Emancipation Day

Today, August 1st, is celebrated as Emancipation Day in many parts of the Caribbean. The day that the August 1833 Slavery Abolition Act came into effect for the British Empire. While the slaves were emancipated, under the terms of the Act they were to be indentured to their owners for a further six years to help ease the transition from slavery to free labour. The Act also stipulated that all slaves under the age of six were to be freed and that the slave owners were to be compensated 20 million pounds for the loss of their “property”. The apprenticeship system under which the slaves were to be bonded to their owners until 1840 proved to be a failure and was discontinued two years earlier in 1838.

Freed from bondage, ex-slaves throughout the Caribbean would form free villages and a dynamic peasantry that existed alongside and often in conflict with the plantation system. The abolition of slavery also saw the introduction of first Chinese and then Indian indentured servants to the region by the British Government. From 1838- 1917, approximately half a million Indians were brought to the Caribbean- predominantly to British Guyana and Trinidad but also to Jamaica and some of the Windward Islands- to toil on plantations and in conditions not exactly very different from those that existed during slavery.

The history of the Caribbean is one steeped in blood, tears, sweat and oppression. It is also a history of resistance, human will and survival in the face of extreme cruelty and barbarism. The institution of slavery, abolished 173 years ago, still continues to haunt the region- the social and economic realities in many parts of the Caribbean and the ownership of economic power is still linked to slavery and colonialism; the attitudes of people, the prevalence of social and economic hierarchies based on skin colour, the fact that concepts such as “good hair” and “pretty brown skin” still prevail and that people can still adamantly state that if not for slavery and colonialism they would still be “swinging around in trees in Africa” or “suffering in Africa” are an indication that the psychological shackles on some people need to be removed. Unfortunately, too many of our people are ashamed of the past or believe, in agreement with many of the descendants of the former slave masters, that we must “move on”. Ironically these same people are the first to speak about the Holocaust or other acts of genocide! I do not advocate dwelling on the past or focussing on the wrongs of the past to such an extent that an individual or society does nothing to improve their situation. However, I do advocate that people be taught their history and that in the same way other races, cultures, nations and societies ensure that their history is never forgotten, the descendants of African slaves should ensure that their story is never marginalised or ignored. As Marcus Garvery said, ‘A people without knowledge of its past history and culture is like a tree without roots’.

I posted a lengthy entry in March for the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the trans-Atlantic slave trade by Britain. It encompasses most of my views on the slave trade, slavery and abolition so I will cut this post short and not repeat what I wrote before.

Feeling Loss and Further Confinement

I was out of commission for a few days- my laptop needs a new wireless adapter and so I give it to a colleague on Monday morning so that it could be fixed. Three days without internet and I felt extremely loss! No access to email, all my favourite alternative news sites, cricket news, msn, bank etc. Should I be concerned that I am so dependent on the internet?

The laptop was returned this evening, unfixed, because of unforeseen circumstances. Needless to say I will have to resend it at a later date and for now I will have to contend with an immobile laptop.

I will not comment on the record West Indian loss in the second test except to say how unfortunate it is that Sarwan has been ruled out for the remainder of the series because of injury and that Sidebottom’s performance only serves to highlight the value of playing regular competitive matches. West Indian cricketers play a few regional matches each year along with playing in their domestic competitions. The level of domestic cricket throughout the Caribbean is poor and does not serve to improve the skills of our cricketers. The short regional tournament’s standards are not much better! Sidebottom is no genius with the ball but playing regular cricket at a certain level day in and day out means that he has been able to hone his skills and professionalism. He simply translated this onto the test match arena, bowled a certain line and length and achieved success.

On another note vice-captain Ganga will likely be named captain and it should be distressing to any true West Indian fan to see a West Indian captain with a batting average of 27!

My friend Steve had a barbeque on Memorial Day so I spent most of Monday at his place in Long Island. It was refreshing to be out of my apartment even if it was just for the day! The usual highlights the past few months have been doctor/ therapist appointments and this state of affairs seems likely to continue for another few weeks.

I went to the doctor today and while there is progress- I can now wear the sneaker for most of the day and can actually walk a bit without the cane- I still have some tendonitis and cannot bear too much weight. The latest verdict is that I should keep on taking it gradually as I have been doing, slowly increasing the bearing of weight, lessening the dependence on the cane and discarding the boot- the new date for my return to work has been pushed forward by four weeks to July 9th. I don’t miss the UN or my office but I am so sick of being confined to this place that I would return to work tomorrow if I could! I had what has become the norm- cortisone shot- and the physical therapist told me that I had gotten approval for a further twelve sessions of therapy. My usual therapist is on vacation for a month and his colleague who has been working with me and who is more aggressive, succeeded in persuading the middle man company to approve more sessions. Kudos to him!

An Ice Island and West Indian Woes

Torturous viewing! West Indies did not bowl badly in the morning session but they dropped catches; after lunch it was all England as the weaknesses of the bowling attack were cruelly exposed. Of course, poor umpiring did not help as Collingwood was plumb LBW to Taylor in the morning and was not given out by umpire Asad Rauf. It is amazing how many times poor umpiring decisions go against us, whether we are batting or bowling.

I was not at all surprised that Prior scored a century on debut. We have made it a habit in recent years to gift centuries on debut to batsmen and from the time the fools started bowling short at him and he kept swatting them away, a century was there for the taking. What sense does it make to bowl short at a batsman if he keeps putting you away? Nothing makes my blood boil more than to see a pathetic so-called fast bowler from the West Indies bowling sugary short balls to a batsman and then giving him chat and glares. You should be on a plane back to the Caribbean in disguise! I wish I could feel positive but it appears as if an innings defeat will be the result.

In more depressing news- almost everyday we hear negative news about the destruction of the environment and climate change- I saw a feature today on BBC about Ayles Ice Island, an iceberg that broke away from the Arctic coastline in summer 2005. The iceberg is huge- 10 miles long and three miles across- and while it separated almost two years ago, it has only now received public attention. The event is significant as it has transformed geography of the region and provides more evidence of the effects of climate change. A BBC team along with two scientists have departed for the island and will be providing daily updates.

Of Nor'easters, Irish Upsets, South African Chokers and Salvaging the World Cup

As I write, the nor’easter that has been pounding the East coast is still raging outside. I just watched the news and there has been record rainfall, flooding, damage, cancelled flights and trains and chaos in general.

I was watching the cricket this morning when I got a call. It was one of my sisters in Barbados. She was at Kensington Oval and asked me if I had just seen her on tv! The organisers were forced into making admission free today in light of the consistently poor sales and attendance at all the matches this World Cup and so two of my sisters took advantage of the “freeness” and took their kids. Unfortunately she seemed to have been on tv just when I had stepped into the kitchen to grab some breakfast. I guess they took the kids for the experience and to give them something to do. Hopefully it stimulates some interest in the little ones. They seem to be much more engrossed in playstation and cartoons! However, if I was in Barbados, there was no way I would have gone, even if they had paid me! Besides the actual play on the field, the World Cup has largely been a flop. There are a few main reasons and there are quite a few people who are to blame. They are now trying to salvage something from the tournament by giving away tickets and relaxing the regulations which had taken the Caribbean element out of the venues and deterred fans. I feel insulted by all of this and if I was there, there is no way that I would have dignified them by attending.

In the battle of the giant killers today, Ireland came out on top, convincingly dismissing the inconsistent Bangladeshis. While Ireland has had a hard time in the Super Eights, Bangladesh has been hot and cold. Whippings by New Zealand and Australia were followed by a win against South Africa and a close lost against England. Even if winning consistently against top teams is too much to ask of the Tigers, they should have won today. Instead they played like an Associate team while Ireland performed like a team of seasoned professionals. From the time the Irish captain took the bold decision to bat first so as to negate the threat of Bangladesh’s left-arm spinning trio, they dominated the game and thoroughly deserved their victory.

The World Cup has had its fair share of highs and lows (for us West Indian fans, largely lows) but as the Super Eights has progressed, it has become much more interesting. The results from the last few games mean that the match between England and South Africa on Tuesday assumes quarter-finals proportions. Speaking of South Africa, they continuously justify their tag as the perennial chokers of international cricket. They came into the World Cup as the number one ranked team in one day internationals, but have suddenly began to look very ordinary. They almost snatched defeat from the jaws of victory against Sri Lanka, lost to Bangladesh and put in a dismal performance yesterday against New Zealand. South Africa is not one of the teams I like, but at this point I am supporting anyone who may somehow halt the Aussies. When the South Africans returned to international cricket after their ban was lifted, they were right there at the top of the list of teams I dislike. A post-apartheid South African team still full of players from the white minority was a definite no for me! I did feel sorry for them in 1999 when they somehow managed to lose to Australia in the semis, but not when they botched up the Duckworth/Lewis calculations in 2003 and had to exit in the first round. As their team has become a bit more diversified (it still doesn’t reflect the country’s racial composition) I have somewhat thawed towards them, although their captain Graeme Smith remains one of the biggest whingers in cricket!

Sir Frank Worrell- West Indian Hero

40 years ago on this day, the Caribbean lost one of its greatest leaders. He was not a Prime Minister or Premier, but the first black captain of the West Indies cricket team. Sir Frank Mortimer Maglinne Worrell succeeded in doing what no politician before him or since has been able to do- unite an archipelago of islands with a similar history but each with its own insular view of itself. It may not have been a political or economic union, but his achievement in bringing the region together through a beautiful game that is much more than a sport in the West Indies is unrivalled. Notwithstanding this, he was also a great batsman and a member of the legendary three Ws from Barbados. While Weekes was regarded as the best batsman of the trio and Walcott was a powerful hitter of the ball, Worrell was the poet and artist, being described as one who never made an ungrammatical stroke. Tragically, like quite a few other leaders and activists in the 1960s who challenged the status quo (Fanon, Malcolm X, MLK, Che, Lumumba), he died very young.

It was therefore fitting that the West Indies team which defeated Pakistan in the opening game of the World Cup today played like a cohesive unit instead of a bunch of disparate individuals like they have been doing so often in the past decade. While they started badly, once they had recovered, they never looked back. There were some questions over strategy but in the end everything worked out fine. Even more pleasing was that some of the players who have failed miserably to fulfil their obvious potential- Dwayne Smith and Marlon Samuels in particular- stepped up today and led the charge. If they continue to play like this and work on the weak areas, they can prove to be serious contenders for the Cup.

Memories of Past Glory

*Photos from www.cricinfo.com and BBC Website

It snowed on and off yesterday evening/night and also for part of today. I was watching the news a little while ago and as usual the snow seems to have caused its fair share of chaos. I saw a little boy playing in the snow with his father earlier. One of my nephews came to mind. My sister is studying in Ohio and from the time my nephew was told he would be joining her there, he was on about playing in the snow in America. He was about three then. A year and a half later and the poor boy has hardly seen any snow. Last year there was a small amount and this year there has only been heavy snow there once or twice. At least he did get to play in the snow, even though not as much as he would have liked, and can tell his cousins all about it when he goes back home.

I saw an article in today’s Nation about the plans to honour the members of the Clive Lloyd led West Indies teams that won the first two Cricket World Cups in 1975 and 1979. There will be a brief ceremony before the opening match of the tournament on March 13th where the surviving eighteen members will be presented with memorabilia. Families of three deceased players as well as the family of the late Sir Clyde Walcott who was manager of both teams will receive presentations later in the tournament. As far as I am concerned, this is the best news about the World Cup in a long time, especially as we have been having our fill of negative stories about large sums of wasted money, corruption, slow ticket sales and visa disorder. What better way to honour these great players who brought glory to the Caribbean than for the Windies to lift that trophy on April 28th in Barbados. Let me indulge myself a little bit more: a Lara century and a Bradshaw five wicket haul. Ok back to reality now. They probably will not even make it pass the first round!