrust isclear. Much of the available material on African Bahamian historyand culture reflects more about the writers than anything else, andfew of the writers have been African Bahamians themselves. This isparticularly the case relative to the family islands. The materialis often ethnocentric and culture bound. Though this is valuablein one sense, it gives insights into the culture and perspectivesof the writers, it does not provide good understanding of AfricanBahamian cultures themselves. Without the African Bahamianexperience and perspective, how they "make sense of their world,"the account remains jaundiced, distorted, and cheated.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Albury, Paul. The Story of the Bahamas. London: Macmillan EducationLtd., 1975.

Craton, Michael.Canada:

A History of the Bahamas. Waterloo, Ontario,1986 (3rd ed.)

Document 1, interviews, Gregory Town, Eleuthera, June, 1991.

Document 2, interviews, Harbour Island, January, 1992.

Document 3, interviews, Gregory Town, Eleuthera, Fall, 1991.

Document 4, interviews, Gregory Town, Eleuthera, Fall, 1991.

Document 5, interviews, Harbour Island, January, 1992.

Document 6, interviews, Harbour Island, January, 1992.

Document 7, interviews, Nassau, January, 1992.

Document 8, interviews, Harbour Island, January, 1992.

Document 9, interviews, Harbour Island, January, 1992.

Document 10, interviews, Harbour Island, 1992.

Document 11, interviews, Gregory Town, Eleuthera, July, 1992.

Document 12, interviews, Harbour Island, July, 1992.

Document 13, interviews, Gregory Town, Eleuthera, July 13, 1992.

Document 14, interviews, Eleuthera, January, 1992.

Document 15, interviews, Harbour Island, January 15, 1992.

Document 16, interviews, Gregory Town, Eleuthera, January, 1 993.

Document 17, interviews, Eleuthera, January, 1993.

Document 18, interviews, Harbour Island, January, 1993.

Document 19, interviews, Gregory Town, Eleuthera, January, 193.

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Johnson, Howard. The Bahamas in Slavery and Freedom. Kingston,Jamaica: Ian Randle Publishers Ltd., 1991.

Riley, Sandra. The Lucavans. London: Macmillan Education Ltd.,1991.

Saunders, Gail. Bahamian Loyalists and their Slaves. London:Macmillan Education Ltd., 1983.

Saunders, Gail. Slavery in the Bahamas, 1648-1838. Nassau, 1985.

Whittier, Sara (ed.). Insight Guides: Bahamas. Hong Kong: APAProductions (HK) LTD, 1987.

Young, Everild. Eleuthera: the Island Called Freedom. London:Regency Press, 1966.

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