Orville Taylor | ‘Emancipendence’: an incomplete project

Emancipation Day was yesterday. The athletics programme at the Commonwealth Games ends today.

Apart from Mozambique, Gabon, and Togo, all members of the Commonwealth are former British colonies. Cameroon is interesting, because although not a former territory within the British Empire, it has a significant minority of English speakers, who comprise around 20 per cent of the population.

Two former British colonies, Zimbabwe, who left in 2003 and Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, are conspicuously absent. Interestingly, Myanmar made the decision back in 1948, to not seek or accept membership in the organisation.

The Commonwealth is a sore point for some patriots. While the benefit of having an organisation that comprises a large number of countries with some similarity in history and commonality of governance cannot be ignored, it does raise the question as to whether or not being a member of what formerly was the British Empire and being a truly independent nation are compatible goals.

Some countries such as Trinidad and Tobago, the paradoxically named Commonwealth of Dominica and a few others, are republics and, as a consequence, do not recognise the British monarchy, personified in King Charles, as head of state.

Australia, New Zealand and Canada, among others, with white majority populations, seem to have not any compunction in having a local representative of the king, a governor general. Perhaps, they simply are comfortable with the extension of their erstwhile identities, determined factors extension of English culture outside of the British Isles.

There is something very different when a non-native or even native population is dominated, enslaved, transported or turned into second class inhabitants. Here in the Anglophone Caribbean and continental Africa there was a deliberate and sustained strategy to purge our identities.

While tribal and other ethnic features were somewhat tolerated on the continent and the Indian subcontinent, we Jamaicans were seasoned out of our Africanness.

We fortunately have carved out a unique identity, marked by a culture that is very pervasive. One can reasonably argue that apart from possibly black American culture, Jamaica has the single most set of black beliefs and practices with the most global impact.

For me unlike some Rastafarians, there is no complete uprooting and repatriation to Africa. A visit or extended stay, yes; but being Jamaican is a big deal for me. Continental Africans are far better at being that type of African than we are. Even if my fluency in Twi becomes close to my Spanish and I become fully engrossed in the nuances of Akan ethnicity, I will only be a ‘distant relative’ who is learning his roots.

Something happened during the middle passage, which made us different from those who remained. Something else happened to us on this piece of rock, where we were not only trapped on the plantations, but completely sequestered by the Caribbean Sea.

Funny irony, we live on an island, surrounded by sea – although understandably with little access to the beaches – and yet most of us are not good swimmers.

On an African chassis, we built a new vehicle, still recognisable as African, but doubtless, flavoured and curried by not only the bland British overarching dictates of hegemony, but wonderful infusions after our Asian brothers and sisters were lured here.

Jamaican bandana, Indian in origin, is our equivalent of Ashanti Kente. Not to mention that the ‘ishens’ for which we are stereotyped came over with Mr Marahaj.

And while there is the narrative about it being found on the grave of King Solomon, the word ‘ganja’ is straight from Hindi and Sanskrit. For the record, the Indian content does not invalidate our Africanity. Most cultures are syncretic, and incorporate elements from others. For example, Swahili, spoken by more than 200 million east Africans, has about 20 to 30 per cent Arabic content. Yet it is still African.

Still, there is still this cultural ambivalence. Jamaicans are hybrids; we have British instructions as well as non-European influences. And herein lies the contradiction.

Separate from the governance structure associated with having a governor general as well as having the British Privy Council as our final appellate court, the reward system of recognising Afro Saxons with prestigious titles still pervades the structure.

Until Jamaica gets to the point where it removes a monarch as head of state, while of course recognising him as the leader of a country, with which we have a friendly relationship, the independence and emancipation process will be incomplete.

A truly independent country with an emancipated workforce, especially the intelligentsia, cannot be comfortable with titles, which by their very nature demean our sovereignty.

Doubtless, a departure from the kingship must also involve a repudiation of the term King’s Counsel (KC). These two letters by themselves, as an alumnus of STGC are amusingly noisome, of course in a friendly way. Nevertheless, we must find another way of honouring senior members of the legal profession, who have not only distinguish themselves within their practice but, more importantly, contributed via that route to nation building.

Our governor general appropriately wears the title ‘sir’. As the king’s representative, this is doubtless not an entitlement, but a responsibility to be so called. Yet, when one considers who his peers are, among those with the title in England, he should actually have a higher title, such as baron or lord.

Notwithstanding the above, my simple position is that no one who is unwilling to give up a KC, and absolutely no one in the Caribbean with the title of sir should either have a voice in any argument for decolonisation or reparation.

Happy Emancipendence; and let us continue the process of expunging our mental slavery.

Orville Taylor is senior lecturer at the Department of Sociology at The University of the West Indies, a radio talk-show host, and author of ‘Broken Promises, Hearts and Pockets’. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and tayloronblackline@hotmail.com.