You always have thoughtful commentary on issues surrounding racism and prejudice that I know we all (your followers) appreciate. Can you comment on how your perspective might or might not be different because of being Trini as opposed to an African American? Did you grow up experiencing less or a different kind of stigma or an experience of being the "other" even as you were aware of how the world is? Do you feel like you have a clearer view on issues of inclusion because you're not from the US?
Thanks so much (re: thoughtful commentary)!Ā š³
As far as my perspective being differentā¦
I mean, growing up as a black man in what is considered (technically) aĀ āthird world countryā, you canāt help but be aware of howĀ āotherā you truly are.Ā (Btw - like most island natives - I absolutely hate the termĀ āThird WorldāĀ š)
You know all about America and Pop culture because of TV, music, movies etc., thatĀ youāre bombarded with your whole life that most mainstream Americans are woefully unaware of.
You can name landmarks in the US just from seeing them so much on TV, but most Americans have no clue how to pinpoint my country on a map.
So to call meĀ āotherā would be an understatement, I guess.
And thereās another layer ofĀ āotherā that you begin to grasp once you reach a certain level of maturity in adulthood in my position.
Like Iām essentially a black man in my mind. Because that is what Iām clearly defined as here.
But, the moment I set foot in America among African-Americans, theyād say to me (and yes this has happened IRL)Ā āOh, youāre not black, youāre Caribbeanā. Which basically translates toĀ āeven though we may both have brown skin and similar African features, Iām still considered American and and thus above you on the totem poleā.
So iām additionally other that wayā¦
And then conversely, our history of blackness has a slightly different path here in Trinidad (and all the Caribbean islands really).
Like, even though thereās still an unspoken sort of segregation here in some waysā¦ POC are by far the majority here and white folks (or what we termĀ āwhite peopleā) are literally a tiny fraction of our population.
So as a black man, Iāve never really feared a white policeman gunning me down unarmed for racist reasons. Or had to deal with a white racist calling me the n-word r to my face in my country. Or even had to deal with systematic racism by a ruling white majority in my daily lifeā¦
Thatās not to say we donāt have our racial tensions, mind you. East Indian and black people (being the two biggest ethnic groups) clash in various ways, but generally not in such systematic, violent and oppressive ways as in the States.
And so for those reasons thereās sort of a disconnect between my personal pride in my blackness as an Afro-Caribbean man, and the reality of what it is to be an African-American in modern day America.
Our entertainers, for instance, are mostly black and East Indian.
A homegrown caucasian singing star is literally an anomaly here. I can literally name all the great white music stars here on one hand (Calypso queen Denise Plummer, Calypso legend The Mighty Triniā¦ some locals would say the Diefenthaller brothers who make up the core of popular Soca act Kes The Band are āwhite boysā but Iām sure theyād vehemently disagree and prefer to be referred to as āred menāĀ lol).
On the political front, I rejoiced with American POC when Barack Obama made history as the First Black POTUSā¦Ā
But, at the same time, Iām still removed from the depth of that because I grew up in a country where almost all the heads of our government (Prime Ministers, Presidents, etc) have been POC, and a great majority of them were Afro-Trinidadians tbh. Even Indo-Trinidadians (the other large ethnic group here, alongside black people) have only really been a major force in ruling politics here for about two decades now.
Our first Prime Minister once we became a free nation was a black man (Dr. Eric Williams). Weāve had several other black Prime Ministers (ANR Robinson, George Chambers,Ā Patrick Manning and our current leader, Dr. Keith Rowley), and even two East Indian PMs in more recent times (Basdeo Panday and Kamla Persad-Bissessar). The same goes for most of our present and former cabinet members, commissioners of police, brigadier generals of our army, commanders of our coast guard, etc, etc.
Even on the subject of gender, again there is a divide.
The idea of electing a woman as President was mind boggling and historic to yāall in 2016, but in Trinidad our previous Prime Minister (before the current one) was a woman, and a WOC at that (of East Indian descent to be precise).
Then, thereās the fact that our political structure is more what you guys would callĀ āSocialistā in natureā¦ Our tax money pays for free health care, public schools, garbage collection, public transport (buses, ferry boats to go between Trinidad and our sister island Tobago), etc.Ā
Our health care alone would probably be considered lunacy to the average capitalist-minded American, since our official government website states:Ā āHealthcare is provided free of charge to everyone in Trinidad and Tobago, including non-nationals.ā
So, given being raised with free universal healthcare, you can probably understand how, for instance, Americaās recent political warring over Obamacare vs TrumpCare and so on is quite literally mind-boggling for people in my country.
I could go on and on but, Iām assuming you get the gist.
I would say that we Trinis feel like outsiders to many aspects of the American way of life, but at the same time, thanks to social media, TV, movies, music, pop culture on there whole, we canāt help but be plugged in to your way of life.
And then thereās the fact that major happenings in America literally affect our economy, and national security just by way of the US being such a super power.
In conclusion, I donāt think it gives me a clearer view of racism and the issue off inclusion in Hollywood, but I do think it perhaps gives me a uniquely nuanced view, if that makes any sense.
And perhaps seeing myself represented all my life in the anchors and reporters on TV news, the musicians and local actors I looked up to, as well as the local political leaders, sports stars and historic figures who were almost all POC hereā¦ Maybe that foundation helps drive my desire to see POC like myself more often and better represented in TV, films, etc?
Itās a tough topic to broach briefly on here and I hope I did a decent job in shedding some light.
Thanks again for the very smart question! Another winning ask here, @notyourlonewolf!
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